How to host a Shipaton IRL event.

A good Shipaton IRL event should feel casual, useful, and builder-oriented: people hanging out, eating food, meeting other indie devs, and getting excited to ship something.

Talks do not need to be deeply technical. Shipaton brings in indie engineers, designers, growth-minded builders, students, first-time app makers, and people experimenting with AI app-building tools. The best events make all of those people feel welcome.

A simple 90-minute to 2-hour format works well:

• Welcome people and let them grab food
• Give a quick intro to Shipaton using the provided slides
• Run one or two short talks, demos, or app founder stories
• Invite attendees to share what they are building
• Give away swag and the trophy however you want
• Leave time for casual conversation

You do not need formal talks. One person demoing an app can be enough to open the floor. Ask people what they are building, invite quick feedback, and let the room do some of the work.

Once your event is finalized, you will receive an email with the link to order your Meetup-in-a-box. Please order it as soon as possible so there is time for shipping and customs if needed.

The swag is there to make the event more fun, not more formal. Tell people how they can win something and keep it visible.

• Reward people who demo, give feedback, introduce themselves, or help the room participate.
• Let attendees vote for favorite projects with a show of hands, a quick poll, or a QR code form.
• Use Spin-a-ton for raffles, trivia winners, or random prize picks.
• Run quick trivia or conversation prompts to get the room warmed up.

If you want a quick randomizer, use Spin-a-ton for raffles, trivia winners, or a custom wheel of names.

After your event is finalized, you will receive a unique Tremendous redemption link by email. You can use it to claim a gift card and order food, drinks, or other light refreshments for attendees.

Keep it simple: pizza, sandwiches, snacks, drinks, coffee, or similar meetup-friendly options are great. The goal is to make it easy for people to come, stay, and talk to each other.

If you don't already have a venue, try to find a free one first. Good options include libraries, coworking spaces, university rooms, startup offices, community spaces, and existing meetup venues.

If you're not already part of an established community, consider partnering with a local community or student organization. Good partners might include iOS, Android, Flutter, React Native, indie hacker, university, startup, design, or product groups.

To find them, look around Meetup, Luma, Eventbrite, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Existing groups may already have an audience, venue, event page, or format, which can make organizing much easier.