The people behind our brand

The roots and the calling to take responsibility

I was born to a working-class family near Schweinfurt in the German region of Franconia. Ever since I can remember, I have wanted to take responsibility and perform at my best. It’s the only way I can explain how I became the chairman of our local sports association at 22 years of age. My dual business studies programme was marked by this working-man’s DNA: No semester breaks, lots of hands-on work – no daydreaming. But like many before me, I had to leave my home to understand it. I wanted to get out. So during my studies I signed up for an internship semester in Ireland with an Irish dancing show. I didn’t know how to dance, but with my German traits I made myself useful in the organization of the show. In return, I got the chance to learn a lot about pub culture, real community, and the power of music. The experience left its mark on me.

Viel Erfahrung und wenig Sinn – so lautet Christophers Bilanz seiner Jahre in Mainhatten.

The towers of Frankfurt and the search for meaning

Back in Germany, after graduating in business management, I set out to conquer Frankfurt’s banking world. At only 24, I became the marketing manager of what was then the fifth-largest investment company in Germany, making me the youngest manager at Commerzbank at the time. It was a whirlwind time that taught me a lot about leading people and working together at the highest level. If you’re 24 and managing a team where the intern is older than you, the learning curve is steep. The investment bank Lehman collapsed. I experienced the financial crisis of 2008 first hand and saw the weaknesses of a sector that had gorged for too long on exorbitant fees and fat bonuses. Unfortunately, the responsibility I loved so much disappeared over night due to the merger of Dresdner Bank and Commerzbank. I felt I was taking a step back. But the opposite happened: I became the brand manager of the Allianz Group and learned how brands work. There was just one thing I couldn’t find among the glass towers of Frankfurt: meaning.

The founding years

To find my meaning, I had to leave the financial sector. Get out of this world of smoke and mirrors. had to leave the superficiality of marketing. So I dug deeper and found my calling in strategic brand development. I wanted to get to the bottom of brands and what makes them unique at their core. I learned the consulting trade at the management consultancyBrandtrust in Nuremberg and advised international brands like BASF and UNIQA. In 2013, I founded the brand identity consultancy Spall.macht.Marke in Nuremberg based on the firm conviction that everyone can benefit from a conscious identity and a clear positioning. Everyone, not just DAX corporations, but every company, perhaps even every individual. Those were founding years in several ways, because at the same time I started a family and bought a house in the country. How many more new beginnings could a man have all at once?

The sources of inspiration

Endless expanses and water are my inspiration. I need the ocean and find strength in the mountains or in the desert. “Look deeply at nature and you’ll understand everything better,” was Einstein’s advice. I follow his guidance. I want to translate the success laws of nature, the oldest living system in the world, for companies and help them to use those laws for their own growth. Time spent in nature is my source of energy and inspiration. I am also inspired by a unique piece of music that doesn’t fit in any category. Or by exchanging thoughts with inspiring people. That’s why, in 2019, I joined the international think tank The Medinge Group.

A passion for speaking and writing

My love of language began early in life. Studying Latin taught me a keen sense for words. Language can be a powerful tool if we use it wisely. If we make our point succinctly rather than beating around the bush. This is what I hope to do as a keynote speaker and in my books. Since 2012 I have worked as a guest author and interview partner for the German business publication Handelsblatt and the newspaper WELT. My book Personal Branding – Was Menschen zu starken Marken macht (What turns people into string brands), published by Springer Gabler in 2019, is now considered a standard text for personal brand development.

A commitment to letting children discover the joy of performance

For over 15 years I have worked as a manager and consultant for cult brands, world market leaders, ministries, leading business personalities and top athletes. But that’s not enough. Life is too short to live it half-heartedly.

Education is the key to most of the problems of our time. I understood this in 2018 in South Africa when I saw refugee children who had no chance at an education. I resolved to change something. This is how our project Agru Academy was born, a school for disadvantaged children in Cape town. We worked with the school management to develop a strategy, collected money, and managed to get the project listed with a German aid organisation.

When I ask myself why I do all this, I always arrive at the same answer: I want to enable people to excel under their own strength. This is why I am active as driving force and director of the Peak Performer Foundation – together with our patron Magdalena Neuner and Olympic gold medallist Matthias Steiner, extreme mountain climbers Thomas & Alexander Huber and many other founding members of our foundation.

Working with the foundation, I can share my life lessons and principles for becoming the best version of myself with children and adolescents. Unfortunately, the right mindset for achieving something is not a subject in school curricula. That’s exactly where we come in. We want to teach kids what it takes to achieve something in life with your own powers. And show them that performance can be fun and give meaning.

Das Engagement für mehr Freude am Leisten bei Kindern

Seit mehr als 15 Jahren arbeite ich als Manager und Berater für Kultmarken, Weltmarktführer, Ministerien und Persönlichkeiten aus Wirtschaft und Sport. Doch das reicht mir nicht. Das Leben ist zu kurz, um es mit halber Kraft zu führen.

Bildung ist der Schlüssel zu den allermeisten Problemen unserer Zeit. Das wurde mir 2018 in Südafrika klar, als ich die Flüchtlingskinder ohne Chance auf Schulbildung sah. Ich entschied etwas zu verändern. So ist unser Projekt Agru Academy entstanden, eine Schule für benachteiligte Kinder in Kapstadt. Wir erarbeiteten eine Strategie mit der Schulleitung, sammelten Geld und schafften es, das Projekt bei einer deutschen Hilfsorganisation zu listen.

Wenn ich mich frage, warum ich das alles eigentlich mache, komme ich immer wieder an den selben Punkt: Ich will Menschen befähigen, aus eigener Kraft weiter zu kommen. Deshalb engagiere ich mich als Antreiber und Geschäftsführer der Peak Performer Stiftung – zusammen mit unserer Schirmherrin Magdalena Neuner sowie Olympiasieger Matthias Steiner, den Extrembergsteigern Thomas & Alexander Huber und vielen anderen Gründungsmitgliedern unserer Stiftung.

Hier kann ich meine Lebenslehren und die Grundsätze zur Entfaltung des besten Ichs an Kinder und Jugendliche weitergeben. Das richtige Mindset, um etwas zu erreichen, steht in Schulen aber leider nicht auf dem Lehrplan. Genau da setzen wir an. Wir wollen den Kids vermitteln, was es braucht, um im Leben etwas aus eigener Kraft zu erreichen. Und ihnen zeigen, dass Leistung Spaß machen kann und Sinn gibt.