Veronica Ferres and I had a relaxing cup of tea in a hotel lobby in Berlin – we enjoyed our tea from hand-painted Kurland cups from KPM

It’s Valentine’s Day. Veronica Ferres sits in a hotel lobby in Berlin and shows me photos on her phone, showing two huge rose bouquets. “From my husband,” she reveals and smiles. Veronica Ferres is one of Germany’s most prominent actresses and is the star of numerous TV and film productions. For six years, the 54-year-old has been married to the German financial entrepreneur Carsten Maschmeyer. They live in Munich with their daughter Lilly.

Despite her busy calendar, Veronica Ferres took her time for our reunion and the Meet me for tea interview

MyStylery: Congratulations, Veronica. You recently filmed the drug thriller “Dreamland” with Oscar winner Gary Oldman. Does this make the dream of Hollywood come true?
Veronica Ferres: Hollywood has never been my priority. Nevertheless, I have played in twenty-three English-language productions since the Oscar nomination for ‘Schtonk!’. In Los Angeles I go to every casting. Mostly it doesn´t work. Here it did and I’m happy.
MS: Many German actors dream of a career in the USA. Was that the reason why you moved to Los Angeles in 2016?
VF: When you’re shooting in America, this is seen more critically here in Germany. It indicates that one is not available for the German market. In 2016, we wanted to live abroad again with our daughter for a longer period of time, before she came to secondary school in Germany, where she graduated from high school last year. And since our son was studying in Los Angeles at the time, we all lived under one roof.

There’s always something to laugh about with Veronica – we’ve known each other for more than 20 years

MS: How nice that you speak of Carstens children as your sons.
VF: They also call me mother.
MS: Really?
VF: Yes. They love me. And I love them. My daughter is in the truest sense my stomach child, the two boys are my heart children.
MS: That was not always the case.
VF: Yes, at first it was difficult. Every patchwork family faces big challenges.

Veronica Ferres: “Supermodel instead of superwoman? At some point I accepted myself as I am.”

MS: Children find it difficult to accept the new partner. How did you manage to convince the sons of you?
VF: By speaking openly about my feelings and making it clear that certain things hurt me. Both have developed great respect over the years and have seen me as a hardworking yet warmhearted woman.
MS: At that time they were almost grown up.
VF: I think infants are more open than kids in puberty.
MS: Pubescent children are characters in their own world, always in search of themselves.
VF: Exactly. My daughter is eighteen and a half (laughs). The most important thing is to empower children in their talents, to give them so much love that they are rooted in the earth and yet have the wings and the courage to explore the world. Incidentally, I learn more things from my daughter than she does from me.

I met a relaxed Veronica Ferres who is completely by herself. And even though she didn’t really want to reveal anything private in the interview, she still gave insights

MS: As a young woman you were significantly more Veronica than today. Were diets a topic then?
VF: I was and am an aficionado and wanted to be thin at the same time. Supermodel instead of superwoman. At some point I accepted myself as I am. Living with my husband has also shaped me. He is a marathon runner who is physically active every day. And my daughter too. There is nothing left for me to do but to participate. I regularly train ‘Black-Bike’, a kind of spinning where I spend an hour on the pedals, along with thirty other women in a darkened room. And I train daily with the app ‘8fit’, a workout based on deadweight. It´s good for arms and happiness.
MS: You say seasonal nutrition is important to you.
VF: In the US, I discovered Kohl, ‘Kale’, which is a big topic there. Suddenly, there are vegetables that were totally out of style, like beetroot. Our grandparents lived with the seasons. Today, raspberries are nothing special for our children. In my childhood, they only existed in late summer, when we picked them from the bushes.

Veronica Ferres loves tea

MS: Do you cook yourself?
VF: Yes. When I’m not shooting, I’m in my production office during the day, and in the evening, the family gathers to eat together at home. During the semester break, also our sons are there. The elder studied at Oxford and is now self-employed. The younger studied design in Pasadena and is still doing postgraduate studies in LA.
MS: And you drink tea.
VF: A lot, actually. However only in autumn and winter. For me, this is the cozy season in which I celebrate my rituals: In the evening before going to bed there is a bedtime tea and in the morning a detox tea. I love ginger tea, but I only drink it until 5 pm because it cleanses and induces the body. When I work and the days are long, ginger is my universal weapon and secret recipe. In addition, ginger tea strengthens the immune system.

