Colin Bertrand has much more in common with Siberia than just the birch tree: His wife Jeanna comes from Irkutsk, the very city that is considered the cradle of sagaan. However, Colin only discovered his two great passions - his wife, with whom he now has two beautiful children, and birch bark - while studying cultural economics in Passau.
After Colin took part in the traditional maypole scramble with Tim Mergelsberg he quickly became enthusiastic about his idea of social entrepreneurship in Siberia. The haptic experience of birch bark never left him.
During their studies, Colin and Tim lived together and spent nights developing the sagaan concept as it stands today.
In between, Colin travelled to Russia, where he not only visited his wife and her family's old home in Siberia, but also completed an internship at the Irkutsk-based management consultancy Heinz-Consulting.
During his stays in Siberia, he developed the standardisation of birch bark products in Russia and built up a network of producers during his travels through Siberia, which he later continued to manage and maintain from Germany.
At his own request, Colin retired from the operational business in 2013 and continues to be a sought-after sagaanier as a consultant and in all cases of urgent assistance.