German Coworking Federation e.V. – Bundesverband Coworking

What German Coworking Federation e.V. – Bundesverband Coworking does

German Coworking Federation e.V. (Bundesverband Coworking in Deutschland) is a registered nonprofit association (eingetragener Verein) founded in 2015 and headquartered in Braunschweig, with an operational office in Jena. It functions as the national federation for the German coworking movement, serving coworking space operators, founders, community managers, supporting companies, municipalities, and researchers. The organization's core activities include monthly online Netzwerktreffen Coworking (organized jointly with CoWorkLand eG), the annual COWORK conference (the oldest coworking conference in the German-speaking region), the GCF Akademie educational programs (founder workshops and facilitation training), member meetings, BarCamp-format Coworking-Camp events, and the multi-day Coworking Festival Germany. It also co-promotes international events such as Coworking Europe and European Coworking Day.

The business model is a community-led nonprofit: revenue derives from annual membership subscriptions (regular members and Fördermitgliedschaft / supporting memberships for corporate sponsors), workshop and academy fees, and minor event ticketing. GCF's technology stack is a conventional low-cost SaaS configuration: WordPress for the public website, a dedicated member platform at member.coworking-germany.org, pretix for event ticketing, MailChimp for the bi-weekly newsletter, Zoho CRM for member and contract data, and PayPal/Stripe for payment processing. Distribution is primarily direct through the website and member platform, supplemented by partnerships with CoWorkLand eG domestically and JCCO Japan, European Coworking Assembly, and Coworking Alliance internationally. The organization is governed by a volunteer Vorstand (board) of four members and operates with approximately five staff, with no disclosed funding rounds or external investment.

Name

German Coworking Federation e.V. – Bundesverband Coworking

Legal name

German Coworking Federation e.V.

Website

https://coworking-germany.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

German Coworking Federation e.V. is the national nonprofit association for the German coworking movement, providing networking, education, and advocacy for coworking space operators, founders, community managers, and supporting companies across Germany.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Business Associations (813910), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Virtual/Hybrid Conference Production & Platform Management (THAHACAM), Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK), Partner, Channel & Vendor Conferences (MPAGAGAL)

Keywords

• Coworking industry association
• Flexible workspace federation
• Coworking policy advocacy
• Shared workspace networking
• Coworking operator membership

Headquarters

HQ city

Braunschweig

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: Annual membership fees for coworking space operators, community managers, and supporters. Members receive access to workshops at discounted rates and exclusive member-only events.
2. Academy/Workshop fees: Revenue from founder workshops (Gründer*innen-Workshop) and facilitation trainings. Six-session online workshops providing 12 hours of practical knowledge tailored to coworking projects.
3. Event ticketing: Some events may have ticketing through pretix platform. Most networking meetings are free for members.
4. Sponsoring/Fördermitgliedschaft: Supporting membership (Fördermitgliedschaft) for companies that want to support the coworking movement, providing corporate sponsorship revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

German Coworking Federation e.V. is a nonprofit industry association that represents the German coworking movement, providing membership services, networking events, professional education workshops, and policy advocacy for coworking operators, workspace providers, and sector stakeholders across Germany. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Braunschweig with an operational office in Jena, the federation convenes the industry through paid workshops, ticketed events, and member benefits while acting as the sector's unified voice in regulatory and policy discussions.

Product overview

German Coworking Federation e.V. is a national association for the German coworking movement, not a software product company. The organization operates a portfolio of community-focused services including monthly networking meetings (Netzwerktreffen Coworking) organized jointly with CoWorkLand eG, founder workshops (Gründer*innen Workshop – START) in the GCF Akademie, and the annual COWORK conference as its flagship event. Additional offerings include member meetings, BarCamp-format Coworking-Camp events, and the Coworking Festival Germany. The association co-promotes international events like the Coworking Europe Conference and European Coworking Day, and facilitates member access through an online membership platform. Services are delivered through online platforms (Zoom, Google Meet), the pretix ticketing system, and MailChimp newsletters.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Association Membership
• Industry Workshops and Education Programs
• Networking Events and Conferences
• Policy Advocacy and Industry Representation

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration17 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• CoWorkLand eGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLongstanding strategic partnership for joint organization of monthly Netzwerktreffen Coworking networking events. CoWorkLand eG is a cooperative and the primary collaboration partner for the association's regular programming.
• CobotminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFördermitglied (supporting member) of the association. Provides coworking management software and supports the coworking movement in Germany.
• Japan Coworking Space & Community Manager Organization (JCCO)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJapanese counterpart organization for coworking spaces and community managers. Facilitated exchange session on Japanese coworking trends (June 2026 Netzwerktreffen).
• European Coworking AssemblyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerOrganizational partner for European Coworking Day (June 6 annually). Coordinates decentralized action day across European coworking spaces.
• Coworking AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational coworking network organizing the annual Coworking Alliance Summit. GCF members receive free access via voucher code.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Cobot: Coworking management software provider and GCF supporting member (Fördermitglied); serves the same German space-operator customer base with adjacent SaaS tooling rather than association services.

Broad incumbents

• New Work SE:
• IWG (Spaces / HQ): Global flex-space operator whose Spaces and HQ brands compete for the same German workspace customers that GCF members serve; representative of the broader incumbent landscape that GCF's members navigate.

Regional players

• Japan Coworking Space & Community Manager Organization (JCCO): Japanese counterpart organization for coworking spaces and community managers; serves as a regional peer covering the same association function in a different geography, with GCF and JCCO engaging in mutual exchange sessions.

Direct peers

• Coworking Alliance: International network organizing the annual Coworking Alliance Summit and providing member communities for coworking hosts; directly comparable as a coworking network/association peer of GCF.
• CoWorkLand eG: German coworking cooperative and GCF's closest strategic partner; they jointly organize the monthly Netzwerktreffen Coworking and serve overlapping audiences of German coworking space operators and founders.
• European Coworking Assembly: European-level coworking federation coordinating European Coworking Day and pan-European programs; GCF is an organizational partner, making them peers in the coworking-association category.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/GermanCoworkingFederation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/germancoworkingfederation
• Instagraminstagram.com/germancoworkingfederation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about German Coworking Federation e.V. – Bundesverband Coworking