“Turning fifty was no problem at all. I go through life with the same passion and curiosity.”

MS: You are often confronted with the status of a billionaire’s wife. Was that why you came up with the idea of ​​separation of property?
VF: That’s a matter of course to me. I also relinquish maintenance and inheritance. Carsten and I meet at eye level. I think that’s the secret of our love. My mother, who sold potatoes and coals, reminded me how important it is to stand on your own two feet. I love my husband and that’s why I married him.
MS: How was turning fifty for you?
VF: No problem at all. I go through life with the same passion and curiosity. And professionally there have been great productions since then, for example with Til Schweiger in the American version of “Honey in the Head” on the side of Nick Nolte as well as films with Keanu Reeves, Helen Mirren or Keira Knightley. I also teach in Munich at the University of Television and Film and the encounters with young authors and filmmakers inspire me very much.
MS: Do you get more demanding as you get older?
VF: I’m getting more and more relaxed. The main thing is, I’m with the right people. BvH

Veronica Ferres on Instagram

The interview series “Meet me for Tea” is sponsored by KPM – Königliche Porzellan Manufaktur Berlin.
More interviews you can find here.

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Jörg Woltmann prefers to enjoy his tea from his Kurland cup “Royal Noir” with gilded relief edge

Thirteen years ago, he bought KPM, the Royal Porcelain Manufactory in Berlin – and that before its insolvency: Jörg Woltmann, Berlin’s old hand, banker, entrepreneur. A visionary who, contrary to all expert advice, bought the long-established Berlin company for 13.5 million euros, which today employs more than 200 people, around 120 in porcelain production alone. KPM is one of the world’s oldest luxury brands – founded in 1763 by Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, it has since belonged to seven kings and emperors. Since 1872, the company has resided on the historic factory premises in Berlin-Charlottenburg, directly next to the Tiergarten, where Jörg Woltmann welcomes me in his elegant office furnished with English antiques. Tea is served between wood-clad walls and a portrait of “Old Fritz”. Of course, from KPM cups. A “Meet me for tea” interview about the love of porcelain and the preservation of a cultural asset.

The shape of the cup dates from 1790 and is still one of the classics of the KPM range. In the “Royal Noir” version with gold edge, the cup costs 1,190 euros each. I drink from a coloured Kurland cup, a so-called decorated cup. For two years they have been dishwasher safe thanks to a special glaze developed by KPM

MyStylery: What was it like when you acquired KPM 13 years ago?
Jörg Woltmann: I can still remember exactly that the notary appointment lasted from 4 p.m. in the afternoon until 5 a.m. of the next day. Continuously. Many legal subtleties had to be taken into account. The only interruption was the pizza delivery boy.
MS: In retrospect, would you invest the purchase price and the follow-up costs again?
JW: I have never regretted having bought the KPM, although many things came differently than expected. In the end, it was like building a house where everything is more expensive than previously calculated.

At the age of 32, Jörg Woltmann was the youngest banker in Germany. Today the entrepreneur is the owner of Allgemeine Beamtenbank (General Civil Servants’ Bank), hotelier and since 2006 owner of KPM Berlin

MS: KPM was on the verge of collapse. What went wrong back then?
JW: After the Second World War, the state of Berlin became the owner of the manufactory. First and foremost, efforts were made to preserve the cultural asset KPM for Berlin with state subsidies, instead of running the business in an entrepreneurial manner and promoting exports. KPM was subordinated to the Cultural Senate, which commissioned artists for the design. The only thing that disturbed them was the customer. Basically, it is difficult to make a porcelain manufactory profitable.
MS: What is the challenge?
JW: Table culture has changed a lot.
MS: Although young people nowadays spend more money on living and eating again, they save on what they have and buy their tableware from Ikea.
JW: Many lack the appreciation for the craft and the idea of how elaborate the production process of a single cup alone is. If you consider that 25 craftsmen work on a Kurland cup, that it takes 14 days and 29 steps to make it, and that it then undergoes ten quality controls, you should be respected. Today I still walk through the manufactory with great humility. What is done here is world class. I therefore hope that people will rediscover the sense of a stylishly set table, of sustainability and craftsmanship.

