We have it relatively cool here

Andreas Marschner

"You still have to drive," says the colleague as we receive our ice cream from Andreas Marschner. Admittedly, this is a somewhat unusual comment in connection with this classic summer treat. The Marschner ice cream family from Auerbach in the Ore Mountains are well known in the city for their love of experimentation and you know what to expect. A beer ice cream, however, is new and is one of the latest spontaneous creations from the ice cream people on Zwickauer Straße. When talking about the city of Chemnitz and life with it and here, you can tell how much Andreas Marschner enjoys developing, shaping and driving things forward and not wanting to stand still. His ideas are not ordinary, because he believes that in Chemnitz in particular, you can no longer score points with chocolate, vanilla or fruit ice cream alone. He can certainly recognise the achievements of others and declares Chemnitz the ice cream capital without further ado because special efforts have to be made here to fulfil the special demands of the people of Chemnitz. However, the married father of an almost two-year-old son does not brood over new ideas in a dark room. They just come to him, he admits, and if necessary an idea is then sketched on the tiles next to the ice-cream machines. And so we get another taste of Andreas Marschner's world of ideas. When asked about a typical ice cream for the city, a Chemnitz ice cream, he immediately has an idea. It has to be a connection between the city's tradition and a view of the modern, the dynamic, the energy of Chemnitz. What he is planning remains his secret for the time being. But one thing is certain: it will be an ice cream for Chemnitz!

There are always long queues outside your shop. Especially when it's nice and people can come by on their bikes. How does that happen? What special things do you put in your ice cream?
Andreas Marschner: We don't skimp on the ingredients. We really only use high-quality things in our ice cream. That's what you can taste. We always come up with a lot of ideas. We also come up with a few unusual flavours so that we can get a wider range. We recently made a beer ice cream for Father's Day together with Kay-Uwe Jüttner from the Braustolz brewery. Of course, it's not to everyone's taste, but this speciality always adds a fresh aspect and that's what people want. Chocolate is everywhere.
Chemnitz is the secret "ice cream capital" for me anyway. There are an incredible number of creative minds here, especially in this sector, who are always coming up with something new. I have the impression that the majority of ice cream producers in Chemnitz make the product the way we do: A little bit with love! We already have a number of very good ice cream producers here in Chemnitz and I think that's good for the whole product and everyone benefits from it.

Does that mean you have to make an effort when you make ice cream in Chemnitz?
That's not just about Chemnitz. If you want to do something, then you should generally do it properly and not just on the side. Even if I ran an ice cream parlour somewhere on the promenade at the Baltic Sea, I would still make an effort. It's just like this: if you make something that people eat, that people take in, then you also have to have the expectation that it has a quality.

Is this "making an effort for your own product" a Chemnitz speciality?
It could be. We are currently working on it, but Chemnitz is not quite so spoilt in terms of its image. There are many things that the people of Chemnitz can be proud of. But you also have to make an effort in what you do so that it is recognised, perhaps even nationally. There are companies in Chemnitz that operate internationally and if they didn't make an effort as Chemnitz companies, they might not be recognised externally. You can't score points here with a name like "Münchner Bier" or "Handelsstadt Leipzig" or something like that - you're just from Chemnitz and if you want to be something, you have to do something good.

So it's actually an opportunity that so much effort is being made in Chemnitz, which means that it's also having an impact beyond the region?
Above all, it's an opportunity. If you realise and take advantage of it, then it will have a lasting effect. If you score points with quality instead of just shouting or making some kind of statement, if you get a message across about your product and your message is confirmed with the consumer, that is of course more sustainable than if you just promise something with a big announcement. Then you might be successful once - but then never again. If you take this as a Chemnitz claim, as "Quality made in Chemnitz", then it is definitely very sustainable.

Where do your ideas come from?
It comes by chance.

So you're standing in the shower and think to yourself: "You could make a beer ice cream today"?
Yes. I'm standing at the ice cream machine, I have about three minutes between weighing, filling the ice cream mould and decorating and still a bit of air because the ice cream machine isn't quite ready yet and then it somehow pops into my head. Sometimes I don't have time, then I quickly write it down somewhere, usually somewhere on the wall, so that the thought doesn't get lost. It's all tiled in our house. The thought is picked up again later. Like with the beer ice cream! I remembered the day before that it was Father's Day and beer ice cream would be cool. Then it's easy to realise in Chemnitz. Then Kay-Uwe Jüttner from the Braustolz brewery came and I had a little tasting session with him. I think that's also an advantage in Chemnitz. We're not a small town, we're already a larger city, but it's such a close, you could also say rural, community of people. You know each other, but you can also avoid each other if you want to. But you can also just make a quick phone call and ask how things are going: "I have an idea here - do we want to do this? Yes or no? Okay, yes, it works." That's how it worked with the beer ice cream and it's similar with the other ideas.

