Deskover : a new platform to book your desk in Luxembourg

What’s your story ?

I am Francesca and I come from Italy. I left my country in 2012 and I spent the following years between Sweden, the Netherlands and now Luxembourg, where I decided to settle in 5 years ago. I studied mechanical engineering and after a short experience in a manufacturing company, where I worked in supply-chain an engineering, I decided to quit my job to find another one for which I’d be passionate about. That’s when I found my current job as an energy engineer in the Sustainability department of PwC Luxembourg. 2 years ago I also started working on an entrepreneurial project that became reality when I finally opened my own company, Deskover Sàrl.

What is Deskover exactly ?

Deskover is an online marketplace that connects people looking for a spot to work or study, with available desks in coworking spaces, at any time. In other words, it is an online platform where you have on one side the users, those who look for available desks near them and can book them online, and hosts, coworking spaces who decide to monetize their spare capacity on the other side.

The uniqueness of Deskover lies on three facts :

• Opening times of the listed spaces : through Deskover - and only through Deskover in Luxembourg ! - users can find and book a desk at any time, even after business hours : on evenings and weekends included.
• Flexibility : users can decide to book a desk for a few days, one full day, but also for only half a day or even 1 hour. This is unprecedented in Luxembourg.
• Digitalization : everything is digital and managed through the platform, there’s no need to write emails, sign paper contracts or collect badges to enter the premises. The coworking spaces do not need extra personnel to be present and open the doors, since we provide them the possibility to install a QR code reader to manage the accesses.

  

  To whom is this solution dedicated ?

Deskover makes life easier for :

• Working professionals studying for professional qualifications exams, like CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst), MBA, etc. They often struggle to find places where they can focus after work and on weekends.
• Aspiring entrepreneurs, who are developing a project while still working full time. They encounter the same problem when it comes to opening times.
• Freelancers and entrepreneurs who are looking for extreme flexibility.
• Working professionals who want to change the environment because they are tired of Home-Based Work (HBW) or who want to work from a different office than theirs for one day.
• Students who want an alternative to libraries and coffee shops. The coworking spaces listed on Deskover offer a great way to change environment, from the typical “library-like” one, to a more creative and inspiring one. The spaces are different from each other but they all offer a great design, resting areas and most of the time free coffee and tea !

How important is to be supported in the creation of a business ?

Unless you studied something specific around entrepreneurship, you might be completely lost in the beginning ! Without knowing what to do, it is very difficult to advance in the right direction. You might have the impression you are advancing, but there’s a chance that you’re doing it wrong, so you’ll have to go back and do it all from scratch again. There’s structure in everything, and creativity is no exception.

Having support from an organization as Nyuko, suiting such a delicate phase of your project, comes with great benefits, on top of the structure mentioned above :

- building confidence
- keeping motivated thanks to the hard job of mentors
- Being part of a community : this being a very important point !

What are the 3 elements that boost your productivity ?

Discipline, purpose and customers. Discipline is what makes me continue, despite ups and downs.

What would you change or do differently if you could start over tomorrow ?

I’d spend more time on action and less on making something as perfect as possible (which is never the case). I’d be less afraid to be judged for possible mistakes.

What are the 3 things you are proud of ?

• My engineering master’s degree
• Being able to keep a healthy lifestyle and healthy relationships despite being very busy
• Being able to open a company, manage it and grow it while working full time and growing in my full-time job as well.

What is your favourite quote ?

“Calm down and live your life” - just heard it from an old man on TikTok.

Francesca Pogliani was supported by nyuko for the creation of her business. Accompanying people through their entrepreneurial journey is the purpose of this.

If this article inspired you, do not hesitate to contact nyuko !