The son of a dressmaker has achieved his own success. “It took a little naivety to start my own bank at the age of thirty,” he says in retrospect. “I’m glad I had that naivety.”

MS: Today, many young people prefer to study handicraft. Does KPM have problems with recruiting young people?
JW: On the contrary. There are 15 to 20 applications for a porcelain painter, although the training takes three and a half years. After that, the porcelain painter needs another ten years of practical experience to be able to meet the high-quality standards. We are one of the few training companies in this field and proud of the fact that our apprentices always score top marks.
MS: Must a budding porcelain painter have talent for drawing and be able to paint “correctly”?
JW: Yes, the applicants must submit sketchbooks before they can prove their talent for this job over several days of selection. This profession is ultimately a vocation.

“I bought the manufactory when I was 59 – the right time for me. I didn’t have to prove anything anymore,” says Jörg Woltmann. “When I was almost sixty years old, I had the knowledge and experience that I could face up to this task without getting upset.”

MS: The younger generation in particular buys almost everything online today. How does KPM’s online trading work?
JW: We are very satisfied, although I had doubts at the beginning. I always thought a haptic product had to be touched before making a purchase decision. But quality and reputation speak for themselves. In the magazine “Bunte”, the mention of the must-have of the week is enough, and the number of clicks is already going up. We have developed products especially for the target group of young consumers, such as the “LAB” series, retro coffee filters and mortars. Instead of drinking from a paper cup, you now drink your coffee-to-go from the “To Go” cup from KPM.
MS: Is KPM profitable by now?
JW: If I didn’t invest so much, I could be in the black. Every year I spend between 500,000 and 800,000 euros on preserving the cultural heritage alone. This includes the archive with over 250 years of German cultural history. Drawings and forms that the architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel and the sculptor Johann Gottfried Schadow once held in their hands have to be extensively revised today. That’s why I established a foundation three years ago, into which the cultural assets are gradually being transferred. The production remains unaffected by this.
MS: You could sleep more peacefully if you hadn’t tied this task to your leg.
JW: Probably. But I bought one of the last luxury brands still available in the world. And which entrepreneur gets the chance to acquire a cultural asset? I prefer my commitment here to running around on the golf course. (laughs.) I come from the dax-controlled world of banks. Through KPM, a completely different circle of people from art and culture has opened up for me, which I find enriching.

Besides porcelain, Jörg Woltmann cultivates his second passion: cars. Among them is his favourite car, a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster from 1960, black with dark green interior. “It has never been restored before, everything is original, including the paintwork,” enthuses Jörg Woltmann. “Unfortunately, these are today more standing vehicles than vehicles.”

MS: As a post-war child, you grew up beyond luxury. Your mother brought it up from a tailor to a successful entrepreneur. Remarkable.
JW: I had a very happy childhood in which I grew up with great love and affection. Our house in Berlin’s district Lichterfelde also accommodated the production, so that we were always close to our mother. I remember how for the first time I didn’t have to wear my brother’s clothes, but got something of my own to wear: A pair of velvet trousers. That was very special, like the fine tableware, which was only served on Sundays.
MS: Did that shape your sense for porcelain?
JW: Absolutely. When I was 28, I sold my first company and bought a porcelain service from the proceeds: Kurland from KPM, which we still use at home. Daily and not just for special occasions.

“The only time I was permanently employed was during the three years of my apprenticeship at Bankhaus Hermann Lampe. After that I always worked independently and created things.”

MS: KPM in the morning, banking in the afternoon. How long do you want to face the daily struggle?
JW: My wife knows that I’m going to work till I fall down. (laughs). I’m taking it slower today and I’m also taking some vacations. We enjoy dinner together, then I relax with a swim or in the sauna. I have largely retired from active day-to-day business. But I represent the company to the outside world and network. Each day I have four invitations, four of which I receive each week.
MS: You are also an enthusiastic tea drinker…
JW: Yes, the morning begins with a freshly squeezed orange juice and a cup of tea. Then I have to eat muesli. (laughs). By the way, I get my tea from Taiwan business friends who give me green or black teas, which are not available here. Tea is my constant companion, even in the office there is always a pot in front of me. By the way, I always drink from a Kurland office cup. The tea simply tastes best from it. Taste is also connected with haptics.

