Company: sound & silence (sole proprietorship)
Founder: Annika List
Date of establishment: May 1, 2024
Industry and company: Health, wellness, stress management 

What drives you? What is your motto?
"The quieter you become, the more you are able to hear." (Rumi) 

What is your start-up about and what makes it special?
Sounds help to quiet the thoughts in our heads and bring us peace. In silence, we can hear our own voice better and connect with ourselves. Harmonizing sounds calm the nervous system and promote mindfulness and creativity. I offer my sound journeys in urban areas to make relaxation more accessible.

What are your first successes? After
just a few weeks on the market and without any advertising in this area, I have already received two requests for corporate sound baths. In addition, two newspaper articles have already been published and I am receiving exciting requests and invitations because many people see the value and potential of sound work.

What is your professional background?
I have been self-employed as a corporate photographer for almost ten years and have always worked very independently as an employee (TV journalist and PR & marketing consultant) and need a lot of creative freedom. Being self-employed has allowed me to combine all the skills I have acquired.

What prompted you to start your own business?
I used to have a very specific career goal (TV journalist). When I realized that my personality didn't fit into this industry, I was initially very disoriented. My first venture into self-employment actually developed out of a lack of alternatives and only turned out to be the right thing in hindsight. My second venture into self-employment was also based on a similar, seemingly weak motivation: it "just" happened—you could also say that sound found me.  

At the beginning of 2024, I attended a sound bath for the first time and was able to relax quickly and deeply for the first time. I knew immediately that sound would be a part of my life from then on. I ordered my first singing bowls, attended workshops, registered a brand name... everything developed very naturally but also very quickly.

Who advised you, who are your helpers and mentors? I started
my first business because my father said at Christmas that I enjoyed filming and that I should offer video courses for young people on the AIDA. At that time, he knew me better than I knew myself and made a very valuable contribution to my development. He himself, as well as my twin sister, friends, and future colleagues, were a great support to me in an advisory capacity. In addition, in my second venture into self-employment, I sought support very early on in areas where others are much more skilled and experienced than I am, but which are essential for my marketing.

How did you experience your first days as a founder?
I felt very self-effective and proud that I was able to develop my second self-employment so efficiently and quickly, as I had already developed all the necessary skills in my first self-employment and was able to use a corresponding network and contacts.

What was your biggest challenge and how did you overcome it?
Since my business developed so quickly, the biggest hurdles for me were juggling my two companies, reining myself in, and taking enough breaks.

How do you draw attention to your company? What is your best marketing idea?
On the one hand, I think a clear and SEO-optimized website and a clear marketing focus are important. For private customer business, that's definitely Instagram. Here, I advertise posts and events and develop strategic partnerships.

How did you finance your start-up?
From reserves.

What dream would you still like to realize?
My vision with "sound & silence" is to establish sound baths as a permanent tool in stress management—both for individuals and in companies. 

Please complete the following sentence: If I had more time, I
would... take more breaks.

What is your special tip: What would you recommend to founders?
Follow your joy—you can't predict what will come of it. But of course, it's also important that the activity suits your personality—not everyone is cut out for self-employment.