succeed otherwise - The sound of the waves, the sea air, the Sun, hot coffee on the balcony, quiet. You are in Tamraght, small Moroccan village a few kilometres north of Agadir, not not on vacation but to work.
since the spring of 2015, it is betting that embarked
The Blue House
: bring in startups or "
digital nomad
" (
digital Nomad) to Morocco, their offer a space for coworking and fun activities, to booster their productivity and creativity.
A the origin of the project, taking conscience of a young French woman, Aline Mayard. Having alternated working in startup, journalism and travel, she finds herself one day in a startup in the Moroccan village where she set up The Blue House. The conclusion was simple, obvious: "I worked better", she explains to the
HuffPost
. "It feels more like the stress of everyday life. Finish the metro, the rain, the incessant calls relatives. Here is sea air, sea, bright offices... There is no more 'breaks fags' but the surf breaks. Short, it is far from the hustle and bustle of the cities,"it details.
© The Blue House
digital Nomad
"there is not need to be grounded in a box to be productive", says Stuart Gardner, one of the first to have attended the project when it was still in the test phase, at the beginning of the year. "Have a nice view, air of the sea, sunset, all this makes us more productive and probably more creative," adds this Londoner. At the age of 30, he worked for the
GP Agency, based in London, headed the management but more generally of all aspects of the business. For this job, he must travel much. "I'm a 'digital Nomad' for about a year and a half. I worked, to mention only a few cities, in Paris, Berlin, Geneva, Rome, Vilinus, Stockholm... Currently I am in Taipei,"he says to the
HuffPost
.
Stuart during his stay in the Blue House second from the left, top)
- © The Blue House
Yoga, work, surf, work, meditation, work
through three programs, profiles of workers can settle for a few days in this big house. Startups wishing that their team take back, grow together, expand... can thus choose the "residence" programme, which lasts ten days. Only people, who have no fixed office and move a lot, can make the "retired", open to all, they are made for those who like to work in less stressful environments, want to disconnect, get to the green. Count € 600 per person for a residence, 100 to €150 for a retreat. Another private program exists, "offsites" for groups of 10 to 100 people.
on-site, these craftsmen of modern work can fully concentrate on their professional tasks and must take care of anything. "Meals, rooms, everything is planned. Yoga and meditation sessions and surfing courses are courses", details Aline Mayard.
"On a the ability to exit the program when you want to," said Stuart. "If one wants to spend the day on the beach, we can, if we want to spend the day professional calls, can also. Most of the time, we stood up and did a bit of sport before breakfast. This meal was followed by work, of surf, a small passage in the market or in the hammam, all depends on what we search. "For me, it was working all day and a bit of swimming in the ocean in early evening."
to be surrounded by people who work in the same way, but in other areas, seems to be successful. "We formed good links with people when one lives and works together, if only for a few days. Everybody gives a hand, helping others to work, solve problems. It was a very collaborative environment,"says Stuart.
© The Blue House
to finance this project, Aline Mayard launched a campaign of crowfunding on Indiegogo
early. It also could count on pre-sales. Stuart, for example, funded Aline on the platform. It is why he will return to the Morocco year next to a few days of retirement. Personal savings of Aline Mayard also increased. Today, she works always as
journalist for the Wamda
site, more of the time that she devotes to The Blue House.
a way of life increasingly prized
for the moment, two pilot programs have been held in the spring, one in March, another in May. The House officially opened its doors in October. The months of November and December will be quiet - Christmas and holiday in the approach requires - but the next session is scheduled from 9 to 19 January.
for work
, more and more self-employed workers or
entrepreneurs adopt this nomadic lifestyle. In the world, similar to The Blue House projects attract entrepreneurs looking for space to give free rein to their productivity. This is the case, for example, of the area of co-working
Hubud on the island of Bali Ubud or the "
Surf Office
" in the Canary Islands, Shiva and California. Each time, the formula is essentially the same: an idyllic setting of good activities for the body and mind, individuals that will boost your creativity.
"as a digital nomad, I meet more and more people who can travel and work, and I can easily imagine a future with the 'Blue House' at the four corners of the world where you can stop to work a few days", think Stuart, who adds that these houses also allow these workers relocated to avoid loneliness. "Being a digital Nomad is a super experience but like everything, there are some bad sides. In particular, you can quickly feel alone when you go from one place to the other." It is good, the objective of Aline Mayard, in the months and years to come, is to open other houses.
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