How heiter started

In late 2015 founder & editor-in-chief Katharina Geissler-Evans found herself in a situation of physical and mental stress. This led to mental and physical health issues that didn’t allow her to continue working on her final university project or perform at her day job for several weeks. Her university course leader implied that she would fail her course and her employer was talking about stopping her pay unless she got well again soon. It felt like her life was collapsing. One night, she realised that the only one who could get herself out of that situation was herself. She had to change her perspective and most importantly, be kind to herself. The day after she took herself out for coffee, on the next day she got herself some flowers and the following day she went for a long walk along the river. She created moments that brought her joy, or ‘heiter moments’ as she began to call them. Bit by bit, she felt better and more positive. Her health started to improve, she could return to work and finish her university project. She was amazed how focusing on little but joyful things had such an impact. She wanted to share her newly found knowledge, and that is how heiter came about.

Katharina always wanted to bring out a heiter print magazine. After the pilot version launched in May 2016, she realised quickly that working full-time (at one of the biggest fashion retailer in the luxury section) and running a print publication was too much of a task and not doable at that point. So, she began to share her content online instead. It didn’t take long until Katharina was surrounded by a loyal community of like-minded creatives, small business and independent brand owners. It was that community that inspired her to run her first online and offline events, and eventually launch The Heiter Society, an exclusive membership to encourage heiter moments through creative & mindful workshops, networking sessions and more. From there Katharina also tapped into guest speaking gigs and podcast interviews on living a heiter life.

Katharina’s first heiter writing experience started with publishing the heiter blog, then heiter e-zines, e-books and her regular newsletter. It was only in 2022, six years after the initial idea was born, that she gave her longtime goal of bringing heiter out in print a go: after a successful crowdfunding campaign and receiving support from brilliant contributors, she was able to introduce New Beginnings - heiter issue 1 to the world. The second issue is planned to hit the shelves in 2024. You can already pre-order it here.

About Katharina

Not only is Katharina the founder of heiter, she is also a writer, fashion stylist and online presence consultant for small fashion & lifestyle brands. She has a background in e-commerce, marketing, fashion media & journalism and teaching, and has worked for brands such as Net-A-Porter, Mytheresa, Farfetch and Crew Clothing Co. as well as a handful of online publications. heiter is German for cheerful/joyful and that feeling is exactly what she would like to communicate with her content and the work she does. Through her own “heiter journey”, she would like to inspire others to listen to themselves, more importantly, BE themselves, stick up to their own values and thus, feel heiter (and free!) in their work and life.

Katharina is originally from Austria but spent most of her twenties in the UK to study and work in the fashion industry. After a couple of years in Germany (where she also focused on her fashion career) and knowing that she would become a mum in early 2020, Katharina and her husband Ben decided to move closer to (her) family near Graz, Austria. In 2022, the same year Katharina launched heiter in print, she gave birth to their second child.

Being a mum of two, running her own business and dealing with all the other stuff life throws at her, Katharina says that it’s ‘full-on, hard at times’ and that she has ‘definitely not figured it all out yet’. Focusing on the things that bring her “Heiterkeit” (which is the noun that comes with heiter) has given her strength though, more resilience and optimism: it’s been easier for her to deal with stress and worries. Katharina aims to live life from a place of joy, and believes that others deserve to do the same. ‘They deserve to feel heiter’, she says. Following the above, Katharina mentions that she doesn’t see herself as “joy expert” ‘but as contributor in creating a better, more joyful world’.

Apart from writing, talking & sharing her own experience when it comes to finding and celebrating heiter moments in life, Katharina enjoys styling her home, photography, museum and flea market visits, listening to audiobooks, spending time with her family and trying out new recipes. She has a soft spot for special pieces of clothing, skincare products, hot drinks, scented candles and crystals, her monthly horoscope and Netflix documentaries. Next to her work and family life, Katharina tries to reconnect with nature, explore new places and discover #heitermoments in everyday life. heiter is all about the different aspects of a lifestyle that feels good, and that is why Katharina regularly introduces and collaborates with independent businesses and creatives whose work and products add to that feeling. We, here at heiter, hope that you’ll enjoy the journey with her.