Henry Köhler from Weimar always wanted to build something of his own. At the turn of the year everything “as if it should be” happened for him: Köhler opened his café and restaurant “Bienenstock” in the German Bee Museum and thus dared to take the step into self-employment. For him it was a conscious gut decision that required a lot of planning and organization.
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It takes courage to become self-employed – especially in times of Corona. This is also shown by the statistics: In the past year, the number of start-ups in the catering industry has decreased significantly. According to the Thuringian State Office for Statistics, there were 822 registrations in the catering sector in Thuringia in 2020. That is 300 or more than a quarter fewer registrations than in 2019. This shows that anyone like Henry Köhler opening a café or restaurant during the corona pandemic is acting against the trend.
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Despite Corona “work and stress”
Köhler seems very relaxed as he sits with a coffee in the outdoor area of the German Bee Museum, directly on the babbling Ilm. But he and his team have “work and stress” despite Corona and a new start, he says. He is very busy. “Maybe we’ll do something right after all,” laughs Köhler and is pleased that his café has been so well received. He himself does not have his own comparative values from before Corona. But Köhler knows the sales of his predecessor, who ran the Immenhof café in the bee museum until the end of the year. In comparison, he does not notice a great loss.
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The staff also shows that there is enough work. His team consists of one permanent employee and now seven mini-job seekers who are employed alternately because, for example, they earn something in addition to their Abitur. The selection process for another permanent employee is ongoing. He’ll need the staff in the summer, says Köhler. The rush is already there. With better and better weather it will continue to rise. His aim is to keep waiting times as short as possible – especially in the area of to-go restaurants. “As soon as there are children in the game, things have to be done quickly,” says the experienced restaurateur.
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Recipe for success: breakfast delivery, Instagram and sustainability
He owes his success above all to his breakfast deliveries, which are now also being imitated by some in Weimar: “If we didn’t have them, it would be bad”. Just from coffee and cake to hand or the picnic baskets to take away when the weather is nice and on weekends, the “beehive” could not survive. As a founder during the pandemic, Köhler is not entitled to corona funding, he says.
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The Weimar people carried us through the lockdown.
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Instagram is also part of his success. For his café, the social network is a great advertising platform, without which the “beehive” would not run as it does now. With sustainability, the founder is sure to hit a nerve with the times. The box and dishes with which breakfast is delivered will be picked up again in the afternoon. The to go sundae is made of fast-growing bamboo. Instead of a plastic spoon, there is the wooden version.
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Köhler has a lot of courage, creativity and specialist knowledge. He didn’t consciously open his café despite or because of Corona, but because that was what he wanted to do, what felt right for him. Maybe that’s the biggest secret of his success.
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Source: MDR THÜRINGEN / the
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