Okay, folks, it’s time for my next WCEU recap.
This time we all gathered together in Torino, Italy. More specifically, at the Lingotto Conference Center.
I learned my lesson this year and arrived on the Tuesday before the event, giving me enough time to explore the city, eat authentic food, and relax before the first pre-events started.
Arrival in Torino
Despite all the bad news gathering around (lost luggage, canceled flights, etc.) I had a more or less relaxed arrival.
The only problem was that my flight got delayed by five hours, so instead of arriving in the late afternoon, I found myself at the airport in the middle of the night.
First Day in Torino
I hadn’t really planned anything for the first day in Torino besides going to the supermarket and having some nice food afterward. However, Xaver from our mastermind group reached out asking if someone wanted to join him in visiting the Museo Nazionale dell’Automobile.
I agreed and we both headed to it. While I’m not super into cars, I had a fun chat with him and managed to get some decent photos with my iPhone:
I took it easy for the rest of the day and headed back to my apartment because I knew there was a busy day ahead.
Second Day (Contributor Day)
I agreed to give Freemius an interview about being a solopreneur and my opinions on marketing for WordPress product makers.
It was the first time ever that I gave an in-person interview, and I was nervous in the beginning, but once we started chatting, I could really bring my thoughts in order and deliver something useful (at least that’s what they told me, we will now for sure once the videos are out! 😁
After that, it was time for some activities again. I booked an outdoor escape room experience for myself, Ross (Search & Filter), Maarten (Studio Wombat), and Ine (Studio Wombat as well 😁), and we started exploring Torino while trying to solve various puzzles, navigating around the city and a short pizza break.
Freemius After Party
Once we got back from our extended escape room tour, it was time for the Freemius Maker Meetup.
Honestly, that’s always the party I’m looking forward to the most—it’s chilled, and you have plenty of time to talk to all kinds of different product makers around the world, bounce ideas, collaborate, and make friends.
Third Day (First Day of the conference)
The official event started, so I arrived early and checked out the conference center, talked to people, and attended a couple of talks during the event.
The first day is always the busiest day of the conference, and I also wanted to see firsthand how Maarten was doing with his booth (it was his first time being a sponsor).
You most likely found me at the Studio Wombat booth on this day.
I spent quite some time there and only had a couple of meetings scheduled. I wanted to take it easy and mostly chatted with folks from our mastermind group or other fellow product makers from Twitter/X.
I attended the WooCommerce Community One and the Yoast Pride Party in the evening.
I also met some friends (and customers) from Ross and his Search & Filter plugin:
Fourth Day (Second day of the conference)
I arrived early again, but this time I had a much more professional schedule in place.
The day before, I made a list of people I wanted to chat with and showcase our beta version of OllieWP to anyone interested, and I had a blast!
I did not manage to take many photos that day because I spent talking for hours, so here are some fun ones from the day:
As you might have noticed, I joined the Studio Wombat team for about 5 minutes, and Ross and I took over the booth!
Oh, and I also silently dropped some swag for Simply Static, and you know what? It was all gone by the end of the day! 😎
This is by no means a complete list, but I want to give a shoutout to a couple of folks I’ve met that day:
- The team from Greyd
- Anne-Mieke Bovelett
- Bowe Frankema from GetDollie
- Nathan Wrigley (the unofficial Simply Static brand ambassador!)
- Ellen Bauer from Elmastudio
- Ajay D’Souza from Webberzone
- Carolina Nymark
The WooCommerce Community Dinner
Just before the official after-party, we gathered for dinner, initiated by James Kemp from Automattic, to talk about all things WooCommerce.
It was a fun experience, and while I was probably one of the few (if not THE only one in the room 😅) who isn’t actively involved in working with WooCommerce anymore, it was nice to see how open the discussion was between product makers and the amazing people behind the platform.
I learned a lot, and it definitely inspired me to take a closer look at WooCommerce again.
That was also the first time I ever met Ellen Bauer. This was kind of a big deal for me.
The first theme I used was from Elmastudio, and I used their themes extensively throughout my career.
This is kinda like meeting up with your favorite author, artist, or actor, haha 😅
After Party
The party was ok, not too bad, but also not too memorable.
Against the general opinion that we should have a place to chat, I’m more on the other side. I had a ton of fun at the after-party in Athens last year, and I would have wished we had a club instead of having the party inside the venue. Why? Because of the sound, mainly. It wasn’t too loud, but the sound just wasn’t as good.
Summary
I think I’ve done better in general when it comes to networking, meeting up with new people and attending various events around the conference compared to last year in Athens.
It’s still exhausting for me. I’m more an extrovert than an introvert, but once my social budget is gone, I find it hard to dive into conversations – I tend to have way more fun when doing activities (like our little escape room game).
I also confirmed my lessons learned from CloudFest earlier this year.
For me, WordCamps are more about meeting up with friends, making new ones, and getting into personal connections with fellow nerds.
I’m not good at talking about business, strategy, or the next big acquisition, but I get really excited about people sharing stories of their lives.
We are all humans, and most of us know how hard it can be to make friends in your 30s (and beyond!).
If I have to name one thing I got out of this WordCamp, it’s new friends, deeper connections with people I already knew, and another great memory I can look back on in years.
A special thanks to Maarten, Ine, and Ross – all of them played a significant part in making my WordCamp 2024 a fun and worthwhile experience!
Other WordCamp recaps
If you want to check out some other recaps, I collected a short list of others that I’ve enjoyed: