Klaudia and the Association of German Women Entrepreneurs
In September 2019, a friend took me to an event run by the Association of German Women Entrepreneurs (Verein Deutscher Unternehmen – VdU), in the Mannheim Art Gallery. I was very excited about this all-female network. Valuable discussions with women from the most diverse backgrounds were followed by a professional panel discussion on the theme of ‘Women on Supervisory Boards’, which featured insightful personal accounts and points of view on politics, science, and economics.
I felt extremely happy, and it became clear to me that this was the target demographic of my collection. Since then I have attended a number of VdU events, and made new interesting friendships. This is the case with the regional director of VdU Baden, Erika Schroth, with whom I meet on a monthly basis. She fully supports my project, and suggested that we begin holding the VdU’s annual opening event in my showroom in Mannheim. On the 22nd of January 2020 the time came, and at 6:30pm I greeted around 30 women from the VdU in my showroom. Alongside cocktails and an interesting lecture about the history of the Mannheim textile shop as a business start-up centre, the guests could look at, feel, and try on my collection.
I can’t put into words the feeling of joy upon receiving consistent positive feedback. The enthusiasm of the women for my sustainably produced fabrics, the high production quality, and the comfortable fit of the clothes, all brought me many new customers in no time. Twenty-five pieces found happy new owners. The feedback encouraged me that my fashion had been given its seal of approval. Just like me, there are many business women, who want to make a fashion statement in their business lives – fashion that combines strength with feminine feeling. I will have a booth at the next annual general meeting of the VdU, which will be held in Warnemünde, right by the German coast, at the end of August 2020, where I can introduce even more women to my strong yet feminine fashion. I can’t wait!
