Berlin can seem like an overwhelming, sprawling place to visit sometimes. That's why anyone spending time in the city needs to follow the guys at Slow Travel Berlin to get the very best info regarding off-the-beaten-track hangouts and activities.
Name of company: SLOW TRAVEL BERLIN
Type of Business: Local Travel & Info Hub With Broad & Sometimes Atypical Ambitions
City/Country: Berlin, Germany
Year Founded: 2010
Employees and their roles: Paul Sullivan (Founder & Editor), Brian Melican (Sub Editor), Natalie Holmes (Listings Editor), Rebecca Loyche (Art Listings) plus a team of lovely and excellent contributors inc. Marian Ryan, Giulia Pines, Paul Scraton, Tam Eastley, Grashina Gabelmann, Natalye Childress, Marcel Krueger, Vanessa Remoquillo, Rhea Boyden and Wyndham Wallace.
Company motto: Slow Travel Berlin is first and foremost a repository of eclectic information about the city from a range of perspectives. Our take on travel is very sustainable, something that's needed in a city as swamped with tourism as Berlin. We feature regular contributions from city residents on subjects ranging from food and family life to art and personal experiences with an aim to encourage deeper, more varied exploration and promotion of small, locally-minded businesses and services. We aim to facilitate any quest to get beneath the skin of the city a little, or discover it at a more leisurely pace. We offer an insider’s view that at the same time tries to be as inclusive as possible.
Company Highlights so far: Company Highlights so far (best achievements): Consistently delivering high-quality content on Berlin that is deeper and broader than most, and with zero budget. We've also hosted two really fun (and quite big!) events this year: our "Day of Cuisine, Creativity and Culture in Berlin" at the Markthalle IX (April 2012) was packed with great and free things to do, including a Locavore food market, things for kids, a literary corner with bookstalls and music performances. It was really popular and we might repeat it next year; and The Slowlympics (August 2012), which was our non-commercial, Monty-Python-esque take on the Olympics that included Compact Discus throwing and Slow Cycling races.
Goals for next 12 months: We'd like to do more events this year, both large and small. We've also been testing the water with various tours and workshops (photography, walking and cycling tours, film making - all sustainably minded), which we will launch properly next year. And we're producing a couple of books, the first of which should be ready for Spring and will be a fantastic companion for anyone wanting to get to know Berlin's hidden nooks and crannies a little better.
Biggest Challenge ahead: Growing a business model that is fair, non-hierarchical and transparent. Expanding without losing our Slow ethic.
Key Projects: The main thing right now is getting our first book finished, and broadening our tours and services
What are the main things are you looking for at the moment: Now that we're expanding, I think we could do with someone to help manage everything. Someone who knows about marketing would be a great help too, since we need to start spreading our vision (and commercial services) beyond the local blogger scene. And we are always happy to link up with like-minded services and people in different cities and countries.
Homepage address: http://www.slowtravelberlin.com
Facebook address: https://www.facebook.com/SlowTravelBerlin
Twitter address: https://twitter.com/slowberlin
