“We moved home for health insurance, to be closer to family and for better opportunities for jobs and salaries. But we found it hard. We enjoy experiencing new things. We love to integrate deeply into new cultures, understand our surroundings and really get a feel for life beyond the German border,” adds Fabian.
In 2011, the couple moved from London to Krefeld near Düsseldorf, where Lola was born two years later. Anne was headhunted for the consultancy PWC in Düsseldorf and travelled extensively around Germany to visit her clients. Fabian also worked hard to take over his parents’ business.
The coronavirus pandemic opened the couple’s eyes
Life in Krefeld was not so easy for Anne and Fabian. They dreamt of being closer to nature, less traffic and a better education for their daughter. Anne put a lot of energy into her work, but she also wanted to spend more time with Lola, and found that the two worlds were incompatible. So in 2015, Anne decided to become self-employed. Yet the couple still weren’t happy. The entire region was packed with people and green spaces were nowhere to be found.
“We spent the last two years thinking about where we could move for a better life. The UK was obviously a stupid choice because of Brexit. We are Europeans first and foremost, and we should maximise the many benefits that this brings to our lives”, says Fabian.
When the coronavirus pandemic hit, it opened the Pattbergs’ eyes to working remotely. The couple’s self-employed status had grown to the point where they could work from anywhere in the world. It was on the way home from a summer holiday in Blåvand that Denmark came to mind.
“I remember it clearly. We were in the car travelling between Esbjerg and Kolding. We thought: why not Denmark? When we got home, we looked at a map. We knew we wanted to look in the south of Denmark, so that we would be close to Germany. Before long, we had booked another holiday, this time to Skelde near Broager. Now we had to experience Denmark afresh,” says Fabian.
During their holiday, Anne, Fabian and Lola were visited by their friends and family from Germany and they explored selected towns in southern Denmark. With their penchant for urbanism, their dream was to find a house in a town where school, work and culture were all within walking distance.
“The feeling was there right away with Sønderborg. The town, which is surrounded by open countryside, is picturesque. There are large companies here and the infrastructure is excellent. It doesn’t matter whether you want to travel by foot, bike, car, train or plane. It’s everything we could ever want,” says Anne.