To address this issue, HeyFlow has launched a groundbreaking open-source suite of Reproductive Health Policy Guides to access information and best practices around reproductive health inclusion in the workplace.
Sophie Creese, Co-Founder and CEO discusses why this is an important initiative:
“Guidance on how to properly address reproductive health at work is often scattered across various sources or specific to a certain business, making it challenging for organisations to implement cohesive and inclusive practices and not knowing where to start. We wanted to create a source of information that is accessible so that businesses can develop informed and effective reproductive health policies.”
To mark the launch of the series of policy guides, HeyFlow has released two guides on Menstruation & Menopause. The suite will be expanded to cover other reproductive health topics, but these were selected as the two key considerations for employers as they directly impact most women’s experience within the workplace.
By 2030, 47% of all 50s are forecasted to be part of the UK labour workforce4, meaning that most employees who go through menopause will go through it at work and over half of menstruators have period pains that directly affect their work5.
Nick Dean, COO and Co-Founder of HeyFlow highlights the importance of this initiative, but it shouldn’t be the endpoint for employers:
“A large part of the lack of inclusion of reproductive health at work is due to societal taboos around the topics, and a lack of readily available information. You don’t know what you don’t know, so we’re so excited to launch these guides to give companies their first step into reproductive health inclusion. But a good policy is only the start. To embed effective change in a business you need to embed inclusion within your culture and bring everyone into the conversation; educating employees on available resources and supporting managers with training on how to implement policy properly.”
HeyFlow’s initiative aims to standardise reproductive health policies across industries, ensuring fair and consistent support for all employees. By offering these guides, HeyFlow is leading the charge in promoting workplace wellness and setting a new benchmark for inclusivity.
For more information about HeyFlow’s Reproductive Health Policy Guides and to access the Menstruation and Menopause guides, please visit https://heyflow.co.uk/ or contact [email protected] .
Last year, we signed the Menopause Workplace Pledge and promised to take positive action to make sure everyone going through the menopause is supported.
This has led us to create our Menopause in the Workplace Guide, packed with practical tips, policy advice, and strategies to foster an inclusive and supportive environment for all our employees.
We love it so much that we decided to share it with our community!
You can read our guide here
What to do more? Help us break the stigma:
💬 Share your own experience
Your story can inspire others and create a more understanding and supportive culture.
🤝 Partner with us
Help us spread the word by sharing our guide and your stories.
📝 Participate in our survey
We’d love to know how you feel about Menopause in the workplace.
If you can, please fill in our Menopause
in the workplace survey here.
Please answer as honestly as possible because we should always be working on making work culture more comfortable for everyone.
Together, we can make a real difference.
Bristol based Creative Agency joins the growing movement of companies using business as a force for good
Shaped By, a creative agency for the b2b world – based in Bristol, UK, has announced its certification as a B Corporation (or B Corp), joining a growing movement of companies that are reinventing business for the benefit of all people and our shared planet. Verified by B Lab, the not-for-profit behind the B Corp movement, the achievement demonstrates that Shaped By meets high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability alongside a commitment to goals beyond shareholder value.
The news comes as the ongoing climate crisis and widening social inequality continue to pose urgent challenges to our economy. B Corp Certification assesses the entirety of a business’ operations and currently covers five main impact areas: Governance, Workers, Community, Environment and Customers. The certification process is rigorous, with companies required to reach a score of 80 points in the B Impact Assessment while providing evidence of responsible practices relating but not limited to energy supplies, waste and water use, worker compensation, diversity, and corporate transparency. A business must also legally embed their commitment to purpose as well as profit in their company articles.
Shaped By is now part of a growing community of over 8,000 businesses globally that have certified as B Corps. The B Corp community in the UK is one of the largest and fastest-growing in the world, with over 1,700 companies spanning a range of different industries and sizes. Names include The Guardian, Innocent Drinks, Patagonia, Tony’s Chocolonely, The Big Issue, Finisterre, Elemis, and Sipsmith Gin.
Chris Turner, executive director of B Lab UK, says:
“We are pleased to have B Corps of all shapes and sizes as part of our community — from startups to multinationals and across many different industries. Business is a powerful force and B Corps demonstrate that positive impact is possible in any sector. Welcoming Shaped By is an exciting moment for the creative industry. B Lab UK and the rest of the B Corp community are really pleased that Shaped By is paving the way for a new way of doing things.”
Nick Farrar, founder of Shaped By, says:
“Becoming a B Corp and joining the global community of businesses dedicated to building a better world was one of the first, and easiest, decisions we made after changes to the agency’s ownership last year. It aligns perfectly with our belief that design and creativity have the power to improve lives and positively impact the world around us. I’m looking forward to embracing what being a B Corp company means and committing to maintaining and improving our standards now and in the future.”
The mustard team are pleased to unveil their status as B Corp, officially joining the growing community of accredited B corporations across the world. Becoming one of 2000+ businesses in the UK, with a shared vision for the future.
The rigorous process covers all areas of the business including Governance, Workers, Customers, Environment and Community. The Bristol-based creative recruitment agency have painstakingly assessed their impact and are committed to providing a better future for not only their clients and employees but also their community. They’ll be returning to this impact report year-on-year to assess their impact and identify areas of improvement. Providing key insight into their practices, as they strive to hit their enhanced sustainability goals of net-zero by 2030, 20 years ahead of the UK government’s SME net-zero goals.
They’ve already levelled up their community commitments, from increased volunteering allowances to fundraising for their Charity of the Year, The Grand Appeal in aid of Bristol Children’s Hospital.
The B Corp certification provides businesses with comprehensive, credible, comparable impact standards to support economic systems change. Founded in 2006, to support businesses to lead the way towards a new, stakeholder-driven model.
Directors of mustard hope that this spotlight on the recruitment agency will encourage others in the sector to aim for more transparency and accountability.
“We’re delighted to become a B Corp, it’s been a long process, but a needed one. We’re continually striving for higher standards throughout the business. The whole team are extremely excited to be listed amongst like-minded businesses that are taking steps towards positive change.”
– Dave Madden, Director, mustard jobs
In the dynamic world of experiential design, the integration of neuroscience represents a unique opportunity where science and creativity can combine to help elevate immersive experiences.
To dive deeper into this fascinating subject, we sat down with Katherine Templar Lewis from Kinda Studios, a women-led neuroaesthetic studio and lab using neuroscience to prove the power of art on human connection and wellbeing. Working with brands, experience designers, platforms and institutions, Kinda turns neuroscience into felt experiences to deepen their impact on a range of interconnected health measures.
With a wealth of expertise in crafting immersive environments that resonate with audiences, Katherine offers her insights into how experiential designers can harness the power of neuroscience to enhance their design practices.
Katherine, can you give us a quick overview of what exactly Neuroaesthetics is?
Sure, so neuroscience is the study of the nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves, and how they influence behaviour and cognitive processes. It explores the intricate workings of the brain’s neurons and neural circuits to understand how information is processed, emotions are generated, and actions are coordinated.
Neuroaesthetics, is a new branch of neuroscience that our work centres in, which studies how different elements affect our environment, be it light, sound, art, nature itself, impacts our brain and body.
It delves into the aesthetic underpinnings of emotion, thought and behaviour, providing insights that can inform various fields, including design. At Kinda Studios, we see neuroscience as a valuable tool for understanding human perception and emotion, allowing us to create immersive experiences that resonate deeply with our audience.
Can you give examples of how Neuroaesthetics influences your design decisions?
Neuroaesthetics serves as a toolbox for us at Kinda Studios, providing valuable mechanisms that we can leverage to enhance our design decisions. While neuroscience doesn’t hold all the answers, it offers insights that allow us to tap into the power of creative difference. For instance, we utilise colours and sounds in design that have an affect on our nervous systems, either positive or negative. Understanding how they can evoke specific emotions and drive behavioural responses allows us greater intention in our designs
By harnessing the power of art and sensory experiences, we create immersive environments that stir emotions and engage visitors on a deeper level. This approach not only elevates the overall design but also enables us to create social impact through values like environmental stewardship through experiential storytelling. Neuroscience empowers us to create meaningful experiences that resonate with people’s feelings and drive positive behaviour change.
How can neuroscience improve the overall quality of immersive experiences?
Its influence extends beyond sensory stimulation; it facilitates a deeper connection and understanding of our own selves within immersive experiences. By delving into our innate desire for coherence and connection, neuroscience enables us to craft experiences that resonate deeply with visitors. We recognise that while we experience spaces every day, often without conscious control, immersive experiences offer a unique opportunity to intentionally shape those encounters. We see ourselves as privileged to create spaces where visitors can transcend their everyday reality and be transported to other worlds, fostering a profound sense of connection and engagement with impacts that lingers long after the experience ends.
What advice would you give experiential designers wanting to incorporate neuroscience into their projects?
My advice would be to seize the opportunity to deepen your understanding and leverage this knowledge to elevate your creations. Fortunately, neuroaesthetics is now offering a wealth of resources to learn from and explore. In parallel, technological advancements are ushering in a new era where we can really harness and utilise scientific insights into experiences to deepen their impact. By leveraging this technology with neuroaesthetic knowledge and insights, you’ll be better equipped to deliver immersive experiences that resonate on a profound level.
Now more than ever is an appetite for transdisciplinary collaboration. The work we do is not just to translate but also to connect. Collaborating and exchanging ideas with both fellow designers and scientists can provide valuable perspectives and inspiration for your projects.
One resource that we often recommend is the book “Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us” by Ivy Ross and Susan Magsamen. In this book, Susan Magsamen delves into the fascinating intersection of neuroscience and art, exploring how artistic experiences can profoundly impact our brains and lives. It’s a captivating read that offers valuable insights into the power of creativity and its effects on the brain.
By immersing yourself in resources like this and actively engaging with the neuroaesthetics and studios like ours, you’ll be well-equipped to infuse your experiential designs with a deeper understanding of the human mind and emotion, ultimately creating more impactful and meaningful experiences for your audience.
What challenges have you faced using neuroscience within design? And how did you address these?
Incorporating neuroscience into design presents exciting opportunities for world-building and creating immersive experiences. However, we’ve encountered challenges when certain environments don’t align with neuroscience principles. For instance, hospitals and schools often prioritise functionality over emotional well-being, hindering our ability to create truly immersive experiences.
In hospitals, the focus on efficiency and sterile environments can be at odds with the nurturing and healing aspects that neuroscience suggests are beneficial. Similarly, schools face constraints due to limited space and the need to accommodate large numbers of people, making it difficult to implement neuroscience principles effectively.
External factors like noise pollution from motorways and heavy traffic pose challenges beyond our control. Despite these obstacles, we address them by adapting our designs to work within the constraints of the space. Neuroaesthetics research and studios like Kinda Studios are helping in transforming these spaces for greater positive impact.
We also have an in situ lab that uses neurophysiological equipment to test and explore the impact of different environments on our brain and body. The more that this work becomes a two way dialogue between science and art the further both fields can grow and the greater the positive impact we can create.
While challenges exist, they can help to fuel creativity and drive to find innovative ways to integrate neuroscience into design, even in less-than-ideal circumstances. By embracing these challenges, designers can continue to push the boundaries of immersive experiences and create meaningful connections with audiences.
What methods do you use to measure the impact of neuroscience within designs?
Yes, we use a variety of methods to measure the impact of neuroscience within our designs. This includes utilising advanced technologies such as brainwave monitoring (EEG), electrocardiography (ECG), and gamma wave analysis to gather quantitative data on neural and physiological responses to our experiences. Additionally, we rely on self-report measures to capture subjective feedback from participants, allowing us to understand their emotional and cognitive reactions.
What do you see as the future of neuroscience driven-design and how do you think it will affect the design/event industry?
The future of neuroscience and neuroaesthetic-driven design holds immense potential to revolutionise the design and event industry. As we continue to embrace science-informed design practices, we’ll see a shift towards creating experiences that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also deeply resonant on a cognitive and emotional level. Neuroscience insights will guide us in crafting environments that prioritise human well-being and connection, with an emphasis on integrating elements of nature to enhance mental and emotional health.
mustard jobs have unveiled new plans to support the local community, through charity fundraising and volunteering practices. As part of this redefined commitment to charities and the wider community, they’ve announced a partnership with the well-loved Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Appeal.
mustard have appointed a charity committee to lead the charge, whom will be responsible for all fundraising and volunteering activities. Supporting and empowering staff and clients to get involved and make an impact.
As a Recruitment Agency for the Creative Industries, they’ll be getting creative with the fundraisers that they put together. With a top-secret stash of ideas up their sleeve, all will soon be revealed.
“We’re taking mustard’s charity and volunteering contributions to the next level. Working with Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Appeal is extremely exciting, not only for our committee but for the entire business.
We hope this charity of the year partnership with The Grand Appeal, will help to provide sick children and their families with the support they need. It’s an honour to be working with them.”
Phil Boshier, Associate Director of People & Culture
Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Appeal is the official Bristol Children’s Hospital charity, that helps save the lives of sick children and supports their families. Being a stone’s throw from the mustard office, and with a large proportion of the staff having young kids, supporting Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Appeal was a no-brainer for the team.
“We’re thrilled to have the support of mustard. Our charity partnership means we can work together towards a brighter future for the children and families at Bristol Children’s Hospital. Thanks to the generosity of brilliant Bristol businesses like mustard, we can fund everything from life-saving equipment to free accommodation for families, medical research, and so much more.”
– Helen Haskell, Head of Fundraising (Corporate)
How to use language to foster stronger, happier, more productive relationships.
Words: Simeon de la Torre, SIM7.
The language that an organisation uses in its content, copywriting and comms influences not just how it is perceived, but how it makes audiences feel. It’s a complex, nuanced arena, but there are a handful of golden rules to remember around using brand language that’s appropriate and inclusive.
First up: what’s DEI?
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) aims to make everyone within an environment, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, ability, gender or sexual orientation, feel supported and welcome.
Why is it better to use inclusive language?
According to Deloitte, companies that embrace inclusivity and inclusive language have 22% lower turnover rates, 22% greater productivity and 27% higher profitability. Externally, those companies have 39% higher customer satisfaction.
Rule #1 Avoid certain ways of identifying people
Only use race, gender, gender identity, ability, age, sexual orientation, etc. to identify people when strictly necessary, otherwise doing so can draw attention to something about someone’s characteristics that might make them feel different or excluded.
Rule #2 Use people-first language
People-first language prioritises the individual. This is an especially useful point to remember when talking about people who have disabilities.
For example, it’s better to say ‘a person with a disability’ than ‘a disabled person’. The former implies that the disability is a secondary characteristic rather than a defining one. But as mentioned in #1, it’s best to simply avoid mentioning disability unless relevant or strictly necessary.
There are a few exceptions to this point. The deaf community, for instance, generally prefers the term ‘deaf person’ to ‘person with deafness’. If in doubt, it’s best to ask.
Rule #3 Be wary of connotations
Terms such as ‘sexual preference’ or ‘preferred pronouns’ can be problematic. ‘Preference’ implies choice, and that can create a false impression. It’s best to err on the side of caution and use the terms ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘pronouns’ instead.
Rule #4 Avoid inappropriate references
Try to avoid using terms such as ‘bipolar,’ ‘OCD,’ ‘ADHD’ or ‘ASD’ as metaphors, especially in a jokey context. These are real disabilities and disorders. Using their names to refer to things they aren’t can offend people who have them.
Rule #5 Use gender-neutral language
Yes, you may often use language with a specific audience in mind, but pronouns are generally best avoided.
When making a hypothetical point – ‘if he or she went for a walk’, for example – the ‘he or she’ clause is unnecessary, and including it can make non-binary, gender non-conforming or genderqueer folks feel excluded.
When in doubt or when using a pronoun is necessary, ‘they’ is a good choice. It’s gender-neutral and can be used to refer to an individual or a group, so has all bases covered.
Rule #6 Avoid universal phrases
Jargon is often best avoided and it’s a good idea to think before using idioms – not all translate well across cultures.
Rule #7 Avoid using your group as the reference group
Using your group as the reference group can imply it’s the norm and that other groups fall outside that norm. Terms like ‘non-white’, for example, imply that white people are the norm and everyone else, a deviation.
It’s best to take care when saying…
Guys
This term is best avoided when speaking to or referencing a group that contains non-male members.
Good alternatives: ‘Folks’, ‘you all’, ‘everyone’, ‘team’.
Girls/ladies/gals
If she’s over 18, she’s an adult. And take care when saying ‘ladies’ and ‘gals’, these terms can be patronizing. Good alternatives: ‘Women’, ‘people’.
Handicap/handicapped
Today, ‘handicapped’ is considered impolite.
Similarly, when talking about people with disabilities, avoid using terms like ‘afflicted by,’ ‘victim of’, ‘suffers from’, and ‘confined to a wheelchair’. ‘Challenged’, ‘differently abled’, and ‘specially abled’ are best avoided too.
Good alternatives: ‘Disabled’, ‘person with a disability’.
You might also consider…
Mentioning pronouns
Including pronouns – he/him, she/her, they/them – in email signatures can help non-binary, transgender and other folk feel more included.
Trigger warnings
If you’re going to publish content that has the potential to trigger people, it’s a good idea to add a trigger warning to that content. Forewarning people about potentially offensive content can help prevent causing offence.
Writing for web accessibility
People with certain disabilities can have difficulty navigating online content. We can all help ensure the content we create is accessible. See our designing for accessibility cheat sheet for useful tips.
Keeping up-to-date
Inclusive language best practice is constantly evolving. Periodic refreshers are a great way to stay up to date. Taking a moment to think about how the language you’re going to use is inclusive often goes a long way, too.
To learn more about creating an inclusive brand, visit https://sim7creative.co.uk/ or get in touch with Sim (he/him): [email protected]
As we outlined in our new year message in January, a key focus at Bristol Creative Industries is boosting workforce diversity in creative businesses and helping to grow the talent pipeline for our members.
Our report, A creative force to be reckoned with: Unleashing the power of Bristol’s creative industries, found that accessing talent with the right skillsets was the biggest challenge facing more than a third of creative businesses in the south west.
It also showed that increasing diversity and inclusion was a significant priority for six in 10 creative firms, but 21% admitted they were struggling to recruit talent from diverse backgrounds, and 48% wanted more help finding diverse employees from underrepresented groups.
In this post, we outline the initiatives in the Bristol Creative Industries Talent Programme which is focused on tackling those challenges.
If you’re not yet a BCI member, join here to take advantage of the member exclusive initiatives.
If you’d like to join us as a BCI Talent Partner, read the final section of this post.
Research shows that diverse teams are more creative problem solvers, bringing fresh perspectives to solutions, against the echo-chamber effect that results when people in a business come from too-similar backgrounds. With a strong focus on diversity and inclusion, employees feel valued and that they belong.
To help Bristol Creative Industries members achieve this, we have partnered with The Hobbs Consultancy to provide on demand equity, diversity and inclusion (ED&I) e-learning.
The CPD certified online course consists of modules to help you bring about positive change in your business, understand the key challenges in the way for different groups, and explore your own biases and how to overcome them.
