How are digital nomads changing coffee?

For many workers, the cafeteria is the new office.

By the term "digital nomad" we mean the employee who can work 100% remotely, with only "tools" a laptop and an internet connection. Thus, digital nomads can work from anywhere in the world, either traveling or having a fixed base. Most choose countries with a warmer climate and a better quality of life or countries where they will have more purchasing power, while their jobs are usually based in countries that ensure a higher income. The typical professions addressed to digital nomads are computer programming, marketing, content production, design, etc. Although the term is not new, the Covid-19 pandemic, which anyway radically reshaped the labor market, giantized the "movement" of the nomads, as the relative workers doubled within 2 years, and the course is constantly upward. Many countries (including Greece) have established special regulations (Digital Nomad Visas) that help the settlement and legal work of itinerant workers in their territory.

How does coffee relate to all this emerging culture? Believe it or not, coffee and especially coffee shops are a key element of this "ecosystem" and reflect the new work ethic that has been formed.

Coffee and digital nomads: the rediscovery of an old habit

Coffee shops used to be directly intertwined with the world of work. Various professions chose the coffee shop as a place of creation (most notably, writers and journalists), while even for the world of manual labor, the coffee shop was the "marketplace" to find a living wage. This old and largely forgotten habit seems to be coming back to the fore with the relationship that digital nomads have developed with coffee.

If one takes a look at the articles related to the phenomenon of digital nomadism, it is almost certain that the accompanying photos depict men or women, in front of a laptop, in a coffee shop. As remote work involves some form of social isolation, more and more remote workers are choosing their neighborhood coffee shop over their room as their workplace, to the point where this way of working has become the symbol of an entire culture.

Several note that the coffee shop environment boosts creativity, as opposed to the distractions found in the completely isolated environment of the home, while others invest in the relaxed, laid back character that this lifestyle promises, finding working in the coffee shop the symbol of a more carefree balance between work and personal life. Still, some minimize their expenses by using the internet connection provided by the coffee shop or arrange their hours even more efficiently.

Of course, catering businesses themselves quickly adapted to the new data. There are already coffee shops in Athens that advertise themselves as "digital nomad friendly". This practically means a quiet environment, the possibility of partial seclusion, a good internet connection, comfortable tables or benches and sometimes, a menu adapted to the requirements of this community.

So it is not the coffee itself that is associated with the culture of digital nomads, but its social aspect. While it is certain that many of the digital workers will (also) rely on coffee to increase their concentration and productivity, what matters most is the coffee shop as an open space, somewhere between public and private, that turns into "office" of the new era worker.



How much does the onslaught of Digital Nomads change focus?

Of course, not everything is always as rosy as it seems at first glance and most importantly, not everything is so rosy for everyone. Like any change, using the cafeteria as a workplace hides a series of challenges.

The entrepreneurs themselves, especially in cities oversaturated with nomads, such as Barcelona or Madrid, argue that the model is no longer sustainable for business, as a worker can reserve a seat at the counter or even a table for 6-8 hours , with a total consumption of one coffee or one drink. Also, the transformation of catering businesses to appeal to this clientele usually comes together with the overall phenomenon of "urban gentrification" of a neighborhood, where its traditional elements are sidelined in order to make it attractive to tourists or new residents. An old coffee shop that used to be a hangout for the elderly, or a coffee shop that used to gather a neighborhood's rowdy teenage crowd, can give way to a clean-cut coffee shop for digital nomads, with prices going up, leading to other changes as well. throughout the district.

Of course, even the coffee itself is transformed based on these changes. Importation of habits from other countries, trendy drinks, adoption of the latest trends in the field of coffee shape a field of continuous changes, which now take place clearly faster than in the past.



Where once a journalist sat scribbling his "scoop" or a poet scribbling lyrics, now a Dutch programmer writes code for a German company – all three of them, in front of a cup of coffee!