45 minutes and a cappuccino with Rea Eggli

Editor David Suivez

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Rea Eggli has been shaping Zurich's cultural scene for 25 years. Over a cappuccino, she explains why curiosity and courage are her strongest motivators.

We meet on a freezing cold, sunny Wednesday morning in the newly opened Sprüngli on Paradeplatz. Rea Eggli has 45 minutes and needs a cappuccino first. She shrugs her shoulders at the remodelling of the restaurant - a quiet verdict: "interchangeably international, high quality functional - and corporate."

With her natural, curious openness, she has lovingly helped shape the Swiss cultural scene over the last 25 years. "More curiosity, more desire and less laziness" is what she wants to write into everyone's hearts.

Grown up in the Bernese Oberland, her horizons were opened up by hotel management school and stays in various countries. But it wasn't until she was 27 that it clicked: Her love of books and inspiring encounters catapulted her into self-employment. The name of her first company, "swissandfamous", came about spontaneously at a lively dinner among writers in Bangkok. Her goal back then was to make literary events in Zurich accessible to a new audience - a drive that has stayed with her to this day.

Wemakeit, Märli am See and Letsmuseeum bear her signature: bringing together, making visible, expanding. "I'm happiest when I can bring new ideas to life," she says - even if that means handing over projects without knowing what comes next. "Sometimes I thought: was that really so clever?" But it is precisely this courage that has helped her move forward.

She knows about disappointments, but the countless moments of happiness outweigh them. She is particularly touched by the people who stay: "You start a collaboration and it turns into a friendship - or vice versa. There's nothing better." On the other hand, she is frustrated by clinging to the tried and tested in the cultural landscape. "I no longer have the energy to change the system. I prefer to directly support creatives and cultural professionals."

To this day, Rea measures success by the small, intense moments: "The first feedback, the first purchase, the first reaction - it feels like dancing in the street to Bowie and Jagger." Her self-confidence also comes from her parents: her father - a doer - organised a country festival in Abu Dhabi 40 years ago and now grows organic lemons in South America. The lemon doesn't fall far from the tree either - I think.

What does she wish for when people experience her work? Bright eyes, a genuine "Wow" or a quiet "Aha". And perhaps the feeling: "If she has the courage to leave her comfort zone again and again, I can dare to do it too." A little more courage - that would be nice!