With Colin Berr
This is a series about people who moved to Frankfurt RheinMain, telling their stories in their own words.
Let’s hear it from Colin Berr
I came to Frankfurt to join a startup. But things didn’t work out. So I ended up founding my own!
Why did I pick Germany? Previously during my university time, I had spent an exchange year in Marburg and thereafter an internship semester in Berlin. These journeys led to some of the best experiences of my life thus far. So when I learned about the opportunity to join a startup in Frankfurt, the choice seemed obvious. I sold everything I owned in California (which wasn’t much), packed 4 suitcases, and bought myself a one-way ticket to Frankfurt, Germany.
Learning German wasn’t so much of a problem as I already had a background in the language through previous trips. The difficult thing was learning how to start and run a business in Germany. Fortunately, I was able to find an amazing mentor, who guided me along my entrepreneurial journey.
I never knew how beautiful Frankfurt was until I moved here.
Most people breeze through the airport or central train station without really getting to know the city. This is a shame, because Frankfurt is actually a charming, tight-knit, international city. Home to some of the most best-known global companies, it’s still small enough to bicycle from one end to the other in 30 minutes. I like to call it “ein Kaff mit Wolkenkratzer” (a village with skyscrapers). It’s not uncommon to find an old medieval building right next to a glass-paned financial tower.
We had a few questions for Colin
How long have you been in Frankfurt?
February will mark the 3-year anniversary.
Where do you go Shopping?
Ha! Shopping… me? Mostly online I suppose. But only if it’s absolutely necessary.
In which Frankfurt quarters do you mainly move?
Most of all, I love being on the river Main with my paddle-board. I’d say that the river in general marks my main movement patterns.
Where do you live?
I live in Sachsenhausen, the southern part of Frankfurt.
Any Frankfurt personality you would like to exchange a day with?
There are Frankfurt personalities? :-D
I once heard of a “Nackter Jörg”, although spending a whole day with someone like that would probably be a bit much.
There’s a actually a pretty cool paddle-boarding instructor called Dmitri. He’s almost always out on the river, wearing his trademark orange shorts and orange hat. Even in the wintertime! Although then, he’s more like to wear his Santa hat.
But all in all, I think it would be awesome to spend a day with the CEO of Lufthansa or of the Frankfurt airport.
What do you like about Frankfurt?
I really like the River Main, the internationality of the city, how tight-knit the city is, and also that Frankfurt is like a springboard to the rest of Europe.
What would you like to see changed in Frankfurt?
I’d like to see a greater startup scene here, with more startup / coworking spaces and creativity hubs.
Any Favorite Bar or Café?
There are more than you might think… For me personally, I’d have to go with Casablanca or Circus. For cafés, I’d go with Café Awake.
Green Sauce, with or without mayonnaise?
Both are delicious!
Sour or sweet Apfelwein?
Sour!
Tinder or Oberbayern? (-;
What’s Oberbayern? :-D
How many languages do you speak?
2.5 or so… English and German, and then a bit of French and a tiny bit of Spanish.
How do you move within Frankfurt?
What do you like about Frankfurt?
See answer above
Which projects in Frankfurt do you want to mention here?
Mentor Lane! :-)
This is my startup company.
Please complete the following sentence: In Frankfurt there should be …
… A really big startup hub!
Name two people whom we should definitely send this questionnaire
Let me think about this and get back to you.
Colin can be reached through his new website. We also recommend his Talk on Mentorship at Webmontag.
Moving to Frankfurt RheinMain
An opinionated Guide for relocating to Germanyhallofrankfurt.de