By 1972, the Federal Republic of Germany was, after all, already an exporting nation. What gave your father Heinz Anterist the idea for founding InterGest?

My father worked for a haulage company back then – at the Saarbrücken branch, right on the German-French border – and was primarily involved with small and medium-sized enterprises that were, at the very least, aiming to build a thriving business in France. As a carrier and outsourcing partner for this area of logistics, we were, of course, already deeply involved in this cross-border business, dealing with border formalities, the transport of goods with all manner of customs clearances, and everything else that went with it. It therefore became clear to him relatively quickly that it wasn’t just a matter of transporting goods from A to B, but that legal, logistical and

economic issues were involved which also needed to be resolved. It also involved matters such as foreign exchange regulations; after all, at that time goods were moving from one currency to another – back then, it was all a bit more complicated, or let’s say complicated in a different way to today. And that simply led to the realisation that the service had to go beyond the normal flow of goods and the mere transport of goods.

That was the founding idea, which had already taken shape whilst working in the freight forwarding business.

To put it in very simple terms: it was about what we now call ‘customer added value’.

Providing additional services to strengthen the actual core business. If we help the company to be successful in the French market itself, then we’ll also have more goods to load onto a lorry, and our turnover will increase as a result. That’s how the whole thing works!

So where have the lorries gone now?

Although the firm Anterist and Schneider continued to operate as a freight forwarding business for several more years, it was sold to the remaining family members following the founding of InterGest. The lorries now belong to Schenker Logistik, and have done for many, many years; they have been completely off the streets for about 23 years. Only in our meeting room do we still have a few model lorries from back then.

How many people did Heinz Anterist start this value-added service business with?

There were just three people back then. My father had two secretaries working alongside him, who of course spoke German and French and were well versed in financial accounting. But the most important thing, of course, was the collaboration with a local tax adviser in France. That was something my father couldn’t do himself; he was a German lawyer and knew absolutely nothing about French or taxes. So he relied on a specialist. The firm is now called WEMA; in a way, it has always remained the same firm and has been our exclusive partner for financial accounting, tax and annual accounts in France for 50 years. Without them, we wouldn’t have managed it – not a chance.

What role did the development of information technology play?

The fact that bookkeeping eventually led to a technological solution isn’t really something that can be attributed to our expertise. We simply made use of the tools available. Slates, abacuses and those Chinese counting beads, or SAP – it’s been the very basis of financial accounting for 1,000 years: costs and revenues must be accurately recorded and calculated. Essentially, we’ve grown alongside these technologies and adapted our services accordingly. We used to send documents by post; faxes didn’t exist back then. There was the telex – that odd, large machine with the punched tape running down the side… But to be honest: I was five or eight years old at the time and was more interested in my Märklin model railway, which was, after all, electric.

But what was – and remains – important is that, over the years, we’ve always familiarised ourselves with the latest technologies.

We became SAP specialists very early on. Its introduction was extremely controversial at the time and very, very expensive. Today, we can even make our SAP expertise available to local businesses here. Last year and the year before, during the pandemic, we once again invested a great deal of money in new payroll systems. I think, from a technological point of view, we’re always state of the art.

A question that’s been asked a thousand times: why Saargemünd?

Pure pragmatism, quite simply. The haulage business was based in Saarbrücken; the next two towns across the border are Forbach and Saargemünd. Forbach is a coal-mining town; Saargemünd is known for its porcelain – that’s simply what my father decided on. The main idea was that a subsidiary in France could provide services for German parent companies. Financial accounting for a French company, tax audits, matters falling under the jurisdiction of the French authorities – all of that simply has to be done in France. It could just as easily have been in Paris or Nice, but my father was simply well established socially here in the nearby Saarland at the time and didn’t feel like relocating.

How and when did the decision come about to expand services beyond France?

As is often the case: you’re driven in that direction by the client. I don’t think my father would have come up with the idea himself back then to say, ‘I’m going to set up an InterGest in Italy now.’ Like our clients, he knew nothing about Italy – the mindset, the language, the culture. Then, at some point, the first client came along – if our records are correct, it was Poggenpohl Kitchens – and said: ‘Dr Anterist, we now have to go to Italy because we’re going to conquer the market there.’ And so it came about that my father said,

‘OK, if one of my most important clients has to go to Italy, then I suppose I’ll have to help him; what choice do I have?’

There was no alternative. We then tried to find someone there who could do the job, as it was clear that we couldn’t do it ourselves. That’s how the idea of franchising came about – as a way of securing the loyalty of an entrepreneur who was, until then, a stranger to us, and of ensuring that the spirit of our own company would also be upheld in Italy. This was by no means a foregone conclusion, and Heinz Anterist was fortunate enough at the time to find a highly competent, if somewhat extroverted, partner in Milan – a German lawyer who had been living in Italy for many years, spoke Italian fluently, of course, and was also very familiar with the culture and the people – someone who was therefore able to establish an InterGest branch there. Gradually, it became clear how franchising works, and once the franchise manual and the first franchise agreement were in place, it was easier to roll out the concept to the next country. As far as I know, that was the United Kingdom. And then it simply kept growing further and further, until we are now present in 52 countries.

Wasn’t the InterGest concept simply copyable, even by the partners?

There were attempts, of course. Even by franchise partners who – after leaving the network – tried to copy us. Or one who started building a similar network behind our backs. But that was eventually uncovered, it went to court, and we won the case. The partner was duly ordered to pay damages and was barred from competing for two years; their own start-up then turned out to be a flop. However, these and other cases have shown that you need someone to look after the network 24 hours a day.