International guests visiting the Federal President of Germany in Schloss Bellevue, of course, dine from tableware by KPM Berlin

MS: What happens next with the KPM?
JW: As far as personnel is concerned, KPM is well positioned. I have great confidence in my employees, many of whom are better than me. A large market today is Asia, where there is a strong demand for high-quality painted porcelain. That’s why I’m confident that the company will earn a lot of money again. KPM is the oldest manufacturing company in Berlin and I would like to preserve the manufactory for Germany.
MS: For your patriotism, the political leaders here would have to shower you with praise and recognition all the time.
JW: They do. I have already received the Federal Cross of Merit. Well, that doesn’t cost any money. (laughs) Nevertheless, I find that a cultural asset belongs in principle to the state. It just has to be managed correctly.
MS: Does it annoy you that the Berlin Senate has acted so carelessly here?
JW: Yes, from my personal point of view it does. On the other hand, I also say that – if the state is not in a position – the citizen is asked to get involved. You can’t always just hold out your hand. You also have to give something back.  BvH

Jörg Woltmann calls Prussian virtues the cornerstones of his success: diligence and sincerity. And he is proud that he and his family have always kept their feet on the ground

Contact

KPM Berlin

More “Meet me for Tea”-interviews you’ll find here.

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Bückeburg Castle in Lower Saxony, Germany: Ancestral home of the house Schaumburg-Lippe

His employees address him with “His Highness”, in the public and media world, he is the “Prince”: Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe is an entrepreneur, forest manager and head of one of the oldest German noble families, whose history is documented over 900 years. And he is the landlord of Bückeburg Castle, a Renaissance ensemble with magnificent halls from four centuries. It is situated in the middle of an extensive landscape park, which is also open to the public. I meet the studied lawyer, who is the father of three children (son Donatus from his marriage to Princess Lilly and the daughters Philomena and Felipa from his marriage to lawyer Nadja Anna) and also an excellent pianist, for tea in his private rooms at Bückeburg Castle.

Meet me for Tea at Bückeburg Castle: Alexander Fürst zu Schaumburg-Lippe and myself in his private drawing room

MyStylery: Alex, how do you prepare your son Donatus for the succession of the house Schaumburg-Lippe?
Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe: I encourage him to take on as much responsibility as possible, what he does with great success. Donatus was the first German to be accepted to the Sandhurst Military Academy and to serve in Household Cavalry. At university, he was elected President of the Student’s Association in the first semester of business administration. And he is involved in various sports clubs. If my son decides to run our business on his own and not just on a temporary basis, then he is well prepared for this task.
MS: And what if he’d rather be a pop star?
ASL: He’d have my blessing, even if there’s no reason to suggest that he wants it. The inclinations clearly lie in the entrepreneurial. I’ve always told him: “Do what you like to do best, because that’s what you do best”. I also still have two daughters…
MS: …who could also take over the establishment?
ASL: They can’t inherit. It is decreed in the will, that the core property, the traditional inheritance, can only be passed on to the first-born son.
MS: Is this still contemporary today, where attempts are being made everywhere to establish women in management positions?
ASL: This has something to do with our family traditions. So, my son could therefore also appoint a female plant manager if he doesn’t want to take an active part himself.

Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe enjoys his tea with some milk

MS: According to your own statement, you were rather a mediocre student who, instead of paying attention, preferred to read Asterix under the table – which promptly led to a “not passed” on your school report. Would a boarding school have been an option for you?
ASL: Well, it wasn’t like that everywhere. I was enthusiastic about some subjects and was also active, for example, as the editor of the school newspaper. I would have liked to go to a boarding school, because there you get the opportunity to make contacts, that last a lifetime. My mother probably wanted to protect me from the pressure, which was – at least in the beginning – exerted on new boarders. Therefore, I received even more pressure in Bückeburg because of my social exceptional position. My brother was sent to a boarding school due to his bad grades. Unfortunately, there have been considerable drug problems. That also had consequences for him.
MS: You first studied political science, musicology and journalism, then switched to law, which you graduated with distinction. When you were 24 years old, your brother died in a motorcycle accident. All of a sudden you had to take over. How does your everyday life look like since then?
ASL: I have to complete a list of appointments every day. There is no everyday routine. In principal, we are an agricultural and forestry company, with a real estate pillar, the events “Landpartie” (“Country outing”) and “Weihnachtszauber” (“Christmas magic”). They have become an important branch of industry in which one hundred employees work and in which the amounts implemented are well into the seven-digit range. There are 13 permanent employees in the court chamber. In addition, there are about 70 employees from agriculture, forestry and gastronomy.

