Today, we’d like to introduce you to Valerie Maxeiner.
Hi Valerie, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Growing up in a small town in southern Germany and having a beautiful upbringing, I stumbled into the world of social media at the young age of 14, just as Instagram was making its debut. Back then, the term “influencer” was still a foreign concept, and little did I know that my foray into sharing my life and outfits would evolve into a defining chapter of my life.
Inspired by fashion bloggers of the time, I started creating my own fashion blog, where I shared outfits and snippets of my life, not knowing where it would take me. I still remember my first brand deal, for 20$ for a photo on my Instagram feed. Little did I know, it was just the beginning of something much bigger.
As my Instagram following grew, so did my passion for content creation. I was making videos, sharing my style, and documenting my adventures after school. My room became my creative hub, a space where I connected with my audience that, surprisingly, loved what I was putting out there. All I did after school was this. Back then, nobody besides my family really understood what I was doing, as influencing was a foreign concept – to them, it seemed weird why I shared my life on the Internet, causing a lot of bullying at school.
In 2015, I decided to do a high school exchange year in Arizona, the U.S., as my dream has always been to live in the USA. I never felt connected to Germany, always having this feeling that I belonged somewhere else. During that time, I lost touch with my passion for social media. Living life and pursuing a professional career were more important to me, so I decided to move back to Germany and go to college in Berlin to get a BA in Media and Communication Management. On the side, I started freelancing in online marketing, building my career and portfolio. Social media always had a way of finding me, though. It guided me in finding my professional career path.
My boyfriend is American, we met during my high school exchange year in 2015 but didn’t start dating until 2021. We did the whole long-distance thing and couldn’t see each other for the first year due to the travel ban during Covid. During that year, we built a strong emotional friendship and connection, facetiming every day. After one year of not being able to see each other, we finally reunited in the US, after me having to be in Mexico for 15 days to work around the travel ban. The rest is history. From that moment on, it was him and me, always prioritizing to be with each other.
We spent a year visiting each other while I was still in school, switching up between the US and Germany. The goal was always for me to find a job in the US so we could be together. He has been trying to convince me to move to Salt Lake City, as he always had wonderful childhood memories here. So, I looked for jobs in the area and ended up finding one in Park City at a German real estate company. It’s crazy how things work out sometimes. Life is truly crazy. Recently, I have re-discovered my passion for creating and social media, sharing and romanticizing my life here.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Oh for sure there have been struggles. But these struggles led me to exactly where I am now.
It took me a while to puzzle the pieces together, of why I got into social media at such a young age. I didn’t quite understand the path I was on but now looking back it all makes sense. It led me to my career path, showed me what I am passionate about.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Currently, I work in Marketing and freelance on the side, and while that I document my life on social media.
One of my proudest achievements is the growth of my online presence and the positive impact I’ve had on my audience, being an inspiration to them. I still have girls that have followed me from the very start of my influencer days which is such a crazy feeling. I got to work in this field from the very beginning, seeing how much the platforms, trends, and dynamics have changed. Seeing influencer marketing develop from the very beginning, adapting to it, and seeing it evolve was a cool and valuable experience.
Having lived and worked in both Europe and the United States, I bring a cross-cultural perspective to my endeavors. I think a lot of people with the same goals, moving abroad are inspired by my story and I also want to help them realize that you can truly do whatever you set your mind to.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
That things will work out. There have been so many moments where I didn’t understand where life led me, but it always ended up being the right decision for me. I realized that the universe always gives you what you need and there is no thing like a wrong decision, because even that, will be the right one for you in the end.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valerie.maxeiner
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerie-maxeiner/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ValerieDanielle
