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There was a lot of love in the room: XOXO embraces maker culture as attendees embrace XOXO

Portland has been on the edge of transition. We know there’s awesome stuff happening here. But honestly? That remains a secret to the majority of the planet.

But that may be changing. Thanks to XOXO, a labor of love from Andy Baio and Andy McMillan.

Because of the Andys’ herculean event efforts, Portland took a huge leap forward, this weekend, moving from being perceived as a cute little tech town to being the center of creative and disruptive maker culture that we all know it to be.

And if this sampling of tweets from a number of attendees is any indication, this is just the beginning of something big.

http://storify.com/turoczy/xoxofest.js[View the story “#xoxofest” on Storify]

Personally, I know these guys stressed and fretted and busted their asses to make this happen. And it showed. The production values for the event were massive. The interwoven activities were sublime. And the ability with which they showcased Portland culture—while bringing in internationally recognized speakers—was the thing of legend.

The Andys poured everything they had into this event. And it showed. And for that they should be heralded, congratulated, and thanked. A well deserved standing ovation for what they pulled off, this year. (If you want more details on exactly what they pulled off, see Anil Dash’s awesome play-by-play of the event.)

I, for one, can’t wait to see what they do next.

  1. This was an absolutely epic conference and a real show of Portland’s best. So well done. Couldn’t have imagined it going better. And the weather was perfect the entire time! Thanks so much to the two awesome people named Andy for this.

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