MS: You were once a ruling house with political and social responsibilities. Do you regret that the time of the ruling princes is over?
ASL: No, I’m a convinced Republican. Today we have a very good political system, which does not need to be replaced by anything else. That’s the reason I am not crying a tear after the monarchy. But I respect it very much in other countries.
MS: What do name, origin and family history mean to you?
ASL: When you are so strongly embedded in your own family history, it also creates identity and that is something I value. That doesn’t make me a political right by a long shot, but rather gives me certain tasks and responsibilities. And of course, a certain pride in what my ancestors achieved. I associate this with a sense of commitment that I shall have to do them some justice.
MS: That sounds like some kind of burden…
ASL: Every aristocrat who identifies with his origin experiences this in certain gradations.
MS: Tea culture was always considered a sign of the aristocracy and used to be reserved for it in the 17th century. Is tea your drink?
ASL: Tea is a sociable and cultivated drink, where you can already tell the difference if you are dealing a good or a bad plant. On the plane, I once met an Indian who told me that the tea he planted was delivered to the English royal house. But only the tips, which are reserved for the Queen. Tea has something meditative about it because it almost forces you to internalise and concentrate on the aroma. A drink to be consumed with caution. However, I like to start the morning with a coffee.

Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe with Mahkameh Navabi

MS: You’ve been divorced for the second time in six months. With Mahkameh Navabi there is now a new woman at your side for three years.
ASL: It’s hard to say. However, I exclude one thing: having children again.
MS: Have you experienced your divorces as personal disappointment or even defeat?
ASL: No, why? If a partnership doesn’t work anymore, then it’s better to separate.  Everyone has only one life and everyone makes their personal life decision, which is also not to be criticized. Former Chancellor of Germany Gerhard Schröder married five times. When you enter into a partnership, it is initially designed for the moment and not automatically for a lifetime. One should not cling desperately to conditions that can no longer be saved.

MS: Have you ever felt the need to just throw everything away and quit?
ASL: I often felt the need to do something new from an entrepreneurial point of view. Without the events in the castle it would not be possible to maintain the house in this elaborate form. For example, the medieval balcony in the inner courtyard has to be completely removed and renovated.
MS: Bückeburg is a cultural monument. There are certainly subsidies.
ASL: There has been generous support for the preservation of the castle chapel, whose dome almost collapsed. But we cannot count on this every time.
MS: What does it cost to maintain Bückeburg in this perfection?
ASL: A very high sum, of which one could easily place a very beautiful family house on a green meadow. I would like to leave the house in a condition that makes it as easy as possible for my son to keep it.

Does not believe in ghosts: Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe

MS: You wanted to be a journalist originally…
ASL: It never completely left me. Anyone who knows my Facebook page knows what that means. I quote, but I also express myself. And invite people to discuss controversially.
MS: Does that indicate a certain need for disclosure?
ALS: That’s a strong word. I try much more to participate in political decision-making. That’s why I’m politically active in the FDP.
MS: Has it ever been an option for you to take over a political office?
ASL: I’m not big-skinned enough for an official position. Politicians in Germany are more exposed to blasphemy and general criticism than in any other country. I couldn’t deal with that for myself.

MS: Do you have a political role model?
ASL: I have always found Guido Westerwelle’s thinking to be particularly pragmatic and rational. Someone who did not allow himself to be taken in by ideologies. We were friends and he was often here in the house. He was the man who convinced me to become a liberal.
MS: Why are there so many nobles in the AfD?
ASL: Every aristocrat in the AfD is one too many in my view. I am related to Beatrix von Storch and have always considered her to be a clever and differentiated person. I can’t understand what she’s doing today. I have never been able to share her political attitude. A party in which people like Björn Höcke conduct the big word. A party that gives the so-called popular feeling of the people a questionable platform. This party is not conservative but dangerous and does not promote social peace. And by that I don’t just mean its policy on foreigners.

Teatime with Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe at Bückeburg Castle and the Kurland cups by KPM – Königliche Porzellan Manufaktur Berlin

MS: Bückeburg looks a bit like the Sleeping Beauty Castle. Does it haunt here to any extent?
ASL: There has always been talk of a white woman who haunts in the so-called “Emperor Chamber”, but she has never been seen before. Once we had a troop of hobby ghost hunters with big equipment. After a week, they presented me a photo with a shadowy face they had taken in the tower of the inner courtyard. I lived vis-à-vis at that time. Presumably the face is my own.
MS: The castle has 250 rooms. How long does it take to walk through all the rooms?
ASL: Interesting question, but I’ve never tried it.

MS: The Great Banquet Hall is famous. Do you associate it with special events?
ASL: When my son turned 18, I threw him a party to which 130 friends were invited. Those were three very amusing days.
MS: So, did you have to carry them out afterwards or could they still walk themselves?
ASL: For the most part, they did it themselves. However, in our internal Facebook group I posted photos of things I had found in the yard: Ready to be picked up. Among them a medal, a pipe, a bunch of keys and cigarettes. And a guest. He was still lying in the grass at eleven in the morning.  BvH

Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe is a gifted musician: “But he’d rather be a good amateur than a useless professional.”

Info:

The assets of the House Schaumburg-Lippe include 3,700 hectares of forest and 500 hectares of agricultural land. In addition, the family owns 7,000 hectares of mountain forest in Austria and several properties. Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe opened castle and estate to the public with events such as “Landpartie” (“Country outing”) and “Weihnachtszauber” (“Christmas magic”) – this year from 29 November to 9 December, which attract more than 90,000 visitors every year. Since 2004, the Bückeburg Court Riding School has also been on display. In the 18th century, it was one of the most important centres of equestrian art in Europe. Many celebrities were guests in the castle: King Hussein of Jordan, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince Henrik of Denmark, Mikhail Gorbachev as well as the politicians Guido Westerwelle, Philipp Rösler, Friedrich Merz and Christian Lindner.

Bückeburg Castle and “Weihnachtszauber” – “Christmas magic”- this year from 29 November to 9 December

Contact Alexander Prince of Schaumburg-Lippe:

schloss-bueckeburg.de

The interview-series “Meet me for Tea” is sponsored by KPM – Königliche Porzellan Manufaktur Berlin.
More MyStylery interviews you’ll find here.

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Designer duo Johnny Talbot, Adrian Runhof and I in their Berlin showroom

For 26 years, the Munich fashion label Talbot Runhof stands for classic elegance and feminine eveningwear. When US actress Kristen Stewart appeared years ago in a black Talbot Runhof robe during the Oscars, the designer duo also made the international breakthrough. Not just celebs appreciate the timeless look of Johnny Talbot and Adrian Runhof. It is important to both designers that women of normal proportions also make a good figure in their clothes. I have an appointment with the two Munich residents in Berlin, where they live in a pied-à-terre in the back of their showroom, which opened in 2017 in Berlin-Charlottenburg. However, Meet Me for Tea takes place without Johnny Talbot, who spontaneously assists a client with her bridal gown selection. An interview with Adrian Runhof. Not just about fashion.

Meet me for tea with Adrian Runhof in his Berlin pied-à-terre

MyStylery: It’s cozy here…
Adrian Runhof: The apartment has been completely renovated. The previous occupant died in this room. So firstly we had to get rid of the “bad vibrations”.
MS: I always find it exciting to see who has lived in such an old apartment before.
AR: Me too. In my Hamburg apartment in the Schlüterstraße, at the corner of Johnsallee, lived a Cape Horner once…
MS: A sailor?
AR: Exactly, one who sailed around the Cape Horn. I happened to meet my neighbor on the street in the middle of the night, when he told me en passant that the captain had died in my apartment. From then on, I could not be in the apartment any more, imagined a one-eyed person with a wooden leg, saw him ghosting around in my apartment at night. Suddenly, I also realized that something was always creaking in the apartment. That was scary.
MS: Seems like the childish fantasies appeared then. Do you like to think back to your childhood?
AR: No, not really. Although, of course, I am grateful to have been born and raised in this country.

