That pretty much sums up one of the opportunities Thinksurance employees have: since mid-2021, every month two lucky Thinkies are chosen to travel to the office in Paris – to get to know their colleagues, to promote exchange between the offices, and to breathe some Parisian air along the way. For four days and three nights, they explore the city on the Seine culturally, culinary, and sponsored by the company. Nelson and Ivan, two developers from the Frankfurt office, kicked it off.

The Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower – anyone who walks through France’s capital has a lot to marvel at. At least that’s what happened to Ivan and Nelson, who were the first double to travel to the newly-opened office in Paris. Since the beginning of 2021, Thinksurance is based in the beautiful scenery in the heart of France.

In the second arrondissement, five colleagues are now driving forward the digitization of the French commercial insurance industry. There is a lot to do. The „Frenchies“, as they are affectionately called, act as a company within a company. Therefore, it makes sense that they learn from the experiences their colleagues in Germany have already made. And indeed, spending some time together helps enormously. That’s why not only the colleagues from Paris come to Frankfurt on a regular basis, but also the other way around. How does this work? Every month, the Thinksurance „Lady Luck“ (aka Malte) draws two people whose turn it is to travel to Paris. For four days and three nights, it’s all about getting to know colleagues, working in the Paris office, enjoying the culture, and being inspired by the „vie Parisienne“ – with financial support from the company.

Nelson and Ivan actually work in two different IT teams. They knew each other from lunch and regular after-work beers and never traveled together before. However, the decision to apply for a trip to Paris together was anything but difficult. No sooner said than done, they were lucky and got drawn. The „Work from Paris“ program seems to be quite attractive also to other Thinkies: a total of 28 colleagues have registered for the trip as teams of two.

Upon their arrival on a Thursday, the duo was warmly welcomed by their colleagues in the second arrondissement. The Paris office currently consists of business development and sales staff as well as insurance experts. As backend and frontend developers, Ivan and Nelson did not miss the opportunity to present their day-to-day work on the Thinksurance platform to their colleagues. In return, the Frenchies rewarded them with a team dinner together in an authentic French style – and lots of secret Paris tips.

On day 2, Nelson and Ivan were off to explore on their own. The two really were the perfect travel match. „The best thing was my companion: Nelson. Whether it was the Arc de Triumph, Montmartre, Champs Élysée, or the Eiffel Tower at night – Nelson always knew exactly where we needed to go,“ says Ivan on his return slightly impressed. Only when it came to culinary preferences did the two go their separate ways. „I thought to myself: if I’m in Paris, I have to try the French classics, too. So I ordered snails at dinner. Really delicious. Ivan, unfortunately, wasn’t as convinced“, Nelson laughs and looks at Ivan wrinkling his nose.

Even if they disagree about French delicacies, they are now united by the multitude of shared impressions and memories. By the way, they have also shared their experiences diligently in the Thinksurance WhatsApp group. And who knows: with monthly trips and all the collected experiences, there might be a special Thinksurance Paris travel guide someday.