The training modules take an in-depth look at different diversity and inclusion topics: race, disability, LGBTQ+, neurodiversity, gender (split into female leadership, masculinity, gender identity), age and social mobility in the workplace.
The price of the training for BCI members is £120+VAT. All profits will be ploughed back into our youth engagement activity.
To access this brilliant training opportunity, log into your Bristol Creative Industries account and click on the ‘members’ training’ section.
We have to start engagement at school by raising the profile of the creative sector to a wider and more diverse audience. To do this, we’re developing ways to bring together creative business members and future talent through mentoring.
We are thrilled to have launched a partnership with The Early Careers Foundation (ECF), a social mobility charity that works with young people from low-income backgrounds to ensure that talent and hard work are what determine their career success, not background.
Through its mentoring programme, ECF pairs employees from partner organisations with 16-18-year-olds for monthly hour-long mentoring sessions.
Thanks to our new partnership, BCI members can now become a mentor and support a young person in building their confidence, developing their employability skills and offering invaluable professional guidance.
Applications to become a mentor close on 1 August 2024.
To find out more about how you can get involved, read this post.
Our groundbreaking Bristol Creative Industries Internship Programme with Bristol social enterprise Babbasa launched as a pilot in 2023. It is aimed at young people from diverse backgrounds wanting to gain more insight and real experience in the creative industries.
As well as benefiting the interns, the scheme also educates employers to help them build inclusive workspaces that are ready to welcome young people from low income and underrepresented backgrounds.
Brilliant agencies from the BCI member community stepped up to provide paid placements to a group of fantastic interns during the pilot which resulted in many successes including full time jobs following the placements.
The programme has returned for 2024 with more creative businesses offering a wide range of roles in marketing, public relations, design, branding and advertising.
We recently closed applications from potential interns for the second cohort and were delighted to see an increase in responses compared to last year.
For the latest updates from the programme, keep an eye on our blog and social media (X, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram).
We have committed to an annual programme of round tables with key post 16 education providers in the region including colleges, academies and universities.
Our aim is to promote creative careers to staff and career advisers, drive applications to our internship programme and explore how we can promote the creative industries to students already studying.
We also have this regularly updated guide to creative industries-related further and higher education courses in Bristol and Bath to make young people more aware of their options.
By joining the programme as a partner, you’ll help to fund all of our activities that support
underrepresented groups entering the creative industries. Your support is vital to ensure we have a healthy and diverse talent pipeline.
For more details, contact Alli Nicholas, BCI membership and operations manager, at [email protected], or Lis Anderson, BCI co-chair, at [email protected]
Let’s talk about red flags in a team. Well maybe pink ones. (There’s no pink flag emoji quite yet)
‘I love my team, we get on really well.’
Now I’m not naturally cynical or averse to people having a good time. But I’ve learned to prick up my ears when I hear something like that. If our unit of measurement for a team is ‘how well we get on’ then we’re missing a trick.
Too much focus on how well we get on could be a sign that a team may be falling a bit short on delivering meaningful value to all its stakeholders.
Dig a little deeper and we’ve all been in teams like this:
🚩 Team meetings feel like wasted time, nothing much gets done
🚩 There’s a lack of momentum between meetings, and they often get moved
🚩 You find yourself holding back, not saying what you really think, or not saying anything at all
🚩 There’s a lack of creativity, innovation, risk-taking
🚩 It’s a group of individuals who come together to represent their own vested interests (or their own individual teams)
🚩 There’s a lack of respect or trust between each other, though this is rarely acknowledged. Remember, ‘we get on really well’
🚩 There’s no sense of identity. The team can’t really be effectively defined by anyone not in it. Or perhaps even by those who are in it.
🚩 No material outputs, just time put in
🚩 The team thinks at the level of the functions represented in the room, not at the level of the business or enterprise.
