Radebeul. Like many other traders, travel agents or beauticians are currently not able to practice their profession. Because of the corona pandemic, there are no holiday trips to be arranged and the studio has been closed for weeks. You can count yourself lucky if you have access to a network of business people that helps. The owner of a travel agency in Weinböhla was able to take up a part-time job with a befriended entrepreneur. And a beautician from Radebeul gives lawyers and tax advisors advice and tips on how to get hold of aid programs.
Anja Lipp gives these two examples. Like the business people mentioned above, the management consultant is a member of the corporate network BNI (Business Network International). For ten years now there has been a separate group in Radebeul, Chapter, and it is called “Karl May”. It currently has 28 members and Anja Lipp is the treasurer.
Corporate succession secured
Because of the BNI chapter “Karl May” the lights did not go out at the construction company Getifix in Meißen at the beginning of this year, but three employees are still on their wages. “The previous owner of the company, Wolfgang Puls, wanted to retire and was looking for a successor,” reports Lipp. He found what he was looking for through the network. Chapter member Lutz Stöckigt, architect and planning master builder, took over the management on January 1st and continues the company, which specializes in building waterproofing, terrace and balcony construction as well as fighting dry rot and mold.
The American management consultant Ivan Misner founded the BNI network in 1985. Today it is present with over 10,000 entrepreneurial teams with around 275,000 members in 70 countries on all five continents of the globe. The Radebeuler Chapter is part of the BNI Regional Group Southeast. Their area extends from Pirna in the east, Altenburg in the west, Dessau in the north and the German-Czech border in the south. It has a total of 24 chapters with 550 companies.
Meet every Wednesday morning
The basic idea is that orders that arise from companies in the region are also implemented regionally. For this purpose, the chapter members meet once a week for breakfast between 6.45 and 9 a.m. “There are no events at this time. It is the freest appointment in the whole world, ”says Jens Fiedler, BNI Regional Director. In the evenings, after work is done, volunteer work, club work or sports, nothing early.
That’s why entrepreneurs have been coming together for coffee and sandwiches on Wednesday mornings for ten years, first at the Radisson Blu conference hotel in East, later at the Hotel Goldener Anker in Altkötzschenbroda and now at the West Hotel on the outskirts of Coswig. Whether real estate agent, architect, civil engineer, master painter, beautician, travel agent, lawyer, tax, corporate or financial consultant – every week the entrepreneurs from the region report in the breakfast round about their business, also tell about their needs or what they are urgently looking for. And usually someone in the group knows someone who knows someone who can help. The members supply each other with customers and orders. Delivering and paying on time are part of the rules. “Trust and reliability are important,” says Chapter Director Rocco Martin.
New members and guests are welcome
He has been a member of Radebeul since the very beginning, which is not a matter of course. Because membership has to be applied for anew every year. Industry exclusivity prevails in the group. This means that each regional chapter only accepts one team member per subject. So that there is no competition within the group. The annual membership fee is 990 euros. Other members are welcome. “For example, we would like to have a car dealership, an optician, a bicycle shop and a physiotherapist,” says Martin.
Due to the corona pandemic, joint breakfasts are currently not possible in real life. Nevertheless, the weekly meeting is not waived. It is now taking place via video conference. This offers the opportunity to expand the network meetings to other BNI chapters, even across the pond. A real estate lawyer from Los Angeles was recently there via video switch. Interested entrepreneurs are also welcome as guests.
Read more local news from Radebeul and the surrounding area here.
Read more local news from Meissen and the surrounding area here.
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