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January 23, 2015

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InterNations connects expats around the world

By Cindy Jiang | January 23, 2015, Friday | Print Edition

WITH 1.5 million members in 390 cities around the world, InterNations (www.internations.org) is the world’s leading expat network. It’s an international community for people living and working abroad, and connects expats with other global minds who share similar interests and needs.

“Making life easier for expats around the globe is our aim,” says Malte Zeeck, founder and co-CEO of InterNations. “We want our members to feel at home abroad, quickly find the information they need and meet great new people.”

As an international TV news reporter for Germany, Zeeck traveled extensively and stayed abroad for long periods.

“It was a very exciting time, but it could also be very stressful,” he says. “Whenever I arrived somewhere new, I had to explore the place, find new business contacts and make new friends. Basically, I more or less started from scratch.”

Through Zeeck’s travels around the world — in Europe, Brazil and India, to name just a few — it occurred to him that settling in as an expatriate, usually not speaking the local language, getting one’s bearings and building a new circle of friends is a bigger challenge than one would imagine. He felt the need to support expats all over the world.

Early in 2007, he and his fellow co-CEO, Philipp von Plato, also a German, met in Cologne and, both having gone through the difficulties of living abroad, envisioned the potential of a platform aimed at those living and working in a foreign city.

This is how the idea of creating a social network, especially for expats that would help make their lives abroad easier, came to life. Within months, InterNations was founded and in September 2007 the online platform was launched.

With an expat-centered site offering online and offline services, InterNations offers its members the opportunity to meet, network and socialize online or at regular local events and activities, while its forums and expat guides provide valuable tips and information for people living abroad.

You can choose the category you are interested in, like arts, sports or travel, and you will receive the information to join different kinds of activities.

“At first, we started out with 235 InterNations communities all around the world. In early 2008, the very first events took place in three of our largest communities at the time — in Munich, Zurich and Madrid,” Zeeck says.

The weekly events proved popular. Members often bring along their international friends who will become InterNations members too.

“InterNations unites expats everywhere, as well as from everywhere,” Zeeck says. “For example, we don’t target only German expats in Shanghai, or only people from the US. Our approach is completely international. Some of our members can join before they come to China. And when they move here, they already know what InterNations can offer and how it works.”

The online networking and offline events make the group attractive and help it grow. There is a strong team of InterNations ambassadors in Shanghai; they are members who are enthusiastic about InterNations and who organize the events. The team endeavors to keep the community active and growing.

“Last year, I was invited to come to Shanghai for the ‘Face Pudong’ event. Our Shanghai ambassadors made it a very unforgettable evening with many members,” says Zeeck. “Shanghai is a very vibrant city with skyscrapers, museums, delicious food and amazing nightlife. I am sure that the communities will attract more people.”

InterNations has communities in eight Chinese cities — Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Guangzhou, Lhasa, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Tianjin and Hong Kong. The InterNations community in Shanghai has almost 21,000 members. In China, there are about 49,400 members in total.

InterNations also launched an Expat Insider survey that was completed by nearly 14,000 expatriates last year. The survey explored how expats live abroad, how they see their host country, and how happy they are with their life. Members and a wider audience of people living and working abroad can access this information.

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