What is ’7tm’ all about?
Well, this platform exists since 2008 and was established to target creative, playful and curious consumers, consumers that want something special when it comes to buying fashion & design … which they get if you look at the different shops and locations, they all provide the feeling of being special and individual for consumers.
It is not simply ‘retailing’, no, it is an initiative where clustering fashion & design, being together but also being individual, city branding and local ‘area’ consumption come together.

The website www.7tm.at shows not only all the different shops, the shop owners and their concept & products, it also offers special ‘shop tours’, a blog and different recommendations from various people from the ‘scene’.
This platform promotes, together with the Vienna Tourism Board, the Austrian National Tourist Office and some selected hotels in Vienna 58 attractive and individual shops and stores.

Of course we searched through the web 2.0 to see if there are similar concepts around the globe … it seems that ’7tm’ is really unique, we could not find any comparable platform…

Plan this in for your next trip to Vienna and have a look yourself, you will not get disappointed …

1. Who are you?

2. What do you like about what you do?
I like the creative diversification and the possibility to meet interesting people with different backgrounds that both go along with the work on my culinary projects. Facing new challenges every day. Combining my professional skills as a designer with my love for food and all things related. In this context I love working for people respectively with people who have a preference for dining, cuisine and – of course – food in general. Satisfying the needs of my clients by creating something very unique and very emotional, but also keeping the rational and economic aspects of cuisine in sight.

3. What don’t you like about what you do?
There´s nothing what I don´t like, because what I do is what I am. The only thing negative to mention here is the all day officialism or bureaucracy that sometimes constrains creative processes and work.

4. Please tell us about your company ajiDesign!
The term aji is borrowed from the Japanese language and can be translated as taste, flavour or aroma. In this context ajiDesign is an agency/company for food and culinary design that acts service oriented and addresses to hoteliers, gastronomes, chefs, food-companies respectively the food industry and everyone who is engaged in dining, cuisine and the culture of enjoying it.
The core competence of ajiDesign is the creation of innovative concepts, processes and products that are a profit making and economic efficient connection of culinary terms and design. Therefore ajiDesign acts close to the client and his product. The creative work is aimed at generating factors of uniqueness and success. By this, ajiDesign helps the client to tap his economic potential completely. ajiDesign offers design, consulting, strategy design and development in the fields of culinary concepts, processes and product-design.

5. Are you working with blogs and if yes, what is your favourite blog?
I´m working with blogs from time to time, it´s a source of inspiration. My favourite right now is www.playingwithfireandwater.com, a great blog from Linda. She is a freelance chef in the US.
Great dishes, great ideas, great blog!

6. Tell us about food and culinaric design and its advantages for the industry!
Food and/or culinary design is a very wide field with endless opportunities for working creative. Both, food and design, are very emotional aspects of life and when brought together the result is more than just the sum of it´s single parts. ajiDesign divides his fields of activity into three main groups and each of them refers to another aspect respectively point of view on the combination of food and design. Those fields are

• Culinary concepts

In this field ajiDesign helps the client to present his gastronomic concept or company as a consistent package in order to communicate all qualities of the company in an aesthetic and also distinctive way. This includes the clients´ whole corporate design but also means working on new concepts for the interiors of a restaurant, a hotel or even a food-company. Besides that, ajiDesign tends to extend the existing business concept of the clients company by exploring new and economic worthwhile business areas. Based on the analysis of the structural, economical and regional conditions ajiDesign develops innovative ways to acuminate the profile of the client´s culinary brand.

• Culinary process

ajiDesign works on techniques and ideas to improve the enjoyment of eating. In this field ajiDesign concentrates on the way we perceive culinary pleasure and how this knowledge can be used to initiate an additional benefit for the luncher. Therefore the creative dialogue with a chef is necessary, because ajiDesign wants to improve his or her style of cooking by adding new aspects to it. Those aspects include scientific knowledge and different forms of creativity that are transferred into practical forms of appliance. The result of such a culinary process can be a new recipe, an uncommon combination of different flavours or even a new technical concept for the preparation of food.

• Product-design

ajidesign offers the client the design of his own unique table- and flatware and the development of new tools to present and serve food and dishes. The aim is here, to initiate new emotions and qualities of taste. Dining shall be seen as an event and a culinary story which is told by the chef. In this context ajidesign plays the role of a mediator, who creates the proper tools for presenting and serving the main actors of the story: the dishes.

