Did you know that beeswax cloth is the new cling film? How often do you actually use aluminum or cling film or plastic breakfast bags in the household? Every day? You are not alone in this. Did you know that this is also environmentally friendly and can be implemented without any effort? The German start-up company Little Bee Fresh has set itself the goal of making the world a little bit better. After the mother-daughter team watched a report from beautiful Lake Constance in which it was reported that even the lake on their doorstep was contaminated by microplastics, they decided to avoid plastic in the future. Said and done. The beekeeping duo Rosemarie and Angelika Jürgens quickly founded a start-up and are now producing beeswax cloths.

The household use of beeswax goes back to an ancient tradition before the invention of cling film. The towels can be used in the same way and they also look pretty. Beeswax cloth can cover or wrap everything except raw meat or fish and wash it off with lukewarm water and washing-up liquid after use. As part of our interview series, we spoke to the two dynamic founders.

Viking: How did the idea of ​​founding Little Bee Fresh come about?

Angelika & Rosemarie: We owe that to a coincidence: Angelika found Aunt Ida’s diary, the former resident, while renovating an old house in the attic. In addition to many recipes, she described, among other things, how she kept her food fresh in homemade beeswax cloth. A very exciting idea for us as beekeepers. When we came into contact with beeswax cloths a little later on vacation, we remembered it and tried it out ourselves. We made the scarves only for ourselves at first, then we gave them away to our friends. It was so well received that we decided to found little bee fresh. We are practically continuing a family tradition.

Viking: What obstacles did you have to overcome?

Angelika & Rosemarie: Our beeswax cloths consist of 100% certified organic raw materials: cotton, beeswax, tree resin and jojoba oil. Finding the right suppliers who meet our requirements AND can provide the required quantities was a great challenge. The right mix of ingredients was trickier: for example, the cloths shouldn’t be too soft, but at the same time flexible enough to adapt to different shapes. We worked on the right recipe for almost a whole year.
Since business got off to a very good start, we then had to make an effort to build up a stock in order to cope with the large crowd

Viking: What has been the biggest success of your career so far?

Angelika & Rosemarie: We are pleased about many partial successes: For example, that we were able to raise the start-up financing entirely with our own resources from our beekeeping and that we were in the black after a short time. The fact that we have been able to professionalize our work processes is also a success: by introducing a merchandise management system, we were able to create free capacities for production. Perhaps it is our greatest success that after such a short time we have become the leading German manufacturers of Beeswax cloths and are the only ones who offer vegan oilcloths.

Viking: What is your favorite office item that you can no longer do without?

Angelika & Rosemarie: That is clearly “Dümmi”, our label printer from DYMO, which spits out all shipping labels for nightly orders with your first coffee in the morning. Since we have it, all postcodes and packing station numbers are just right!

Viking: Who is your business role model and why?

Angelika & Rosemarie: On the one hand, the entire unpackaged movement with its many different founders, who enthusiastically plunged into the food retail sector and initiated a new wave of environmental awareness. As individuals Joana Heinen, Creative Director of the 100TAUSENDLUX Group. As a high school dropout from photographer to managing director of two office supplies and lifestyle brands with around 80 permanent employees. And that at the age of 28. Impressive.

Viking: How do you switch off after a day at work?

Angelika & Rosemarie: At the moment we just fall into bed in the evening – the day has too few hours to complete all tasks. However, when we stop by our bees during the day and let our gaze wander over Lake Constance, it slows down every time.

Viking: What advice would you give someone who wants to start their own business with an idea?

Angelika & Rosemarie: Find a solution to an existing problem of your fellow human beings and develop a product from it. Always have sustainability in mind in order to protect the environment and resources and not cause even more consumer waste. The latter will become more and more important. Test with as little money as possible whether there is a demand for the product. The rest of the work is done and you grow with your tasks. It is also helpful to read books on the subject, such as “Head Beats Capital” by Günter Faltin or “The 4-Hour Week” by Timothy Ferriss. They make it easier to think outside the box and save you from exchanging time for money. Otherwise, you really work “yourself and constantly” and it becomes more and more difficult to decide independently about your own time.

Viking: What future plans are there for little bee fresh?

Angelika & Rosemarie: We are currently fully occupied with meeting the gratifyingly high demand for our beeswax cloths. Our dream is to leave our main jobs behind at some point and be able to live off little bee fresh. We are also constantly working on new product ideas. For example, a do-it-yourself kit for beeswax cloths is being planned.

For companies that want to assert themselves in their market, an Internet presence is essential nowadays. Many startups start by devising a good business plan with a high quality website. Even traditional companies have recognized that they are increasingly found and, above all, rated by old and new customers via the World Wide Web.

