The Freiruum temporary use area

The number of people taking advantage of the “Freiruum” temporary use project is four times larger than expected. A success that also poses new challenges for the people behind it. An interview with the manager, Markus Kragler.

The “Freiruum” in Zug, currently one of the largest temporary use projects in Switzerland, has been in operation since the end of July 2019. At the turn of the year, operations manager Markus Kragler agreed to answer our questions about the project: how did it start, how has it developed so far and what is envisaged in the new year.

We are sitting in the middle of the “Freiruum”. It's the afternoon and lots is going on. What goes through your head when you let your gaze wander through the hall now?
Markus Kragler: I’d say that I feel happy. We’ve achieved our goal: to create a place in Zug for Zug, a place for encounters and contact, where the focus is not on commerce, and where you can stay without restrictions and without any obligations.

How satisfied are you with the development of the Freiruum project so far?
Very! We are delighted that the whole thing has been received so well. The mix is very pronounced, and yet you can feel a close cohesion within the audience. I think this is something that people from Zug really appreciate. In the beginning, we mainly focused on the midday hours, when the crowds were expected to be the greatest. But it quickly became apparent that people are not just drawn here for lunch. You can see how busy the hall is now.

Were you convinced from the first minute that the ambitious idea of "free space" could be implemented?
I myself only had one moment of doubt. Namely, when I stood in the huge empty hall for the first time and thought: "Gosh, how will we fill this room?" But when the whole thing started to take shape quickly, these concerns quickly disappeared.

And the business is really running now. Has the “Freiruum” really find its mark with the people of Zug?
Yes, I’m convinced of that. And not only in terms of gastronomy, but also in the area of our range of sports. We receive a lot of feedback - mostly positive, and often via email. There’s a lot of encouragement and countless inputs. There is also talk of a “milestone for Zug”. It looks like the “Freiruum” has closed a gap in Zug life. It’s a place for everyone, whether young or old, for business people or families. Incidentally, we have a new pram parking space - in the hall.

Have you ever been faced with complaints?
There were some problems at the very beginning with odour emissions in the hall. Not all the food stands had their own ventilation system. Visitors sometimes carried away unwanted food smells in their clothes, which was also reported back to us. We then had every single stand connected to the air vents, and now have measurable 96 percent clean air in the hall. There was also a complaint from the neighbouring apartment building on the Aabachstrasse. This was due to the noise level late at night after a closed event. We went to talk to the other party. Apart from that, we have received no further complaints so far.

“Freiruum” operations manager Markus Kragler is very satisfied with the development of the temporary use project on the Siemens site in Zug.

What are you and your team currently doing?
Now that the “Freiruum” is properly under way and is going well, we mainly invest our free time in optimisation and improvement where necessary. We discuss and analyse various processes, and bundle together the knowledge we gain. Especially with a view to the new year. Another gastro stand is planned in order to better handle the midday rush, so that the working people lose as little time as possible waiting for their lunch. Temporary mobile stands are also an option. We are also constantly working on the range of events, because the expectations on us have been high since the big “wow” at the start.

There are a lot of people sitting at the tables with their computers at the moment.
Yes, many find their way to us in order to work. The demand for places in our office area has increased, but we’re able to meet it: The OfficeLab has now rented a 600 square-metre room right next to the hall. In cooperation with the “Freiruum”, interested parties can rent workplaces here at favourable conditions. Fundamentally, our aim is to keep everyone who comes to us happy, to adapt to their needs and to stay exciting through new ideas.

It sounds like a pretty demanding job.
It actually means that there is a certain pressure on the whole team, because - as I said - the public's expectations are high. This is, of course, a very positive sign and also speaks for our concept, but it’s not always easy. Just imagine: in the beginning, we expected an average of 500 visitors a day. In fact, there are around 2,000. We were overwhelmed for a short time, but we were then able to arrange ourselves quickly, and keep the whole thing going. By the end of 2019, we’d counted a total of over 360,000 visitors.

Markus Kragler grew up in Augsburg, and has been living in Switzerland for 14 years. Working in the event/marketing industry from the very beginning, he has built up a second mainstay in event catering in the past 8 years. Kragler lives with his wife in Einsiedeln.