Besides all the benefits for the client and/or the industry mentioned, there are some outstanding ones.

1. Innovative food/culinary concepts acuminate a brands profile and it´s market position
2. Stand alone features for a culinary brand, restaurant or hotel
3. ajiDesign helps the client to optimize their product and – by doing so – to increase their customers loyalty.
4. The work on culinary processes helps to create new and interesting dishes and to optimize existing dishes and recipes. It´s also possible to replace allergens by other ingredients without altering the overall impression of the dish´s taste. By choosing the right ingredients Chefs can prepare their meals without any use of artificial flavours or flavour enhancers and as a surplus can reduce their costs.
5. Having a designer´s point of view on food, the food market and the gastronomy leads to uncommon, innovative, forward-going products and concepts, that even may help to increase the level of cuisine in general – and how we percept it.

6. Any comments you want to share with us?
Respect food, but don´t mind playing with it. It might develop into a great meal!
AND: visite my website www.aji-design.de

Marilyn Monroe … still a legend and still a Hollywood star nobody forgets. From December 22^th, 2011 to February 26^th, 2012 an exhibition called ‘Marilyn: Intimacy’ at the ‘Novomatic Forum’ in Vienna shows devotional objects of Marilyn Monroe for the first time in Austria. Until today the memories of Marilyn Monroe are kept alive by her fans, one of them is the German collector Ted Stampfer. He has been a fan of Marilyn since he is ten years old.

He was able to gather nameable pieces of the inheritance of Marilyn Monroe on several nameable auctions and this definitely allows a unique access to Marilyn Monroe. The ‘Novomatic Forum’ will be transformed into a ‘memorial place’, a great memory to a real Hollywood star, a sensational trip in history, where one can see what has been left over and what is memorized: personal objects of the tenure of a world star …

The Novomatic Forum is close to The Ring, Vienna’s Casual Luxury Hotel … and no, we did not transform the hotel into a memorial place but we simply liked to 2 pictures of Marilyn Monroe done by the famous artist Steve Kaufman, that is why they are placed at the restaurant at eight …

Please try to describe yourself in just 5 words!
Brilliant, genius, strong, awesome and above all, modest. ☺

Tell us a bit about the initiative ‘TEDX’, when it all started and what it means in general!
TED (Technology Entertainment and Design) was founded in 1984 and is a global set of conferences, formed to disseminate “ideas worth spreading”. TED’s early emphasis was largely technology and design, but nowadays they address an increasingly wide range of topics within the research and practice of science and culture.

Created in the spirit of “ideas worth spreading” TED grants licenses to third parties to hold free TEDx (x= independently organized event) in cities around the world.
This program is designed to give communities, organizations and individuals the opportunity to stimulate dialogue through TED-like experiences at the local level. That´s exactly what we are trying to achieve with TEDx Vienna.

How is TEDX positioned in Austria?
TEDx started in Austria with Tedx Pannonia on Sep. 11^th, 2010 and up until now there were 6 conferences held in Austria, twice at Vienna, Salzburg and Pannonia in each case.

Why should people attend TEDX events eg sessions?
We follow the TED format as much as possible and the TED conference is unique. The speakers sit with the attendees, many of whom are also involved in wonderful and uplifting work. There are no keynote speakers; all speakers are equal. There are no panel discussions or Q&A. Instead, there are frequent breaks where people can speak to whomever they choose; and because the entire room is filled with people passionate about Ideas Worth Spreading, many new ideas and idea cross-pollination occurs. The sheer beauty of a day like this is that everyone gathered is there to ensure that the ideas move on to have greater impact in our world.

Does the positioning of TEDX also include web 2.0 activities and if yes, which ones?
One of the main ideas of Web 2.0 is sharing: our Facebook Page, Twitter Channel, tumblr and blog are the key elements of spreading ideas and get inspired by others, it is a communication of many to many.

TEDX also has a blog, can you tell us why?
Ideas are popping up and need a platform to spread: the TEDxVienna Blog is the platform for ‘ideas worth spreading’.

Have you ever come across a blog that you thought was interesting and if yes, which one and why?
I m reading numerous blogs, like socialmediaclub, techcrunch or videogum, but I especially enjoy reading our own blog at tedxvienna for obvious reasons.