But how can companies gain and maintain customer trust when the first thing consumers see is an impersonal website? Social media could be the ideal answer. It is not for nothing that people speak of social networks, because businesses of all sizes can show their human side here. In addition, they offer self-employed people and startups the opportunity to expand the level of awareness of their brand, product or service, to build up their reputation and to win new customers.

Unfortunately, many small businesses and self-employed people view social networks as a tiresome task for which precious working hours cannot be saved, especially in the early stages of their own business, and if so, only half-heartedly. But even if you don’t have a sophisticated social media campaign or even only have 10 minutes to spare at the end of the day, we want to show that it is still worthwhile for small businesses and the self-employed to make use of social networks.

Facebook is the most widely used social network. The latest figures, which the American Internet giant only published this June, show that there are 30 million active Facebook users in this country. This means that theoretically 30 million new customers are just waiting to discover new brands and brands.

If there is absolutely no budget available for sponsored posts on Facebook, you can still derive a lot of benefits from a company profile page. As indicated above, perhaps the most important reason is communication with customers. Anyone who can build this up with their customers already has one foot in the door, especially when questions are asked about the service or the product. Companies that offer potential customers something extra at the same time, i.e. added value without trying to sell something, will soon notice that customers return to their profile page. This helps e.g. even if something has gone wrong, because nothing is more damaging to the image of a business than radio silence.

Facebook company pages can also be used well to announce important company technical developments, innovations or restructuring. Has the company opened up a new market or hired its first employee? A Facebook post about it spreads much faster than a boring press release, which business journalists might end up in the trash.

Also, one should not forget that not only customers, but also new employees, potential business partners or investors like to review the company and not infrequently on the Internet. A well-maintained Facebook page could help to make a good impression.

Another point that speaks for the use of social networks like Facebook is the chance to find out what certain target groups are talking about. Can you foresee certain trends in your own industry? How is your own company rated? If you keep an eye on it, you can react quickly to trends or implement necessary improvements.

It can be difficult to address sensitive topics or unpleasant situations in the company personally, especially when it comes to bullying or discrimination. That’s what Lytt is for: a digital assistant that employees can use to give their company feedback securely and anonymously. In this way, companies can address cultural problems and sustainably support their employees in the long term.

We interviewed managing director Lara von Petersdorff-Campen.

Viking: How would you describe your career in three sentences?

After work experience at various consultancies, I founded a company with Marvin Lytt right out of my studies. I like to work independently and I really enjoy creating something that creates sustainable added value. Lytt presents me with challenges every day, but I love working in a small team in a startup.

Viking: How did the idea of ​​founding Lytt come about?

I have personally found that as a young woman in professional life it can be difficult to openly address unpleasant situations. Then we took a closer look at the subject of discrimination and examined how we can support companies in setting up structures that improve the situation for those affected. Employees should be able to get help in all situations without fear of being disadvantaged.

Viking: What obstacles did you have to overcome?

One of our biggest challenges was staying focused and patient. My co-founder, Marvin, and I are always overflowing with ideas, and we love to throw concepts on top of the pile. For example, at the beginning we developed an NLP-based assistant that was technically very sophisticated. In fact, we got caught in the classic “over-engineering” trap – there was simply no market for such a solution. So we had to take a few steps back, talk to customers and find out how Lytt could really add value.

Viking: What has been the greatest success of your career so far?

With Lytt we were able to get a scholarship from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the European Social Fund. In addition, we were able to win many well-known partners for our project. These include Christine Lüders, former head of the Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency, as well as other company representatives from the Boston Consulting Group and the international law firm Bird & Bird.

In addition, we have only been on the market for a few months and have already won well-known customers such as the Bertelsmann Foundation. But I am just as happy about the positive feedback from those affected and employees, who often tell us: This is exactly the solution that would help me in a difficult situation.

Viking: What is your favorite office item that you couldn’t do without?

Definitely my noise-canceling headphones: With them I can dive anytime and anywhere and work undisturbed. Whether in the open-plan office with four other teams or on the train on the way to a customer appointment, you can always rely on these things.

Viking: Who is your business role model and why?

Tina Müller, the CEO of the Douglas Group, impressed me with her unerring instinct for digitization, marketing and trends as well as with her clear stance on the issue of promoting women. Douglas is a fine example of how companies can be more innovative and successful when they value diversity.

Viking: How do you switch off after a working day?

I prefer to relax with a round of yoga. After sitting too much at my desk all day, yoga relieves my tension and gives me the necessary concentration for new challenges.

Viking: What advice would you give someone who wants to start their own business with an idea?

Nothing is certain until you have spoken to at least 100 customers.

Viking: What future plans are there for Lytt?

With Lytt we want to give employees worldwide a voice. To do this, we have to convince companies of how much they benefit from a culture of trust and at the same time must never lose sight of the needs of those affected. In order to solve conflicts sustainably, we also need more than a digital assistant: Lytt would like to support companies in the future with coaching and mediation offers as well as workshops on diversity issues.