Building Cococo – #8 – Walls
Great and not-so-great construction news, a small branding tweak, a reel that won't go viral, and how the kitchen is about to look.
Great and not-so-great construction news, a small branding tweak, a reel that won't go viral, and how the kitchen is about to look.
Construction Update
The good news:
- All the major concrete works are done
- All the walls are in place
- We're on time
The not-so-great news:
- We move to the "Finishings", where the problems usually start.
The first part of the construction is more expensive and requires harder work, but there is not much room for misunderstandings. The columns, beams, and walls should be in certain dimensions, and it's very clear if the result follows the plan.
Now we're moving to the "Finishings" part, which includes more things that are not as clear as the main layout.
The wiring, the plastering, the paint, those are very exciting parts, but also where normally the miscommunications with the contractor begin.
What that means practically is that I'm gonna be more often on-site, making sure things are going as planned.
Coworking - Community - Coconuts
I've been talking a lot about different ways to offer a "Coliving" before I'm able to build accommodation by myself. The more time passes, I understand it's not something I will be able to do in the start. There are just too many other things.
Until this is figured out, I made a small change to Cococo's original abbreviation (Coworking, Coliving, Community). Since Siargao is the coconut island, and the space will be coconut-themed, I find that this new abbreviation fits well:
Followed by a small change to the logo that was done with the help of Midjourney, I made a small branding tweak.
Community
The community keeps following the trend and getting a bit massive, with around 20 daily requests(some are bots) to join the FB group, and more than 30 people join the dinners every Thursday.
As expected, people are starting to ask for more than just a weekly dinner. It does make sense as one event is not enough for this size of a community, and if you missed the dinner - you might have 2 weeks without seeing anyone.
The community members suggested all kinds of events: Networking, Speed dating, Day trips, Boat trips, or Skillshare - all sound pretty good.
Since I'm already kind of on my limit with free time, I am actively looking for a community manager to take care of the chat groups and community dinners and to be able to add some more events.
Until I find a community manager (as posted on the new careers page) who can also take care of Social media, you can enjoy me doing my best to make an Instagram reel:
Cafe Menu
Been working this week with the food consultant on planning a menu that will be as lean as possible. Since the space is remote, I want it to be efficient and able to keep profitability on slower days.
This is still the very beginning, so will explain further on that in the next issue after we do some tastings 😋
A few more
- I missed the Bansko Nomad Fest, which I really wanted to attend, but no way with my current budget and workload. Hopefully, next year I'll be able to visit and promote Cococo and the Philippines as a Digital nomad destination.
- Everything's getting tight. The budget, the decisions I need to make, The demands from the local authorities - mixed with the usual stress of full-time Indie hacking, it's getting quite heavy. Doing my best not to be burnt out again, as I did in 2021 while running my E-commerce agency.
- Different groups have contacted me to take part in Digital Nomad festivals in the Philippines. I am very keen to help but will wait with that until a better time. Can't do it all.
- I am starting a new partnership with a local NGO, where I'll teach locals interested in learning online skills. Excited about that and will share how it goes.
Thanks for reading. See you at the next one!