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Sometimes I wonder how much long-term damage the Samwer[0] brothers have done to Berlin startups' being taken seriously. Not just from outside Berlin -- it's p

by biztos 10y ago

Sometimes I wonder how much long-term damage the Samwer[0] brothers have done to Berlin startups' being taken seriously. Not just from outside Berlin -- it's pretty common to run into someone working on "PetFoodScout24" or the "German Snapchat" or whatever. As has been noted elsewhere here, one of the cool things about Berlin is that there is a "scene" if you want it but if, say, Soho House[1] isn't your idea of cool then there's also a lot of alternative things going on. And plenty of people who freelance while working on side projects that might grow into startups. The low cost of living and (AFAICT, since I'm a regular employee) the viability of tech freelancing creates a lot of space for exploring non-obvious ideas. For instance, while the gentrified and hipsterfied neighborhoods have quite high rents compared to incomes, it's still eminently possible to live for cheap in a safe and quiet neighborhood just a few subway stops from the urban hustle & bustle. This buys you a lot of creative freedom. [0]: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-05-15/germanys-samwer-brothers-take-their-web-copycat-act-global http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-05-15/germanys-s... [1]: https://www.sohohouseberlin.com/en https://www.sohohouseberlin.com/en edit: typo

camillomiller 10y ago
The Samwers's companies and their awful approach to company structures and culture continue to do a lot of damage. Let's hope it's just not that long term, and it can be flushed away with their eventual and inevitable demise. One good thing, though, is that most of the people of the tech scene won't consider Rocket companies as a good example of what you shouldn't do if you want to have a thriving company culture. On the other hand, though, the idea that one's in it for the quick money grab that may come from a nice exit is very much ingrained in most of the "cool startuppers" here.

by biztos 10y ago

camillomiller 10y ago

The Samwers's companies and their awful approach to company structures and culture continue to do a lot of damage. Let's hope it's just not that long term, and it can be flushed away with their eventual and inevitable demise. One good thing, though, is that most of the people of the tech scene won't consider Rocket companies as a good example of what you shouldn't do if you want to have a thriving company culture. On the other hand, though, the idea that one's in it for the quick money grab that may come from a nice exit is very much ingrained in most of the "cool startuppers" here.