A place for working—and more

FUHUB is the newest addition to the WISTA Innovation Campus FUBIC and to Berlin’s growing, innovative Southwest. One of the first tenants is SimpliOffice, a young company operating co-working spaces and event venues.

Cycle to the office. Take a shower before hitting the desk. Grab a quick coffee before the meeting. Go to a sports course later, take a power nap, or a play a round of foosball with the guys from the next-door office. Have a nice meal before the big evening event. This is what the dream workplace of many “office people” might look like. SimpliOffice is currently building one just like this at the new FUHUB in Berlin-Dahlem. Founder and managing director Dirk Griesinger smiles when we ask him why “his” co-working spaces are different than others. “Above all, it’s because we don’t see us as a co-working space at all,” he says. “We strive to empower people to do and want more. And we create the right places to do so.”

From his life at SimpliOffice, Griesinger knows full well that a workplace can be more than a desk and a chair. It’s the “surroundings” that can inspire people to achieve top performance. In his role as a human resource professional, he has consulted to numerous companies and most recently played a key role in the growth of a division within Google as the head of human resources. He experienced the transformation at Silicon Valley first-hand—away from large open-plan offices towards smaller spaces and later the sharing economy, omitting fixed desks. “In Germany, we’re always a few years behind the developments in the Valley,” he says. “For this reason, I sat down in 2016 and asked myself how I can the shape tomorrow’s world of work here as well.”

He was convinced that decentral structures were to play a key role in this. Furthermore, he was sure that performance, motivation and people’s individual needs were closely linked. He tried to get a little closer to the new world of work with an app. But then everything grew a few sizes. “We opened the first space in Leipzig in 2019,” he says. “By doing so, I’m happy to say that one of my biggest dreams has come true. I created a workplace that I view as being ideal for my team.” He has opened three more spaces since then. One in Potsdam, one in Berlin, and another one in Leipzig. Three more are under construction. In doing so, he has thrown the conventional co-working concept overboard.

“We have four departments under the roof of the SimpliUs Holding: SimpliOffice, SimpliFit, SimpliFood and SimpliLiving,” says Griesinger. “Each one meets a certain human need and aims at making available to people what they need right now.” With SimpliOffice, he offers “nomads”, as he calls that segment, a place to work. People who are visiting the city for a day or two and don’t need a permanent workplace can book a spot. The “settlers” can take out a subscription and receive a dedicated desk. “Founders” rent a whole office space of their own. Or several. “With SimpliFit, we have created a modern version of workplace health management,” he continues. “Here, we haven’t just created areas for sports, but have added fitness trainers and physical therapists to the space.”

SimpliFood focuses on promoting healthy eating habits at work. The beating heart is a robot from the Hamburg-based company GoodBytz, which prepares fresh food right behind the main entrance of FUHUB 24/7. This goes from porridge in the morning, to lentil soup and Thai curry, or a classic Spaghetti Bolognese. Lastly, SimpliLiving facilitates relaxation periods. The office features sleeping cabins that can be booked via an app.

The new space at FUHUB in Dahlem will also offer all of these services. “The research landscape that is currently being created here is a flagship project in Europe,” says Griesinger enthusiastically. “We look forward to being a part of it.”

Kai Dürfeld for POTENZIAL

• WISTA-Innovationscampus FUBIC
• FUHUB Berlin | Office- & Laborflächen
• SimpliOffice - Coworking Space und Eventlocation