LIVINcollective. | Discover Nha Trang

“LIVINcollective is a fusion between a café, a boutique store, and a shared work and creative space in a two-story minimalist and modern building in the heart of Nha Trang. This concept basically grew up with the owner’s minds, as they have been traveling all around the world and also have lived in big cities like New York and Tokyo. Their aim is to promote local artists, designers, furniture makers and even local coffee producers.”

The establishment is situated in No. 77 Bach Dang St. guarded by a heavy black iron gate that is usually open on a nice yard with wooden tables, an impressive fresco and the white and black minimalist house that seems to have been built by the minimalist architect “ Foster ” in his youth on the background.

In fact this house existed for a while but the interior design has to be credited to Marian Galam, one of the co-owners and the conceptual designer. She has done an incredible job by transforming this Vietnamese house into a factory-style design open space. While on the other hand, Kane Ho, is the other co-owner and in charge of the business end.

The first thing you are going to notice is the atmosphere upon entering; peaceful and relaxing would be the two exact words to describe it. Beautiful furniture, clothing, home accessories perfectly displayed in front of a white wall and concrete floor room. All those items have been chosen carefully for being esthetical, local or sustainable. The second floor serves as the shared working space where creative ideas flow and a café that serves a 100% pure Arabica from a village in Da Lat. It is a sustainable and high quality coffee that you will feel the difference once you give it a try. They also propose some homemade hot sandwich and panini that you can customise depending on your taste.

Basically, the Filipino-American & Vietnamese-American couple started this creative business. They met in New York in 2009. They have a great story, as they used to live next to each other in California for years. A common friend that Marian met during her studies in Italy actually introduced them to each other. They only started dating in China where Marian used to work and Kane was going there every quarter for work as well. Later they travelled in many countries, got inspired and decided to come to Vietnam to live. The choice was not easy of course. But after several visits, they both fell in love with Nha Trang. The tropical climate, the white sand beach, and the magnificent surroundings made them agreed on this location. They also realised that something was missing in this costal city; a community.

Today, this is exactly what they are doing by organizing “Collective Market”, a monthly event that features local artists and restaurants in their refreshing court yard to promote diverse options for the city.