Then → Now · 2026
Coworking Bansko, which put a Bulgarian ski town on the nomad map, changed hands, and its founder has moved on to a bigger "Nomad Utopia" coliving project nearby.
What it said (2018) ↓
Seven quotes: Become an entrepreneur: "nowadays that's so easy to do from any country."
Connect with coworking spaces and local social projects.
What happened (2026) ↓
Remote Year closed in December 2024. source
Matthias Zeitler sold Coworking Bansko to Emil and Monica Shekerdzhiiski, who run 10+ coworking spaces in Sofia and Plovdiv, and also sold Bansko Nomad Fest (the source does not name that buyer).
Verdict · Held up: 6 / 10 · Full 2026 update
- Location independents should connect with coworking spaces, follow their hearts and keep growing their skills.Still valid
- Newcomers should start their location-independent life in a low-cost, beautiful place.Came true in the form of nomad visas
- The location-independent movement would grow as people spread the message of freedom.Partly true There are more nomads and visas, but flagship operators like Remote Year failed
Original post · 25 November 2018
We have been running the location independent stories for a while now, and they are getting a lot of good feedback and engagement through social media. Here's another 7 great suggestions for location independents become succesful.#1 "become an entrepreneur, start your own venture!"
Alex van den Elsen helps entrepreneurs "to sell more and to sell from the heart". He's a marketeer and and a creator, and is actually at the moment building a new business as well. He suggests every location-independent to become an entrepreneur. "because that’s a great way to live a fulfilled life and help other people. You can make a living at the same time, nowadays that’s so easy to do that from any country you’d like to work from. So, I could advise anybody to start your own venture, start a new business to have your location independent life".#2 "connect with coworking spaces"
Lilli Crovara is a freelancer journalist and a copy-writer. She has recently moved to Australia to do her PhD. She advises to connect with the coworking spaces wherever you go. "...not only for networking with people, but also to connect with the local communities and take part in social responsibility projects"#3 "never run from your emotions! face it head on"
Peter Mezey runs an improvisation theater. He goes around coworking spaces and teaches people improvisation and how that relates to independent life-style. "As a location-independent, it's so easy to hide from your problems, to keep moving and to never embed yourself in a community that would force you the problems of your life. So if you ever run into a part where you have emotional discomfort, sit down, breath and face it head on!. Your future self will thank you for that" advises Peter.#4 "go to a place that is low-cost"
Joe is a lawyer based in New York City, and has been traveling the world for around 5.5 years now. His advice is to go start from a low-cost place that is also beautiful. That will help you manage the cash-flow in the beginning of your location-independent life while you are detecting your passion and pursue it.#5 "embrace the freedom"
Ariel Upton is the manager of Content Strategy at Remote Year. She advises that we all embrace our freedom we’re lucky to have. "...do everything you can to spread a good message to people who are new to the community and give a really good face about the potential, what we can do. So, more and more people can join us in this movement"#6 "follow your heart"
Matthias Zeitler is the co-founder of Coworking Bansko. "Location-independence is about freedom and happiness" he says, and suggests to "follow your heart. Think about what you really want to do in life, and just do it"#7 "keep growing"
Nicky Hart is currently transitioning into location-independent life-style. Her advice is to keep growing, and keep building the new skills you will need in your location-independent life to become successful.2026 update
What happened after this was written
Claims then:
- Seven quotes:
- Become an entrepreneur: "nowadays that's so easy to do from any country."
- Connect with coworking spaces and local social projects.
- Face your emotions (Peter Mezey).
- Start in a low-cost, beautiful place (Joe, NYC lawyer).
- Embrace freedom and spread the message (Ariel Upton, Remote Year).
- Follow your heart (Matthias Zeitler, Coworking Bansko).
- Keep growing your skills.
What happened since:
- Remote Year closed in December 2024. source
- Matthias Zeitler sold Coworking Bansko to Emil and Monica Shekerdzhiiski, who run 10+ coworking spaces in Sofia and Plovdiv, and also sold Bansko Nomad Fest (the source does not name that buyer). They added "Coliving Bansko" (64 apartments). Zeitler moved on to building Coliving Semkovo. Bansko Nomad Fest expected about 750 attendees in 2023, up from 550 the year before. source, source
- "Start in a low-cost place" became formalised through around 50–70 digital-nomad visa programmes (Taiwan in Jan 2025, the Philippines created one by executive order in April 2025, though applications had not opened by mid-2026). The caveat is that these bring income thresholds and tax exposure. source, source, EO 86
- "It's so easy to start a business from any country" oversimplifies it: visa, tax-residency and permanent-establishment rules may also have tightened alongside the visas, but this could not be confirmed; only the visa side was researched here.
Named tools/orgs status:
| Name | Then | Now | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Remote Year | Content team quoted | Closed December 2024 | Wikipedia |
| Coworking Bansko | Co-founded by Zeitler | Operating under new owners (the Shekerdzhiiskis), plus Coliving Bansko | Red White Adventures, updated 2026-06-30 |
| Bansko Nomad Fest | (implied) | Sold by Zeitler; about 750 attendees expected in 2023 | Spacebring |
Verdict:
- Soft advice: Still valid.
- "Low-cost places": Came true (in the form of nomad visas).
- "Movement will grow": Partly true. There are more nomads and visas, but flagship operators like Remote Year failed.
Headline finding: Coworking Bansko, which put a Bulgarian ski town on the nomad map, changed hands, and its founder has moved on to a bigger "Nomad Utopia" coliving project nearby.
Re-verified 3 November 2026: 8 claims confirmed, 3 corrected, 2 hedged, 0 removed.
Researched 30 September 2026 and re-verified against the sources on 3 November 2026. Sources are linked in each point. Items marked "unverified" could not be established and are not guessed.