Observatory / Green Entrepreneurship Training

Observatory

Observatory of Green Businesses

LivingCon

LivingCon is an innovative building concept – environmentally friendly, flexible and affordable.
The Helmut Schäfer Holztechnik GmbH & Co. KG has developed a building concept with the brand name LivingCon that serves societal needs as well as current trends in living and work. LivingCon provides individual and flexible solutions for living/work space in the private, commercial and communal realms, whether as a mini-house, home, vacation home, office space, or as public housing complexes, individual or in association.

Μέγεθος επιχείρησης

15 employees

Supports

To expand the production LivingCon got subsidies of KfW Bank.

Ευκαιρίες και σχέδια για το μέλλον

In the next years there will be a great demand for living space in Germany. The trend of sustainable and innovative residential and office solutions (for example, Tiny-Houses) will grow globally. In regard of this the establishment of international locations and the introduction of a franchise model can be considered.

Πα γίδες και προκλήσεις

1. How did the project come to life?
The media has consistently reported about an acute shortage of living space in Germany. Especially accommodation for students and for the social house building you can also find shortages. Additional explosions were found in the housing market due to the refugee movement. Because of these reasons, the idea of LivingCon was born with the aim of providing sustainable, affordable and mobile living space. The concept of LivingCon is based on modular building units, made from the renewable raw material wood, which is provided in the arrangement residential or office space. The modular design also allows flexibility in the decision of place and after-use. Moreover the units can be installed very easily and can be repositioned everywhere.
2. If you found the company again, what would you do exactly in the same way and what would you do differently?
We would do it exactly the same. In order to meet an existing demand, a corresponding product has been developed which meets these needs and also covers the future requirements and trends in the area of building concepts.
3. What are the biggest challenges in regard of the foundation?
Probably this is dependent on the nature of the product. Firstly a prototype has to be developed to show the quality of the product. Investments were also necessary. The main challenge was to meet the high demand and to expand the operating capacities. Secondly, we have to create a marketing concept (web, social media, corporate design).
4. Did you have positive or negative incidences which motivated you?
From the beginning the product was accepted very well. We got lots of positive feedback. The media were also very interested in the concept and have reported very extensively. This was very helpful for our marketing.

Pictures by courtesy of LivingCon.