That doesn’t just mean costs, but also a lot of air miles…

I honestly have no idea how many air miles I’ve clocked up over the last 20 years as a Lufthansa Senator. There wasn’t even a break during the pandemic.

And on top of that, you need a superb team at home and a fully functioning organisation, just like the one I have here.

You can’t build a network and manage day-to-day business at the same time – it just doesn’t work. Of course, there’s another very important aspect to consider – entrepreneurial thinking. If you’re not doing this for yourself and are running a business, you might start to wonder why you really should be climbing into a plane on a Sunday afternoon, just so you can somehow end up in Seoul on a Monday. You’ve got to enjoy it. I’ve never really asked myself whether I like it or not – I just do it. It doesn’t work without personal commitment, and that’s what’s needed to keep things going!

How does one become a more successful partner? Has a golden rule emerged over the years?

That question comes up time and time again. Quite simply: our ideal partner is an entrepreneur. We’ve sometimes tried working with solicitors and tax advisers who initially put themselves forward on the strength of their expertise. In hindsight, however, we’ve realised that they often lacked an entrepreneurial spirit – in other words, the drive to achieve something themselves rather than just take. But yes, we do have partners who are hugely successful. They’re rightly proud of the fact that they maintain an almost family-like relationship with their clients. If you fly to New York to visit one of our partners, they’ll pick you up from the airport, and you’re absolutely guaranteed to find yourself sitting on the sofa by the fireside that evening – they’ve got an excellent selection of drinks and even Havana cigars, if that’s your thing. These are the sort of partners with whom you simply can’t go far wrong. They simply give the client the feeling: ‘Yes, I’ll take care of your business.’ InterGest’s services in and of themselves are dull and unspectacular. How many tens of thousands of tax advisers are there on this planet? Anyone setting up a branch abroad today and entrusting it to InterGest needs someone who doesn’t just submit a tax return on time or produce accurate payslips, but someone who looks after the branch as if it were their own. And someone who ensures it runs smoothly, reports on how things are going, and is willing to adapt to your structures and processes. This ethos – how do I make my clients successful so that I, too, can be successful – is also reflected in our fee structure. We aren’t paid simply for clocking up hours. We operate on a performance-based fee structure: alongside a small base fee, we receive a commission on our clients’ turnover.

It’s no use to us if we have a tax adviser sitting somewhere who may well have just written his 75th commemorative publication for his university, but who isn’t interested in whether his client is arriving at the airport right now

or not, how he’ll get into the city centre, or whether he’ll find a nice restaurant serving good local cuisine.

What prompted InterGest to go beyond the previous franchise model in terms of company law with InterGest Worldwide?

This decision must, of course, be viewed in the context of our history. My father founded the company in 1972 as the patriarch. He was the king of everything; he was in control of everything.

That is, of course, a management style that worked very well in 1972, but which no longer fits in 2015, when we founded InterGest Worldwide. Today, it’s about more team spirit, but also about delegating responsibility. It’s also the realisation that not everything can depend on me and potentially go under with me. Essentially, this is a company with several hundred people working for it, a global network with 52 branches and, above all, a large number of people who place their trust in us.

It’s about taking the burden off my shoulders and spreading it a little amongst others

and, of course, also accommodating those partners who were keen to take on more responsibility and continue working together towards our shared goals – beyond the franchise agreement. So, from around ten partners, a company has emerged, which has naturally since gained two further managing directors: Nils Blunck from Hungary and Dr Canova from Italy. This was decided at shareholders’ meetings. I’ve retained a 51 per cent stake, which gives me the freedom to shape the company’s direction. And, after all, there are four children here who represent the future of the business. But will they want to take over later on? Even though Marie-Chantal has completed the perfect training for InterGest with her degree in International Business Administration – will she one day fancy working alongside her dad? I’m 55 now – and if there’s no indication of that over the next ten years, we’ll have to restructure the company anyway so that it can run without me. Perhaps InterGest Worldwide can then ultimately take over the entire system.

Yes, we’re undoubtedly well positioned. We can always pull an alternative out of the bag for our customers 

Final question: Will there be any cause for celebration at all in this geopolitically significant year of 2022?

Well, when I look at what’s happening out there from a geopolitical perspective, I’m not sure whether pure optimism is the right attitude. So let’s look at the world from two angles. One angle is us. Yes, we’re undoubtedly well positioned. We can always pull an alternative out of the bag for our customers – instead of China, we can simply offer Malaysia and Vietnam.

It really is the case that, as an entrepreneur, you simply have to be very flexible in this world. If you focus solely on one market and put all your eggs in one basket, you shouldn’t be surprised if things go wrong.

On China: Yes, everything happening in China at the moment is being labelled as bad by the press and many people here. On the other hand, I do of course ask myself whether it is right to apply only our own standards. If you look at China’s long history and also ours in Europe – where on earth do we get the audacity to tell the Chinese what they should do? But if we prioritise our own moral standards above all else, then we must, of course, also question our economic relations with a country like that. I cannot understand the widespread criticism of Scholz’s trip to China: not going there and not engaging in dialogue is certainly the worst thing one could do.

But despite all the inertia, I must, of course, be prepared for the fact that Taiwan will be brought back into the fold. As an entrepreneur, I have to ask myself whether I should still follow the trend towards China like a lemming, or whether I should now be planning something different, such as setting up a branch in Brazil, Chile or South Africa. We’re everywhere; we have competent partners everywhere and we can offer solutions. What we cannot do is make our clients’ strategic decisions for them. They have to do that themselves.