Entrepreneurship Summit 2024: Keynote speech by Prof. Günter Faltin

Summary

In his keynote speech, ‘More with less. Sketches of a new economy’, Prof. Günter Faltin addressed the principle of ‘more with less’ and its significance for entrepreneurship, consumer criticism and a new form of economy. He began with the historical perspective that philosophers such as Thales, Seneca and Jesus had been preaching for millennia that material abundance does not lead to true happiness, and used his own experiences in Berlin to show how excessive wealth often generates fear, isolation and dissatisfaction.

Faltin criticised the modern consumer and advertising industry, which deliberately manipulates people in order to maximise profits, regardless of sustainability or social welfare. He illustrated this using brand-name products such as Ovomaltine and Mars bars: extremely cheap to manufacture, but sold at a high price through brand value and marketing, which creates a dependency on consumption.

As a solution, Faltin advocates a friendship economy: entrepreneurs should place economic activities in the context of community, trust and social benefit. Small start-ups have advantages over large corporations because they are more flexible, can implement innovative ideas and can creatively use the advertising and sales power of the big players (‘Brains versus Capital’).

He emphasised that luxury and prosperity should be redefined: it is not about maximising consumption, but about quality, community, time for beautiful things and closeness to nature. Entrepreneurial action can help to create an economic reality that respects people and the environment instead of destroying them.

Key insights for founders

1. More with less:
Success in entrepreneurship does not depend on large resources – creative ideas and efficient structures can have a greater impact than capital intensity.

2. Friendship economy instead of pure profit maximisation:
Place economic activities within the framework of community, trust and social benefit.

3. Flexibility as an advantage for small founders:
Small businesses can learn, adapt and try new things more quickly, while large corporations are held back by legacy issues.

4. Brainpower beats capital:
Intelligent, creative strategies can effectively leverage or counteract the advertising and marketing power of the big players.

5. Redefining luxury and success:
Entrepreneurial success is not measured by maximum consumption or profit, but by the quality of the offering, sustainability and the strengthening of community.

About the speaker

Prof. Günter Faltin is one of the leading minds in the field of entrepreneurship and founder of the ‘Teekampagne’. He combines economic knowledge with philosophical thinking and is committed to a people- and environmentally-friendly form of entrepreneurship. Faltin is the author of numerous books on start-up culture, creativity and economic innovation. His work shows how founders can build successful companies through intelligent structures, creativity and social responsibility, without excessive resource consumption or profit maximisation. In his keynotes, he conveys practical and inspiring strategies for sustainable and effective entrepreneurship.