Meet Peter - our member of the month in December!

Introduction round: Who are you and where are you from?
My name is Peter and I'm originally from Kulmbach, a town in Franconia, Northern Bavaria. I've been living in Berlin for 17 years now - man, time’s running!

What made you come to Berlin?
I was in my early twenties when I received my degree in computer sciences and started working as a backend developer in the New Economy in Bavaria. After some time, I found myself being too settled down for that age. ;-)
Plus, although I like programming, I thrive on the interaction with other people, which I sometimes missed as a developer. Plus, I had been visiting Berlin as a skateboarder in the mid-90s on and always loved the city, being unlike any other city in Germany. So I applied for Service and Interaction Design at the University of Arts, Berlin (Universität der Künste) and was admitted. After finishing, I stayed here ever since to work and enjoy life.

What exactly do you do? What's in the pipeline for the near future?
I’ve been a freelance consultant and developer the last couple of years. I focus on creating, managing and also implementing service design solutions for both major companies & agencies as well as start-ups. In the years to come I am going to focus on developing digital solutions for fostering well-being, wellness and physical & mental health.

Since when do you cowork at Office Club Berlin Prenzlauer Berg?
I started coworking at Office Club when I found myself too easily distracted at home or other places when becoming a parent. Being a dad of two without fixed working hours means that I really have to focus on work when I have a time window for it. Office Club helps me by providing an ergonomic and distraction-free work environment.

What is the benefit of using a coworking space for you?
I’ve been coworking ever since Ansgar Oberholz and Koulla Louca started out with this concept in Berlin in 2005. In my opinion coworking spaces can provide many different things depending on your needs: For example, the mentioned Sankt Oberholz is very lively and you can meet interesting people from all around the world. Then there is Wonder, a coworking space specializing on women and women’s networking. As mentioned before, Office Club yet again has another focus - providing a calm work environment for deep work sessions.
I've personally always enjoyed working from different places - be it at home, in an office, in a café, a coworking space or somewhere else. This alternation nurtures my creativity.

Which questions / problems could you help your co-working neighbor with?
I’m a service designer and developer, so if you ever happen to be in need of a sparring partner to discuss digital topics, problems or solutions: Hit me up. And since my hobbies are Yoga, barefoot running and breathwork, I’m always happy to share experiences about that too. ;-)

Do you have favourite spots in Berlin? Something to recommend / consider especially for people coming here?
Too many things to recommend - I guess there’s something to enjoy for everybody, no matter the interest or focus in life! But since I’m a passionate vegetarian, I’d recommend to dive into the plethora of vegan and vegetarian restaurants - be it the fast food way like Smokey Greens on Oderberger Strasse or a the fancy end of things like the marvelous Cookies Cream in downtown Mitte. Also, I’ve you are into Yoga and prefer a holistic and traditional practice, I recommend YOGA VIHAR in Charlottenburg. Yoga hardly can get more authentic and back to the roots as with Swami Namboothiri, the founder. I also enjoy good coffee, which is why I drag any visitor coming to Berlin to Bonanza Coffee Heroes. Last, not least I'd recommend anybody who's into cool yet timeless menswear to drop by my friend Wibke's fashion label store A.D.Deertz on Torstrasse in Mitte. It’s one of Berlin’s most authentic fashion labels plus Wibke is a real sweetheart, always happy to give some style advice.

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Thanks a lot and all the best to you!