“Generally I do not like to think about the past. I’m a forward-looking person who lives in the here and now.”

MS: How did you experience your childhood?
AR: As a kid, I felt locked up. My parents’ house was not the environment, in which a child could to grow up happily. It felt more like a bourgeois museum where nothing was allowed to break. My parents were always worried about us, they were afraid of kidnapping. We lived in a huge Art Nouveau villa, from whose windows I could watch the other children playing in the street. I was not allowed to play, because we always had to stay on our property, on which there was a large garden with a swing, slide and sandpit. The other children were not allowed to come to us either. My siblings and I always played in threes.
MS: Hmmm…
AR: Do you feel sorry for me?
MS: Yes. Your parents probably had their reasons. But for you children that must have been difficult to understand.
AR: That’s true.

Adrian Runhof thoughtful during the Meet Me for Tea interview

MS: You come from a wealthy home. Did you want to prove anything to your parents by doing your own thing?
AR: That was not the point. It was important to me to never depend on my parents. They made it clear from the beginning that I would not get anything anyway. While other children from the well-heeled circle of friends of my parents were overridden real estates. The fact that I later actually inherited something was a big surprise.
MS: And how did you free yourself from the childhood trauma of being locked up?
AR: I went to Munich, that was always my absolute longing. As a teenager I browsed through the Bild Zeitung and Bunte magazin, saw the column of the author Michael Graeter and thought, there can be nothing better than Schwabing. I studied in Munich and met Johnny. That was my lifeline.
MS: And then came Paris.
AR: I already knew Paris from my youth, was street-smart and felt like I belonged there. Actually, I’m someone who likes to be everywhere at the same time. When we were in Amsterdam, I wanted to move there straight away, and I felt the same way with London.

MS: In which Parisian arrondissement do you live?
AR: In the first. We are there every two months. But I also like to be in Berlin and I am glad that we have our little apartment here. We also visit Zurich regularly and commute between the cities.
MS: Living out of the suitcase. That sounds like a certain restlessness…
AR: …that I do not like very much. I like to arrive. But do not like to leave. But this is brought along by the fashion circus (laughs).
MS: And which of your locations do you prefer?
AR: Munich. Munich stands for continuity, nobody moves away, everything is in its place. In Paris, you never know before, whether it was broken in, there was a water damage or a mouse infestation during your absence.

“Berlin is not in the forefront in international fashion business. Although the local street style influences young labels. Berlin is undoubtedly a metropolis in which fashion is created.”

MS: You have been in the fashion business for 26 years. How do you manage to survive in the industry?
AR: It has a lot to do with discipline. We have to design 32 pieces per collection, the show in Paris is coming, there’s a lot of pressure on us. You have to be good at different things at the same time. Creativity, courage, a good product, commercial know-how, contact care are among them. But you also have to recognize your own potential, explore your own limits, always be honest with yourself. We have a good team. As for Johnny and me, we both do everything.
MS: It did not always work out for you. Your cleaning lady had to help you with a cash injection in the beginning.
AR: That was really the case. Since then it has been uphill, though in small steps. We still have to do our calculations today. Thus we are self-financed. We do not have the big investor in the background.

MS: Your strength?
AR: I can hide my dilettance well. I have learned nothing and cannot do anything really well.
MS: Is this supposed to be fishing for compliments?
AR: I can do a lot a little good. I cannot read balances, cannot draw, have no patience, can not express myself creatively.
MS: That sounds a bit desperate. Maybe you put the scale on yourself too high.
AR: No. That’s my self-image. During my studies, I always bought all the books that were recommended to us. With the purchase, however, I also thought that that’s enough. I had not even read a single copy. Nevertheless, I came through somehow.

“Inspirations for the next collection? For example, the embroidered collar of your blouse may be an idea for the next dress. The street, the television, books – one is bombarded with impressions. But you have to filter them.”

