Driewes

Drie | wes

Noun, masculine

Pronounciation: [dɹiwəs]

A word in the Siegerland dialect for ‘drifter’;
a person who is open-minded and curious.

No, this is not a dictionary entry, but the meaning and origin of the name Driewes needs to be explained. Not only to understand the Siegerland dialect, but also to understand Sabine Ullrich's motives for choosing this name for her initiative.

‘I grew up in the east of Germany, moved to southern Germany shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall, did my A-levels there and from then on I travelled all over Germany. I kept travelling to other cities,’ explains the founder, ’so I'm a real Driewes.’ Sabine Ullrich is particularly interested in meeting other people and hearing about their lives.

One day, Sabine Ullrich made her way to the university town of Siegen, where she studied social pedagogy and graduated in 2000. After graduating, her career took her back to various cities in Germany. It wasn't until 2011, when her husband got a job in Siegen by chance, that Sabine moved back to Siegen. (and stayed there). Sabine Ullrich launched the initiative ‘Driewes - Herumtreiben in der Region’ in 2019.

How did you get the idea for ‘Driewes’?

I think it was my own travelling that finally made me do it. I have been to many other regions and have always looked at how each region is reported on. When my husband and I moved here in 2011, we were often asked: ‘How can you move to Siegen?’ I couldn't understand this question at all. There are many beautiful places in Siegen, you can have a good life here, but there is very little coverage of the region in Siegen. There is a lot of stigmatisation and prejudice about Siegen and the Siegerländer. I simply saw a need to start at this point and report on Siegen from the perspective of the people who live here. This gave rise to the idea of creating a form of welcoming culture, but not tourism. My aim is to give newcomers the opportunity to get to know the many beautiful places that Siegen has to offer.

What inspired you?

In 2012, I had contact for the first time with a person who was a founder. The entrepreneur's name was Franziska von Hardenberg and she founded the first flower subscription in Germany. I myself have a strong connection to gardening and was very impressed by this. Franziska was an inspiration to me as to how women can also go down the path of founding a company. She inspired me to be courageous.

What is behind the ‘Driewes’ initiative? (what exactly do you do?)

The Driewes initiative initially started with a micro-project called ‘Driewes - Herumtreiben im Garten’. I was inspired by my visit to the island of Bornholm. Almost every house there has a small box where locals sell fruit and vegetables and even clothes. I also have such a box outside in my front garden. The Driewesbox is a fold-out shop with ideas for more enjoyment and fun when gardening, flowers, fruit, vegetables and herbs are offered together with a recipe suggestion and sold for a fair amount of your choice. The idea was for people to come into contact with each other and exchange ideas about garden culture. Driewes im Garten still exists today and is mainly organised via Instagram. In addition to this campaign, we also wanted to draw attention to the region.

We started with Driewes in the region in 2019. By ‘we’ I mean my two freelancers who are responsible for online editing, programming and graphic design. With Driewes in the region, we visit special people and places in and around Siegen, such as a master charcoal burner or a bakery. It is important to us not to report on these people and places, but to go with these people and report from their perspective.

These stories can be found online on our website. We always wanted to publish a magazine, but we didn't have the budget. Instead, a new opportunity has now arisen for us. We will soon be publishing the travel guide ‘Glücksorte in und um Siegen’ with a partner publisher.

What was the biggest challenge in setting up the company? (and how did you overcome it?)

Your own courage. Your own doubts, not even about the thing itself, i.e. that the idea might not be a good one, but about this safety aspect. I actually always enjoyed the idea and there was no obstacle per se, but always the thought ‘Is it safe’? I realised that if you talk a lot about your idea with others, this worry goes away. You tend to get confirmation and encouragement.

What drives you? What is your motto?

‘Start with...’ You have to get started at some point and see what happens. I like to follow the many women on Instagram who have started a business. They really motivate and encourage me.

Was there financial support in the form of scholarships, prizes or similar?

No, we financed everything ourselves right from the start. We don't market a product in that sense and don't have any real income as a social initiative.

(Business) enterprise versus (social) initiative: What difference does this make for you?

Women often set up companies on the basis of social initiative. The good thing about this is that I am free to act as I wish, as I don't have to monitor sales figures or constantly deliver. To be honest, terms like ‘business plan’ would also put me off. Of course, you have to be able to make a living from something, and I continue to work freelance on the side. However, you always have to ask yourself ‘does it make you happy?’ If you set up a business that doesn't make you happy, then it makes you ill and even the big money won't help. The Driewes initiative is a project close to my heart and that's why I'm involved in it.

This portrait is based on an interview with Sabine Ullrich in March 2021 and was written by Janice Gust.

 

Click here for the startup's homepage.