The story behind the amSee
About us
My name is Oliver Altus. I am the founder of 24 Event & Services GmbH, which runs amSee and other locations in and around Leipzig. I would like to tell you our story here.
Passion for events
Where do we actually come from?
I gained my first gastronomic experience at the age of 14 in my mother’s gallery. I’ve always enjoyed making other people happy. At the age of 17, I started working as a runner and bartender in a Leipzig nightclub. The event fever had finally caught me, so I dropped out of school at 18 and plunged straight into self-employment.
I have tried out a lot of things, but I was particularly fascinated by events. My positions have included my own event series in clubs, restaurant management at LEGOLAND, events at the BELANTIS amusement park, food station catering, mobile cocktail bars, rental furniture, motorsport events, a WEBER Grill Academy, a small café, vehicle presentations, project management at major international events and much more.
Events are the central theme of my life. I simply love being a host. Even today, I still have tears of joy in my eyes at every event when everything runs smoothly and I can look into the happy faces of our guests.
My team – and I love each and every one of them – has years of experience in the event industry. I worked with some of them for many years in the Leipzig area as a rental furniture service provider under the EVENTTOOL24 brand. Together we have equipped countless large and small events with high-quality furniture and event equipment.
Right from the start, we placed the greatest value on quality. We always wanted to make our contribution to perfect events. We not only transported the rental furniture to the many locations, but also set up the equipment on site. In the process, we got to know a wide variety of locations throughout Germany and neighboring countries. During our assignments, we kept noticing certain small and large aspects that we would have done differently as the operator of a location. Over the years, the idea of wanting to do it perfectly ourselves matured.
The MS Frieda
Das amSee - our first location
At the beginning of 2019, the opportunity arose to put this experience to practical use. I was offered the opportunity to take over the ship on Lake Kulkwitz, which was still known to many Leipzig residents as the MS Frieda. What an object! The ship was in an incredibly poor condition and the necessary investments were huge. But it was also THE ship at Kulki, known far beyond Leipzig’s city limits. I couldn’t say no to that. My team and I got to work and took on the mammoth task of turning the old barge into the top event location on the lake.
The start of this major project was not easy. I wanted to manage the conversion under my own steam without taking out unaffordable loans. I knew that my employees and I would need a lot of stamina. From the very beginning, we held events in the conservatory and the outdoor area, both of which were in good condition, to publicize our concept and show that the ship was on the up again.
Unplanned break due to corona
Slowed down - but never given up
However, it was not the time-consuming and cost-intensive conversion of the ship that presented us with major challenges, but Corona. After all, the rental furniture business was still our main source of income. However, from one day to the next in spring 2020, events were no longer allowed to take place. Unfortunately, this meant that rental furniture was no longer needed. Our customers canceled orders en masse and within a few days we lost all our income.
What now? Should we hope that the situation calms down again quickly? Or rethink and give up our rental furniture business, which was very successful until the pandemic?
After careful consideration, I pulled the ripcord and reduced our rental furniture stock to be able to pay the ongoing fixed costs. This was a tough decision for everyone involved, but in hindsight it was the right one. We continued with a much smaller line-up and concentrated on our amSee project. During the phases when events were banned, we continued to build on the various levels to comply with the new hygiene and distancing rules, for example on the upper deck and in the outdoor area. As soon as events were allowed again, we got started and welcomed our guests. That’s how we fought our way through two years. Little by little, the ship became our dream location and our events continued to develop. Today, we effortlessly host top-quality company parties and the like with several hundred guests.
Our portfolio is growing
LAKESIDE & SUMMER GARDEN on the SHIP
After the previous tenant withdrew, we decided at the beginning of 2023 to run the snack bar right next to the amSee location ourselves. In April 2023, we finally opened the SOMMERGARTEN am SCHIFF with a new menu and have enjoyed many great visitors ever since.
The opportunity to expand our event business with LAKESIDE am Zwenkauer See also arose at the beginning of 2023. The building was constructed in 2020 in the Bauhaus style and quickly won us over with its premium furnishings and great location. In April 2023, we finally officially took over the LAKESIDE and began a new chapter in our journey. Our aim at the LAKESIDE event location is also to offer our guests the perfect event. It fills us with great pride, but above all with a lot of gratitude, that the LAKESIDE was already very popular in its first year and that we were able to host many wonderful events in Zwenkau.
Catering expansion and urban location
EVENTFOOD24 and EVENTGIESSEREI
Our team regularly cooks fresh and delicious food for our own event guests – so why not for others too? As requests for high-quality catering outside of our locations were also increasing, we decided to take the next step: since fall 2023, our kitchen crew has been operating under the EVENTFOOD24 brand in Leipzig and the surrounding area. The kitchen artists no longer only cook for our events, but also for external customers who value delicious, regional and modern cuisine.
Just a few months later, in January 2024, the unique opportunity arose to take over an urban location in Leipzig-Plagwitz. The property on Gießerstraße was extensively renovated in spring and opened in April 2024 under the name EVENTGIESSEREI. This great industrial-style location gives my team and I the opportunity to organize wonderful events with top service, even away from our beloved lakes.
Our mission
We are personally committed to the success of your event – without ifs and buts, with a lot of heart, mind, humor and always a smile on our lips. It is your event and we will help you to make it perfect.
Gratitude
I would like to take this opportunity to say THANK YOU to my fantastic team in sales, marketing, the kitchen and bar, service and logistics. Each and every one of them does a great job and makes our locations as unique as they are. I am proud and deeply grateful that my team stands by me in both good and bad times. Together, we make numerous guests and customers happy with our work and put a smile on their faces.
Sincerely.
Oliver Altus
amSee Leipzig
Find out even more about us
Values
What basic principles do we follow in our daily work and what values drive us forward? You can find out on this page:
Sustainability
Here we tell you what we do to organize events that are as sustainable and resource-friendly as possible:
Jobs
We look forward to working with committed colleagues who are just as passionate about events as we are. All job offers for our locations can be found here:
