Opening this afternoon, December 5, the new space will feature a multipurpose room, 16 workstations, and an acoustic booth.

Portimão is inaugurating its new Coworking Space this afternoon, December 5, at 15h00, as part of the City Day celebrations. The space is located on the premises of the old Lota (fish market) building on Portimão’s riverfront, where the Tourist Office also operates.

The inauguration ceremony will be attended by Álvaro Bila, president of Portimão City Council and the councillor responsible for Entrepreneurship in the Municipality, Sandra Pereira, as well as José Apolinário, president of the Algarve Regional Coordination and Development Commission.

“The Municipality’s coworking space aims to strengthen the local business community, promoting collaboration and innovation and offering ideal conditions for entrepreneurs looking to develop their projects in the heart of the city”, says the Municipality in a press release.

With a modern and cosy atmosphere, the 1st floor will have a multipurpose room for shared use, meetings and various events, while the 2nd floor will have 16 workstations and an individual acoustic booth for holding online meetings.

The registration form and the respective space operation rules will soon be available on the city hall’s website.

Conference on smart cities and the digital revolution

The Municipality is also hosting the conference “Smart Cities and the Digital Revolution: Opportunities and Challenges” this morning in the School of Hotel Management and Tourism of Portimão (EHT) auditorium to mark the end of the Acceleration Programme.

The conference brings together a panel of experts to address the challenges and opportunities of smart cities in the economy, sustainability and innovation sectors, with guest speakers Sandra Pereira, councillor at Portimão City Council, Ivo Carvalho, founder of BlueGarve, and Raquel Melo, CEO of Inboundware, moderated by Rui Ferreira, from Casa Mendes Gonçalves.

Before the conference, entrepreneurs participating in the Municipality’s Bootcamp presented their projects to a judging panel. André Gomes, president of the Algarve Tourist Region, participated in the closing session.

Ten innovative projects in smart cities and gastronomy participated in this Acceleration Programme, such as Teko Foods, which develops healthy functional foods; Clickmenu.ai, a smart digital menu for restaurants; and Gulfo, a system that allows customers to place orders at restaurants using their cell phones.

In the same area are the projects “Taberna by Lucia”, which proposes traditional Algarve food paired with the best wines of the region, “Versace Pizza Napolitana”, which implemented in Portimão a pizzeria certified by the AVPN – Associazione Versace Pizza, and “Le French Cookie”, artisanal biscuit also with a physical store in the city and which is expanding the business to a marketplace.

The “Rescue Rhythms: CPR Lessons for Kids” project provides a children’s music and entertainment channel that addresses essential life support and first aid for children.

Many students from the EHT in Portimão participated in this programme, creating projects such as “Green Diamond”, a quality certification for vegetarian dishes in restaurants; “Prateleiras Practicas”, which creates useful structures specially designed for small kitchens; and “HotPack”, a refillable backpack that keeps food warm.

“The conference and the inauguration of the Portimão Coworking Space reinforce the Municipality’s commitment to economic development and innovation, consolidating the city as a dynamic hub for entrepreneurship in the Algarve region”, concludes the Municipality.