Working

Anke Rafflenbeul, 31 years old, professional graphic designer from Germany. I graduated in Berlin. I have lived in Barcelona for six years but have also lived and worked in Madrid, Tarragona, Colombia and El Salvador.

Waseem Abbas, 34 years old,  mosaic, ceramics and stones specialist. I am from Pakistan but have lived in Barcelona for more than twelve years.

Business: AW Designs offers individual and specialist tile designs for bathrooms, kitchens, terraces, etc. We have a nice collection of creative designs for tables, mirrors, pictures of ceramics and web designs that you can put on the walls yourself which are available on the web-site: www.awdesigns.org

Where did the original idea come from?

The original idea was to combine our skills. I always have been very impressed by Gaudí and Hundertwasser, an Austrian architect who worked with a lot with tiles. My boyfriend is a specialist of works with tiles for bathrooms, etc. I have had this idea for many years to design with tiles. I do the designs, and he does the artwork. Coming to Barcelona, and seeing all the beautiful works of modernism, especially of Gaudí, made us finally decided to make it a reality. Our unique idea is that we want to make beautiful and qualitative designs but not just for public places, also for private individuals, who want to give their homes a special touch.

How long did it take to get your business off the ground?

We started some months ago promoting and advertising our business in Barcelona. We also started a website, were you can see some of our work. We have also now started to make designs for the web, that you can easily download, and hang on your walls yourselves. We have a website showing our work so you can buy our designs online or place an order by phone. So you even can buy our designs, if you aren't living in Catalunya or Spain, and we can send the delivery you the designs.

What do you wish you’d known when you started?

I am still learning a lot of new things, I never needed to know before such as,  administration, how to register a new brand, or to make a homepage. But there is nothing, I really have to say, that I had no idea about, and wished I have had known before.

How easy was it get the financing for your business