From student flat share to international business

Markus Eidam

Chemnitz's Kaßberg, a Wilhelminian-style neighbourhood with charm and character, is not only a popular residential area, but also a good place to work. Markus Eidam, whose company "Eidam & Partner. The 33-year-old and his team organise intercultural seminars for companies venturing into the international arena. He is now one of the largest providers in this sector. You wouldn't expect to find an international company on the ground floor of the residential building in Barbarossastrasse. It has more of a backyard feel to it when Markus Eidam opens the door with a relaxed and friendly grin and walks through the winding corridor to his bright green office.

You founded Eidam & Partner in 2004. What exactly do you do?
Markus Eidam: We offer intercultural training for companies. This means that we impart knowledge about the culture and business practices, for example for negotiations, employee management or project work in other countries. We have built up a pool of 140 freelance experts for this purpose. Most of them are based in Germany, but some are based around the world: in the USA, India and China. At the very least, the experts have worked in the respective country and know the world of work there. This is the only way they can offer credible seminars. Our customers are companies who are planning to send their employees abroad or who have employees in Germany who work with customers, suppliers or partners across borders. Our job is to prepare them for this work. When someone calls us, we look at what the customer really needs: a seminar, coaching, counselling, an e-learning module. In the eleven years that we have been around, we have developed a large catalogue of measures.

Who are your customers?
We have a lot to do with automotive suppliers and other well-known companies such as Gardena, Siemens, Fressnapf, Airbus, Michelin and Tesa. I am particularly proud that we have also worked with the DFB. Oliver Bierhof, for example, attended one of our seminars. For a football fan like me, that is of course a highlight.

How do customers find out about you?
Actually, exclusively via the Internet. Fortunately, we don't have to make any canvassing calls. Those who see a need search the Internet and find us. That has always worked out well so far.

How did you come up with your business idea?
During my studies, I attended two block seminars at Chemnitz University of Technology, given by a trainer who had been offering intercultural training for years. She really impressed me on a personal level and got me excited about her professional idea. I then spoke to my parents, who put the brakes on me. They told me to finish my degree first. But I couldn't let go of the idea. In 2004, the EU expanded eastwards. And I said to myself: it's now or never. If you start in 2005, it's all too late. It would certainly have worked just as well in 2006. But I didn't want to be held back. It started quite simply, in my flat-share room with a headset and the idea that I wanted to do something here. A friend who was a computer scientist created a very simple first website for me. We had already won Metro AG as a customer from the flat share room and I always thought to myself: "If only they knew..."

Now you work with seven employees, 140 trainers and 80 countries. Have you always wanted to be your own boss?
Never in my life did I dream that I would have several employees, such well-known clients or that I would be organising 20 seminar days a year all over Germany. I remember our very first offer very well, which was just a one-page letter with a subject line, date, formal salutation and a price offer; no seminar content, nothing about the trainer. (laughs) Today, our offers are 20 pages long. We gradually worked on the construction sites. At some point, we received our first order. We used it to buy our own colour laser printer and were able to spice up the quotes. One thing led to another. It developed playfully. And by the time I had finished my studies, the company had already grown. I was able to live from my own business straight after graduating, without external financing.

Was it a matter of course for you to continue here in Chemnitz after your studies or did you ever consider moving elsewhere with your business idea?
Never. I have many good friends and my family here. The city is quirky, but I like it. Social contacts are very important to me. And I know how hard it is to build them up. Especially when you're self-employed.

You count the company as one of the five largest in Germany. How did you get there?
The market for such programmes is very small. With 140 trainers from 80 countries, we are already very well positioned. It's not just the numbers that are important to me, but the quality. Last year, we had an average grade of 1.39 at over 200 events, making us one of the best.

What's it like to work in the city when you're working internationally?
It's not that easy. Many of our customers are based in western Germany because that's where the parent companies are. So we have to travel a lot. It's eight hours by train to the Ruhr area, and usually five hours to the south. The region has poor transport links. On the other hand, we have a good wage structure and inexpensive rents here. Take our office, for example: our landlord furnished it just the way we wanted it. We were able to choose the laminate and the colours, a wall was removed and a small terrace was added. Without a surcharge on the already favourable rent. You can't get that in any other big city. The fixed costs would certainly be much higher elsewhere. Of course, that helped the company a lot, especially in the beginning.

What do you tell customers about Chemnitz?
I like to talk about the city. I am proud of our home town. Very few people realise that Chemnitz was one of the two industrial cities known throughout Europe at the end of the 19th century: Manchester and Chemnitz. Back then, everyone knew these two cities. In Manchester, this is still told in school today. Unfortunately not here.

Do you also have customers from the city?
We don't currently have any contact with local companies. As I said, those who approach us usually come from the old federal states. The willingness to take part in intercultural training is not yet there here, partly because it costs money. You can't get quality training for 8.50 euros an hour.

What else characterises the city for you?
(laughs) I'm a big football fan and think the CFC is very good. I also like the small club scene we have. On the other hand, it could certainly be bigger. But what we have, Atomino, Weltecho, Nikola Tesla, is simply good. I think it's incredibly cool that Kraftklub come from Chemnitz and that you can see them here in the city, especially at parties at Atomino. That makes you proud somehow. Many athletes also started their careers here, such as Michael Ballack, Kati Witt and David Storl. Apart from that, I just feel at home here. The city centre has developed well. And even though I'm not a museum person, I can see that the art collections with Andy Warhol and Picasso have a supra-regional impact.

Do you have to encourage the people of Chemnitz?
Yes, definitely. Many people in Chemnitz seem to have the feeling that they are the ugly duckling. We are certainly overshadowed by Leipzig and Dresden. But if you just complain all the time, nothing will happen. If you go out and take part in things and help to shape them, then the city becomes more liveable without major investment. But if you always compare yourself with the best-known cities, it's clear that you feel inferior. In comparison: Halle isn't any nicer. People from Freiberg and Mittweida, for example, come to Chemnitz because there's something going on here. Somehow there's a pessimism that isn't justified. The city is beautiful. It always depends on your perspective.