Being Epic

Anja Heimer is the woman behind Anja Heimer Grafikdesign, a graphic design service-based company focusing on print and web design. She doesn’t just bring her multitude of experience to the table, but she also has an open mind, a creative spirit and a truly warm-hearted personality. She has worked in small and larger companies before deciding to re-position herself and her interests and thereby, starting her own company. She told me her goal is to be able to finance her life through her company solely by next year, which I have no doubt that she’ll achieve that. Our conversation touched on whether creatives need a degree from University, equal pay, our experiences in Advertising and Agency life in general, the development of work-life-balance which can often be construed as more life than work, the importance of traveling, our sources of inspiration and whether we believe to draw focus towards our strengths or rather our weaknesses.  ﹒﹒﹒   https://www.anjaheimer.com www.instagram.com/anjaheimer www.instagram.com/jmt_creative

Aline Borges is the owner and creator of The Florist, a floristry company offering flower delivery, workshops and installation work. Ambitious, inspiring, creative, the list goes on, Aline started her company not that long ago and has seen immense success, being asked to create beautiful installations in stores around Zurich. While it looks like she’s been in Floristry for a while, her career began in Fashion, back in Brazil. After working in the industry for over a decade she needed a change and stumbled on Zurich where she felt at home immediately and somehow knew that she needed to make this city her home. Her eye for detail and her style is unique and brings fresh air to the generic florist shops. We spoke about creativity and to not overtly compromise on our artistic visions. How to not allow fear to overcome you and how our days in fashion were both invigorating but a struggle at the same time. ﹒﹒﹒ www.theflorist.ch www.instagram.com/theflorist.ch www.instagram.com/jmt_creative

Jennifer Bänziger and Ramona Kroker are the masterminds behind Atelier Zweigestalten, an interior architecture and planning office. These two women bring energy, knowledge and boss power to the table and are 150% committed to their company. They don’t shy away from challenges, but they know what to look out for. Whether that’s filling out insurance paperwork, working for free and trying to go with the flow. Gender vs. Age, Jennifer and Ramona consider the latter more of an issue (due to experience). Why is being a young business owner seen as critical? Why do women think too much? And how do they feel about their Pantone Color of the Year (Coral) painted wall?  Since we’re celebrating Switzerland’s Independence Day (August 1st), let’s also celebrate these two bossladies, who both happen to be (partially) Swiss, and let them tell you how they became independent business owners, and how they manage to work together (in harmony). ﹒﹒﹒ www.atelierzweigestalten.ch www.instagram.com/atelierzweigestalten www.instagram.com/jmt_creative

Delvis Kunz is the founder of CITRUS by Kunz and the founder of #bossladieszurich, which is where I met her, back in January, so actually not that long ago. She brings the energy to the table, regardless of what the project is and her support is incredible, basically I’m telling you that you should meet and be friends with her.  She started her own company back in the US and her main challenge was what she wanted to produce and how to get it. She had to learn that the consumer behaviour was very different in Switzerland vs. the US and therefore, needed to acquire a lot of patience. The struggle is real. As is trust. And that, for everyone that isn’t Swiss or knows the Swiss, is something that will take you quite a bit of time and brain energy to get. Delvis talked about how she is dealing with it and told me that she’s having a difficult time with it. But as this conversation was recorded at the end of April, I can now tell you that she’s moved mountains since then.  She also told me how #bossladies was founded out of the need for a network and supporting other female entrepreneurs. It started out as a community organizing pop-up events where they could present and sell their products. When moving back to Zurich, she knew she wanted to bring #bossladies with her, with the idea to focus on networking and that is exactly what it has become in the last 6 months. A really cool group of women entrepreneurs.  ﹒﹒﹒ www.citrusbykunz.ch www.bossladieszurich.ch www.instagram.com/citrus www.instagram.com/bossladieszurich www.instagram.com/jmt_creative

Coming this Summer! An interview podcast about women in business where Julietta speaks with women who started their own companies.  The first Series takes place in Zurich, Switzerland, giving an insight into the companies the women have built as well as letting them share their thoughts, opinions and experiences.  This podcast is meant to inspire, engage and learn from fellow female entrepreneurs, as we talk about starting a business as well as touching on relevant topics that affect us. ∙∙∙ www.bossladieszurich.ch instagram.com/bossladieszurich instagram.com/jmt_creative