If anyone ever wondered what the link between pickles and sourdough bread was: our last expert talk speaker is the answer! Maurice Beurskens is the founder of the famous sourdough bakery Öfferl and now CEO of the online supermarket Gurkerl.at (which translates as Pickles.at). He has a 15 year-long track record of international experience in the start-up and retail world. Since June 2020, he is the CEO of Gurkerl.at, a subsidiary of the Rohlik group. This e-grocery platform has its roots in the Czech Republic and is now represented in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Germany, and Austria. The engaging speaker provided us with exciting insights into the rise of Gurkerl.at since their start in Austria, current challenges, and the particularities of the Austrian (E-)Retailing world. As a pure e-tailer, Gurkerl.at offers delivery in under 3 hours after ordering. Furthermore, their strengths are an incredibly broad range of products with a focus on fresh and regional goods. This serves as a point of differentiation compared to other e-tailers’ strategies. Additionally, sustainability, data-driven decision-making and customer centricity are strategic focal points. We can look forward to further geographical expansion in Europe in the next few years!

We thank Maurice Beurskens for this interesting talk and an inspiring discussion with our students. The next Praxisdialog will take place on the 17^th of November with Amata Ring from the GfK.