🚩 You dread team meetings when they appear in your diary
🚩 The same subjects get raised time and time again
🚩 No one chairs the meeting effectively, or holds us accountable for timing, actions and delivery
🚩 Stakeholders rarely get a mention
🚩 You’re just going through the motions, but it feels bit disruptive to rock the boat and point this out
Be honest, do you recognise any of these? Perhaps you’re in one right now? Perhaps you even lead one? There’s no judgement here. I’m convinced we’ve all been in this situation. So why the post?
My mind is being blown week after week as I study for my PGCert in Team and Systemic Coaching at Henley Business School . As I organise my many thoughts in the coming weeks, I hope to share them with you on the huge impact of coaching a team as an entity in its own right. If you suspect that a team you’re in could actually be working better, then keep in touch.
Great, impactful teams rarely happen by accident. They take thought and skill to commission and to run. But great teams are where competitive advantage can be found. Teams that are greater than the sum of their parts, rather than less than.
This article was written by Kenz Meadows, Lead Editor of Squarely Magazine. Squarely is The Square Club’s lifestyle magazine; as a member of Bristol’s Best Co-working space, you are able to pick up a complimentary copy! Find out more here.
Best known for the annual Oktoberfest bacchanal, Munich is a patchwork of old and new. The neon signs for gambling halls above an independent Birkenstock shop, monastic breweries and a world famous Glockenspiel just round the corner from the H&M make knowing where to look a bit of a headspin. But knowing where to go is a much easier task to manage. The rich tradition of monastic brewing and the beerhalls Oktoberfest celebrates are just as delightful an experience without the nearly six million international tourists the festival reliably draws each year.
Of course, the guidebooks will tout the most renowned beer halls like the Hofbrauhaus, that are sure to be on everyone’s list. While the beer halls still largely employ table sharing, seating multiple parties at the same table, walk-ins are not typically something this particular hall accommodates–not even in the off season. So, reserve your steins well in advance.
I spoke with Membership Manager, Pelin Yüksel, at our reciprocal Famtain Club, in the heart of the Altstadt–or Old City. A native to Turkey, she had an outsider’s perspective on Munich and how the club fits in to the city’s social scene. “Munich is very business-oriented — I think people have a hard time turning off and having fun. In response, Famtain focuses on being a social club–presenting opportunities for our members to relax, enjoy themselves, and socialize outside of an office environment.” And if you’re foregoing your office watercooler for social engagement, you could do worse than the Famtain. It drips with lush colours, delicate hand-painted wallpaper and extremely inviting furnishings. I could have easily overstayed my welcome. The restaurant has a revolving menu of seasonally appropriate dishes, offering fusion cuisine with effortless expertise.
As regards to Oktoberfest, Yüksel is pleased to offer our members all the same access to amenities their own members receive. However, if the beer halls are hard to get into during the off-season, they’re impossible to reserve for the festival. Book now. Better yet, book yesterday. And be sure to reach out to the Famtain Club when you do, it doesn’t hurt to have an in when arranging your own autumnal jaunt.
If, like I did, you feel compelled to brush up on your high school German speaking skills, I would recommend really committing to it. Nearly everyone in the city spoke enough English to reveal my German for the exercise in futility that it is. While plenty of nations embrace and admire tourists making the effort to speak the local language, I did not get the impression this was one. I would absolutely recommend getting out of the city for an afternoon. I took the train out to Hoehenschwangau, grabbing fresh pretzels and bottles of beer at a stop along the way. Watching the countryside roll by you, warm salty baked good in-hand, is enough to make anyone seriously consider a rural Bavarian lifestyle change.
While the castle was impressive, I was disappointed by the tour at Neuschwanstein Schloss. The quark donuts from a stand down the hill from the castle were ample consolation after the expensive English audio tour though. Back in Munich, the museum I enjoyed most was the Alte Pinakothek. The expansive collection was home to more than a few masters even I, a novice in fine art, was surprised to see in person. My highlight from the trip was absolutely the food, but specifically the food purchased off the cornucopia of vendors in the Viktualienmarkt. Don’t miss the pickles. Seriously.