From an idea for customer loyalty to a regional bestseller
Listening to Christian Lindner talk about his responsibilities as managing director of StrandBerg GmbH in Braunlage, you might think his day has more than 24 hours. Since 2021, he has also been a distiller, producing his own gin in Braunlage. An idea for building customer loyalty has become a passion.
Christian Lindner, who was born in the Harz region, has worked for Rainer de Groot, an architect and investor from Wedemark, for more than 20 years. Since 2014, they have invested in various properties in Braunlage through StrandBerg GmbH. Forty holiday apartments and houses, a hotel and a bed and breakfast have been transformed into distinctive holiday homes. The avowed Italy fan has also established “Kleine Vielfalt”, a shop for Italian delicacies and charming items that also serves as a central point of contact for StrandBerg guests. The company took its name from an original plan to use properties on the Cape Verde Islands for tourism. The investments in Braunlage also involved close cooperation with WiReGo on grants from the GRW programme.
StrandBerg GmbH’s latest business venture is its own gin production. Black Label, Pink Label, Eis Gin and StrandBerg’s geiles Gesöff are products made entirely in Braunlage and entirely by Christian Lindner. “I develop the recipes, distil, bottle and label everything myself,” says the 49-year-old. “I handle each bottle about eight times before it is sold.” With 2,500 bottles produced in the first year, 2022, that sounds like a full-time job. But the distillery was originally conceived as a strategic way to strengthen customer loyalty through events of their own and give people a reason to take a short break in Braunlage, even in the quieter season.
The idea for the gin grew out of customer demand. “When we still sold Italian spirits at Kleine Vielfalt, people kept asking for gin,” Christian Lindner recalls. He himself is a coffee lover and only began to take a closer interest in gin when the idea for the distillery came up. There was demand, and there was a possible location. During renovation, the cellar rooms at today’s “Ursprung” on Jermerstein proved unsuitable for rental. So plans were quickly changed, creating a stylish yet cosy space for production and tastings. Up to 16 people can sample eight international gins here over four hours, with alcohol-free options available on request. “They arrive as guests and leave as friends,” Christian Lindner says with a laugh. Public tastings are held about four times a month; otherwise, groups of friends, bachelor and bachelorette parties, companies and others can book a private tasting. Gins are also made to order. His further training was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, so Christian Lindner taught himself the distillation process. He has plenty more ideas for the distillery and the gin experience in Braunlage. There is certainly more to come, and it will be exciting to follow its development.