Is there a flavour that works particularly well? One that you say is a hit.
Yes, it's the classics. Vanilla, chocolate, yoghurt and all the dairy products like buttermilk and quark, because they still have such a healthy aspect. We're eating a lot of them at the moment. And of course fruit ice cream in this weather. You don't have that in the cold season or in spring or autumn. Stracciatella is also proving to be an absolute hit. These are the classic flavours, the others are the accessories. With the other flavours, which are also a little more unusual, there is also a lot of mixing. For example, vanilla with a crazy flavour. For the most part, vanilla always goes along somehow.

Is that a maker quality, that you're always looking for something new?
You don't have to. It's always a question of your own standards. My great-grandfather always said: standing still is going backwards. That still resonates with me a little. My grandmother passed it on to me and I will probably pass it on to my son. Once you have reached a certain level, you have to try to maintain it somehow. And the higher the level, the more difficult it becomes. And that brings us back to the fact that you have to make an effort if you want to improve. It won't work without you getting involved, without you putting in the effort. You have to stay on the ball, but I think everyone does.

How would "Chemnitz ice cream" taste for you?
That's a good question. I haven't thought about it yet. But it would probably be a mixture of something classic, because we also have a great tradition in the city. Maybe a vanilla ice cream. And I would bring something young, something crazy into it. Or maybe the other way round: something crazy with a classic flavour. But a mixture of, let's say, vanilla and we put some crazy fruit sauce in there. I don't have a clear idea yet. But it would go in that direction.
So it would be a synergy between the young, tangy and the great tradition, which is also part of the city. But in such a way that there is a good symbiosis in terms of flavour. That is also the aim of a functioning city: a symbiosis between young and old that tastes good to everyone.

Chemnitz is an industrial city where people work a lot. That's always been the case and that's how it should be. Can the people of Chemnitz still enjoy themselves?
Yes, of course. If you look in here at the weekend, when everything is full - this murmur of people, everyone has something to say, this clatter of crockery. I do think that people enjoy sitting here. Sometimes they have to wait a little longer, but there are hardly any people who take offence. Nobody is in a hurry here either. So I do think that the people of Chemnitz are connoisseurs, yes.

I have a standard question that I always ask: Do we have to encourage the people of Chemnitz?
No, we don't need to encourage the people of Chemnitz. We simply need to emphasise the positive aspects more and hide the negative aspects a little. In the general perception and in the reporting. But the question is, why should we encourage people? What do we want to encourage people to do? I think the people who are here are courageous. This is also shown by the very strong economic growth, especially in the SME sector in recent years or even in the last decade. If people didn't have the courage to take a risk, a lot of things wouldn't have come about. I think there is enough courage. We just need to publicise the results more. There are no better ambassadors for the city than smiling citizens.
We don't need to hide, I keep saying. After all, we are who we are. Just put your head up, go outside and say: "We have it relatively cool here, you can just take a look."

Is that a characteristic of Chemnitz, that there is still so much freedom here? That you can somehow try out everything here?
I think Chemnitz is in a state of development. Of course, this also offers the opportunity for the people who are here to help develop. The structures are not yet finalised and a city is never finished. The image change that is currently taking place and will hopefully also be recognised is also still a development. You still have the chance to go along with it a little and take something with you. I think there is room for manoeuvre, but you have to fill it with life. You have to let it happen.

I have a nice topical question. Looking back at last weekend, when there was really a lot going on. Should it now be: Is something finally happening in Chemnitz? Or has there always been something going on in Chemnitz, you just have to discover it?
Rather the second. I've never been bored in Chemnitz. I've always lived here and I'm also relatively adventurous. At the moment, my priorities have shifted somewhat due to my family. But I've never been bored. I think there's always been something to do and there's always been enough on offer. Perhaps it just wasn't sufficiently transported or the perception wasn't sufficient. I'm not quite sure where it comes from. But I wouldn't say "something is finally happening". People are finally realising that something is happening.