tre-alpacas stands for fluffiness, tranquility, and small moments of joy. Many of you know us for exactly that: our own 11 alpacas near Würzburg, our own or hand-picked products, and that feeling of doing something good for yourself or others. Some also know that at tre-alpacas, we donate a portion of our proceeds to mental health.
What often isn't visible from the outside: tre-alpacas did not originate from a perfect business idea. There's no smooth founding story developed on a whiteboard behind it. Instead, there's a lot of personal experience, many difficult moments, many doubts, and also a lot of chaos.
tre-alpacas emerged from personal struggles – with oneself and the world. In our family, everyone deals with psychological issues in their own way. These struggles are individual, but they connect people – regardless of diagnosis. And a large part of what you see at tre-alpacas today was created during phases when we weren't doing particularly well ourselves.
Our Instagram account, for example, was created during a stay in a mental health facility. I, Daniel, made the first posts during a longer stay between my bachelor's and master's degrees. Not because we thought it would become "big and well-known." But because I had time – and because it felt good to receive positive feedback.
The tre-alpacas alpaca shop grew similarly: first info on alpaca treks, then vouchers, later our very popular calendar. Much of this came about in hospitals or during times when one usually has other concerns.
Our photos and videos show a lot of joy. But behind the scenes, it wasn't always easy. tre-alpacas itself was also a source of hope and motivation for us to keep going. A small project to hold onto. And we hope that this feeling is also somewhat palpable when you order from tre-alpacas or follow us.
Of course, we would be lying if we said that the commercial aspect plays no role at tre-alpacas. Of course, it plays a role – we are a shop and invest a lot of time in our passion project. But for us, this goes hand in hand with the desire to connect something meaningful with the whole endeavor.
This year at tre-alpacas, we want to focus more on mental health. On our own ideas – of which there are many, and which was also initially part of our motivation to launch tre-alpacas.de.
For example: connecting alpaca breeders with institutions that have a psychological background or visiting projects where alpacas come to facilities or people with mental health issues visit the alpacas.
We are not perfect. We are sometimes overwhelmed. And some things take longer than we would like. And we make mistakes.
But we believe that something can emerge even from difficult phases – not as bragging or a corny success story or "we know better," but as an honest path with many, many detours.
If you're having bad days: You are not alone. And seeking help is not a failure, but often the bravest step.
