Early on this year, I spent a 7-weeks stint in my hometown, São Paulo after living for a few years overseas. It was great to find a buzzing startup scene. The city has between 1,500 and 2,700 startups in activity. It grew a lot from back in 2010 when I founded guiaCMYK when the whole ecosystem was in its early days.
As a remote worker, I picked a few laptop-friendly places so you can get things done when in São Paulo, taste Brazilian Arabica coffee and experience this intense, crowded, city. Here it goes:
Biblioteca São Paulo
State’s government built an amazing park and library where it used to be a penitentiary with a horrible history. Now is a green area with a skate park, tennis courts, and tons of grass fields for a picnic. The library (biblioteca in Portuguese) has Internet and comfortable spaces to work and chill. From my research is the best spot to work when in the North part of the city.
https://www.facebook.com/BSPbiblioteca/
Campus São Paulo
Google’s space has a whopping 200Mb Internet available for free. Their building in São Paulo’s Paraiso district has two floors for co-working and other two for residents, companies selected for their incubation program. Google has other spaces in bustling hubs as Warsaw, London, and Tel Aviv. They host a handful of interesting events you can check on their blog.
https://www.campus.co/sao-paulo/en/about
FIAP co-working
FIAP is a tech university that merged with Singularity University. They offer their campuses lunch area as a co-working space. The place has nice decor and good snacks. Make sure you book at least 24 hours in advance. A CPF (Brazilian ID number) is required. If you’re foreigner try registering with LinkedIn instead, it might be an alternative. Avoid lunch times as it can get crowded and noisy. I worked from Paulista’s campus (they have another branch in Vila Olimpia, South of the city) and it was great.
https://www.fiap.com.br/coworking/
Takkø Café
For the coffee warriors, São Paulo “hipster” scene is blossoming. In Vila Buarque district, in the downtown, you can find Takkø Cafe. They have a great banana cake, awesome crew, and funky coffee fusions.
https://www.facebook.com/takkocafesp/
Por um Punhado de Dólares (PPD)
Funky cafe in the artsy area of Roosevelt Square, in central São Paulo. The area is a skateboarding spot since the 1980’ and a hub for indie theaters and dodgy brothels. PPD has a warehouse feeling and great cold teas with creative names.
https://www.facebook.com/ppdcafe/
Mirante 9 de Julho
I haven’t been to this one specifically to work, but to chill 😉 It is a renovated area by the Avenida Nove de Julho at Bela Vista district, just behind MASP, São Paulo’s museum of art. The area has been abandoned for 70ish years, left unused after the construction of a tunnel beneath it. Now they host super cool gigs with local bands and open air cinema sessions. Cozy, with great city views.
https://www.facebook.com/mirante9dejulho/