Good Morning and welcome at Barefoot in Luxembourg for a new episode of our series “Barefoot in Luxembourg meets people”, thank you for joining.

Let’s kick it off: Who are you? Can you introduce you briefly? What are you doing here?
We are Gianni, Italian, and Brie, American. We both moved to Luxembourg for work in the same month and met exactly 1 year later by chance in the street. In September 2015 we started Petopia, a web platform for people with pets in the Luxembourg region.

Can you tell Barefoot in Luxembourg readers a bit more about your Petopia project?
Petopia s a new website with the goal of providing a one-stop-shop for everything in the Luxembourg region related to having healthy, happy, pets and people. Our listings mainly focus on companies in the Luxembourg region, however we have started branching out to the neighbouring countries, France, Belgium, and Germany. Our website features information on businesses with solid reputations whose services we have personally experienced, or which were highly recommended by associates. We conduct individual meetings with the companies listed so that we can learn more about the founders, employees, and any additional details regarding services they provide.

Why people in Luxembourg should be attracted by your project?
It opens pet owner and businesses to new experience and opportunities. We aim to build a reference for all the animal owners in Luxembourg where they can find services, news, information, new ideas and answer to their questions. Often you have a pet, but, you are not fully aware of all the activities, services and opportunities dedicated to them.

What are the best three things about your project and what do you enjoy about working on it?
It gives us the possibility to meet passionate, interesting and motivated people during their activities with animals. It is so enriching. We discover new things everyday. It gives us the feeling of creating something that can help people in getting the most out of their experiences with their animals and also helps small businesses with promoting their quality services. This project, in its entirety, is a reward for us.

Coming back to your Luxembourg background, how long have you been living in Luxembourg?
We have both been living in Luxembourg for 4 years.

What is your most beloved place in the city?
Our favourite place in the city is The Chocolate House. There is nothing better than a hot cup of speculoos flavoured hot chocolate on a cold winter day.

What is your favourite restaurant in Luxembourg?
Our favourite place to get the best ice cream ever is Bargello. The ice cream is homemade, fresh, and simply fantastic.

What is your preferred night-life spot in Luxembourg?
Home. We love watching Netflix on our couch with our German Shepard, McKayla, and cat, Zoe.

What do you like about Luxembourg life?
We are always impressed with the amount of diversity in the city and the positive influence it brings to the society.

What do you miss here and you would like to change or improve?
Since Gianni grew up in Italy, he mostly misses being close to the seaside. If we could change anything about Luxembourg, it would be the weather and proximity to the sea.

What is the best place you visited in a range of 200 km from the city and that you would suggest for a daily trip?
Strasbourg, in France is one of our favourite places. We love going there any time of year, but especially in the winter during the Christmas market.

What is the best adjective to describe Luxembourg?
Welcoming

Discover more about Gianni & Brie’s Petopia project on its website: