Germany

Just as COVID-19 appeared out of nowhere and swept across the world, some fleet-of-foot companies adapted quickly and moved to fill recently created markets.

In his novel Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy held that happy families are all alike but unhappy ones each have their own unique misery.

Noticing that millennials’ desire for quality handbags without bulge-bracket price tags created a significant gap in the market, German entrepreneur and designer Nina Sieber has set up online accessory shop WEAT -- standing for “We Love Avocado Toast”, a nod to a favourite brunch dish for millennials the world over.

Everywhere you looked at Medica 2019, the huge medical trade fair held in Düsseldorf, Germany, people were staring at hand-held devices.

Refined with plant material from Stuttgart and mineral water from Cannstatt, German artisanal gin brand Ginstr has already established itself as one of the spirits industry’s rising stars, having won a gold medal at the World Spirits Award 2018 and the Gin and Tonic Trophy, where 400 jurors voted it the best gin to accompany a tonic over more than 600 other brands at the International World Spirits Competition (IWSC) last year.