Any comments you would like to share with us?
I simply would like to invite people to take a look at our site. We have got a lot of interesting stuff to offer!

The official ball season in Vienna starts beginning of November and the last ball we discovered takes place beginning of July. In general one can say that the majority of balls take place from January-April … we counted over 40 balls which take place in 2012.

Next to the classical and famous balls like the ‘Opernball’, the ‘Ball der Wiener Philharmoniker’ or the ‘Zuckerbäckerball’ and the ‘Ball der Wiener Kaffeesieder’, Vienna also offers some very ‘extra-ordinary’ ‘Bälle’ … for the creative among us who would like to visit an extra-ordinary ball we thought it would be nice to show a few of them …

Famous in the meantime is the ‘Lifeball’, an Aids Charity Event that takes place in Vienna every year since 1993, every year with a different main theme. In 2012 the ‘Lifeball’ will take place on May 19^th, the theme is ‘Fight the Flames of Ignorance’, the last theme within a 4 year cycle : 2009 ‘Let Love Flow’, 2010 ‘Sow the Seeds of Solidarity’, 2011 ‘Spread the Wings of Tolerance’. This is a great ball with magnificent people, fancy dresses, fashion shows and a lot of VIP’s …

Another fancy ball is the ‘Rosenball’, the only classical aspect of this ball is the opening ceremony … the rest of the evening gives you more the feeling of ‘party & disco’ … this ball took place as ‘underground ball’ at the legendary disco U4 in Vienna.

A great ball is the ball which is initiated by the brand ‘Almdudler’, the ‘Almdudler Trachtenpärchenball’, a ball which focuses solely on the regional traditional dressings in Austria called ‘Tracht’. Next to a splendid program one can see and enjoy great creations of ‘Tracht’ …

In 2011 the first ‘Cabaret Rouge Burlesque Ball’ took place in Vienna, where the pin-up and glamour of 1930-1950 was celebrated as ‘the crazy night of carnival’ … we searched a bit through Google but we could not find what is planned in 2012 … surprise, surprise …

Pick your favorite ball, either a classical one or an ‘extra-ordinary’ one and celebrate!

The city center of Vienna is transformed into a partly ‘oversized’ open air party platform with a varicolored music- and show program from traditional music, pop, rock, blues, funk & soul and electronic beats.
The program already starts in the late afternoon on December 31^st and ends between 02.00 and 04.00 hours on January 01^st. It is supported by the most well known radio stations in Austria like Radio Wien, Ö3, Superfly, Radio Arabella and their individual acts.

In 2011 the program shows acts like ‘Saturday D.I.S.C.O. Fever Live’, a Madonna Cover Show called ‘Like a Virgin’, ‘DIVAS of POP’ and several DJ collective acts.

The ‘Silvesterpfad’ is complemented by more than 80 gastronomical spots and stands and is definitely a highlights for the party-people from Vienna and those who stay in Vienna but still are unsure how & where to party during NYE …

We recommend … do not miss this one!

1. Please try to describe yourself in just 5 words!
Determined, enthusiastic, happy, friendly, slightly chaotic and reflective.

2. Tell us about ‘Viennarama’ and when it all started!
Viennarama started as a university project as part of my studies and I have always dreamed of having my own media outlet. So I thought why wait?
That’s why I created Viennarama which is devoted to the cultural scene in Vienna. We are also continually expanding our readership.

3. Why was ‘Viennarama’ brought to life?
It came to life because I adore Vienna and its culture. Vienna is the perfect fusion of tradition and modernity. I wanted to pay homage to the local culture with all its concerts, exhibitions and exceptional artists and musicians. As there was no comparable online portal, I decided to start my own.

4. What is so special about ‘Viennarama’?
We are a young team of voluntary students inspired by Viennese cultural scene and want to share this with others. So you can say, it’s from young people to young people.

5. How does ‘Viennarama’ reach its readers and how does it increase its readers?
We reach most of our readers through Facebook, where we post all new articles and events daily. We are also quite high up in Google Ranking, and word-of-mouth is one of our strengths.

6. What is your personal goal for ‘Viennarama’ for Vienna?
It would be great if we could get into print as well, but that is a long-term goal. Being able to finally pay our hardworking editors is also amongst them.

7. Have you ever come across a blog or website that you thought was interesting and if yes, which one and why?
As I said before until now I have not found a blog that’s comparable to Viennarama and this is why I started this blog.

8. Any comments you would like to share with us?
The main thrust is the love of Vienna. Vienna offers so many opportunities, and it is no surprise that it is in the top spot of the Mercer 2010 Quality of Living Survey.

A trendy bar with trendy people, trendy music and great deco, before entering your favorite club later in the night this is a great ‘NYE starter’ …

We would be delighted to welcome you, please register yourself by simply writing a mail to drings@jjwhotels.com!
Vienna´s NYE Vodka Night @ Drings Flyer (PDF, 1.2MB)

1. Please try to describe yourself in just 5 words
Interesting traveller; social media fan!

2. Tell us about the travel site www.wimdu.co.uk and when it all started…
Wimdu started back at the beginning of the summer. It has since grown into a global company with thousands of cheap apartments available in over 50 countries around the world. Wimdu.co.uk serves as an online marketplace for travellers to find affordable accommodation when abroad. It can also be used as a way to see a more “local” side to your travel destination. I’m passionate about travel myself (spent the last year and half on a round-the-world trip) and it’s exciting to see travel companies who are actively trying to promote travel & tourism.

3. What was the decision to develop this travel site?
While there are other travel accommodation websites, Wimdu’s focus has been to provide quality offers in major European travel markets. Wimdu is based in Berlin where each summer tourists flock to the city and end up renting cheap places to stay for a few weeks or a few months. Because of the constant fluctuation of people in and out of apartments here, it makes sense to be able to rent out free rooms to those that need them for short periods. Plus, it gives travellers a different perspective of the cities that they visit rather than stuffy, formulaic rooms.

4. What is so special about this site?
Wimdu’s website allows you to search for apartments worldwide. Every property has a calendar associated with it and you can search by various amenities, whether there’s breakfast available or even an indoor fireplace. All these advanced search features help you to find exactly what you’re looking for when you travel. And it can accommodate for just about every type of traveller—budget, luxury, families…

5. Have you ever come across a blog, website or magazine that you thought was interesting and if yes, which one and why?
Many! I’m a travel blogger myself in addition to working for Wimdu. I’ve written about my past year and a half of travels around the world at travelsofadam.com, though I’m now living in Berlin so it’s now turned into a website about why Berlin is probably the coolest city in the world (no offence, Vienna). I’m also a bit of a social media addict so I’ve come across hundreds of sites through Twitter simply because they’ve shown up in my feeds. Some of my favourite people to follow on Twitter are GOOD Magazine, Letters of Note and a million different travel blogs because they all share unique & interesting stories.

6. Which travel sites do you like?
There are A LOT of travel sites out there. Trippy looks like it might be an interesting one to pay attention to.

7. What inspired you to develop www.wimdu.co.uk?
While I didn’t personally develop the website, I am interested in the future of the travel industry. Renting holiday apartments is becoming increasingly popular around the world. But in Europe there was a need to provide enhanced searches for specific types of travellers, not to mention quality places to rent and Wimdu helps to serve that purpose. In fact, there are over 600 apartments in Berlin, alone!

8. What is your personal goal for this travel site in 2011?
Wimdu has a lot of exciting ideas for the future! As for travel accommodation, there are many different travel trends which will affect the industry. Over the summer, Wimdu hosted one lucky winner of our “dream job”—Pauline got to travel around Europe for two months staying in various Wimdu apartments. She shared her adventure and photos on the Wimdu travel blog which was fun to follow along. Wimdu UK also uses Twitter and Facebook to share interesting apartment offers through social media which will only become more active as the website grows. You’d be surprised how many tree houses are on offer through the Wimdu website!

9. Any comments you would like to share with us?
Be sure to check out the Wimdu.co.uk website for your next trip abroad! There are places to stay in almost every major city: Rio de Janeiro, New York, Milan, Hong Kong…you name it!

Curious how Wimdu works? Check out our video:

Every year the different shopping areas of the city try to exceed themselves when it comes to the Christmas lighting and decoration. Festive and modern breathtaking lighting concepts are seen throughout the city …

But not only shopping streets and malls try to ‘show-off’ with their lighting, also hotels do … like The Ring, Vienna’s Casual Luxury Hotel with its beautiful ‘Christmas curtain’.

There is definitely too much lighting to be viewed, we would like to share the most spectacular and special lightings we found & saw with you …

Enjoy and feel the spirit of Christmas!