MS: You made it fast into the international market. What else can come now?
AR: The industry is very dynamic, new markets in Asia, countries that I do not really care about, but still need to be served. The status quo there and the pure brand orientation isn’t for me. I miss the subversiveness.
MS: Strange that big online shops such as “Net a Porter” or “Mytheresa” do not carry your brand.
AR: Yes, and that offends me. Presumably, it’s because we do not have relevance in the new media. We just do not make printed logo shirts, where you can immediately tell, who they are from.

MS: What do you think of fashion bloggers?
AR: When we had publications in a magazine in the past, there was a measurable demand. On blogs or posts, on the other hand, there are only a few reactions. Then, a Caro Daur must have worn our dress on New Year’s Eve in Dubai. With 70,000 likes, maybe two people will get in touch and ask, where they can buy the dress.
MS: Is the hype about the fashion bloggers maybe a bubble that bursts at some point?
AR: Quite possible. But the budgets of the high-end brands are very high, they do not run out of steam so quickly. It is interesting that in the USA still 70 percent of the advertising budgets flow in print media and only 30 percent online. Here, 90 percent of digital media are consumed and only ten percent in the print sector. We rely on good PR. At the heart of our public relations work is the Defilee in Paris, where not only a great deal of energy, but also a lot of money is invested with the goal of far-reaching media coverage.

“I really like the KPM cup because it’s classic but still modern,” says Adrian Runhof about the KPM Kurland porcelain

MS: What is your own digital user behavior?
AR: Of course, I also spend time on the phone all the time. Recently there was a technical problem. Then the feeling of a slight panic sets in. It’s terrible without a cell phone (laughs).
MS: Are you an online shopper?
AR: Only. I buy every spoon online and nothing in real shops anymore.
MS: The cow you milk should not be slaughtered, they say. After all, you also own stores.
AR: As a customer, I’ve always found stores horrible. How many jeans have I bought in my life, which the sellers claimed, oh, but it fits perfectly. The opposite was the case, as I found out in retrospect (laughs).

MS: Is it difficult to survive alongside the industry giants in Paris?
AR: You cannot make the mistake of comparing yourself to labels or the shows of Louis Vuitton. But it would be stupid to show the best show in Berlin and nobody comes. Whereby the Berlin Salon is a pleasing and important exception.
MS: How do you manage to separate job and private?
AR: Talbot Runhof is our project and that connects at all levels. Even though we now live separately in Munich, we do a lot together. In Berlin, we shop together at the KaDeWe, in Paris, on the market. The German actors Nadja Tiller and Walter Giller were once asked for the recipe for a long partnership: You just have to accept that you cannot change the other one. And there is some truth in it. Johnny stands closest to me, that’s a very special kind of intimacy, and that’s great. We also have a common dog, a Border Terrier, an important and connecting factor.

“When we had 10,000 Euros, we always made sure we did not spend more than 11,000. This is a ubiquitous problem in the industry. Our motto is: It’s all about knowing when to stop.”

MS: And you drink tea…
AR: Absolutely. In the morning we start with ginger tea. Detoxing and staying healthy is important to me. By the way, the KPM cups are great. I was spontaneously happy, when I saw them here earlier and hoped that they would be our latest achievement. The colors match perfectly to the green of our walls (laughs). Of the many dishes I inherited from home, there are very few things that I like. A glass series from the sixties of Theresienthal with a gold rim, for example, that stood in a showcase at my parents’. At ours it is being used. Even at the risk that something breaks. That’s part of it.
MS: You manage to reinvent yourself over and over again. Talbot Runhof features films such as “High Society”, you designed “Fashion 2 Sea” for the MS Europa2 and “Couture feather tops” for the Meiersche Art Institution.
AR: That’s right. Whenever we meet people who we find interesting, we say: Let’s do something together. We do not go out of ideas so fast.  BvH

“The antique cabinet is an heirloom from my mother,” says Adrian Runhof, who was born in Mainz and grew up in Wiesbaden. “In Munich, it does not fit into our living concept. Everything is very modern and more design-like. In Berlin it has now found a good place.”

Contact Adrian Runhof

talbotrunhof.com

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