Berlin Affordable Art: A Gallery & Community Space

Berlin Affordable Art (BAA) aims to preserve the city’s heritage of art collectives and communities. BAA’s flagship gallery, Klassenfeind Gallery, carries forward the legacy of the beloved Kunsthaus Tacheles by featuring many of the artists who took residence there. Fabiola and Jochen Hummel opened the gallery to sell their curated collection of street art—as well as silk screenings, bags, and postcards—at affordable prices.

“The business idea has always consisted of fun, excitement, and something new for Berlin. The main hope was that people would like the art and have the desire to bring home something authentic from the city.”

Before working for BAA, Fabiola worked for a few startups in Berlin. After Tacheles closed, her father—Jochen—and some of the resident artists had the idea to open a gallery but needed a manager. Fabiola happily seized the opportunity and has run the gallery since it opened in June of 2015.

Owning a gallery poses some challenges, like establishing it in the art world. Additionally, winter can be a difficult season due to the decrease in people walking the streets, browsing, and shopping. Despite these obstacles, Fabiola finds great satisfaction in her work as a business owner.

“For me it is always very important that the customer is happy. I am very content when I hear people laughing and being interested in the art. I think the happiest moments are also when I sell originals. I am also very happy when people come with their dogs to the gallery, like at our previous event, the Doggyssage: A Vernissage for Dogs. They are so much fun!”

As a short-term goal, Fabiola would like the gallery to get more coverage in the Berlin press. Specifically, she would like to emphasize the gallery’s unique concept—that it's a place where you can not only purchase art, but where you can also engage with a community of experienced artists.

Berlin Affordable Art is a proud SumUp customer. Fabiola enjoys that it gives her the possibility to check the gallery sales when she’s not there. She says her accountant is also happy when she receives the SumUp reports, which clearly and consistently account for everything that’s been sold.

“We've used SumUp from the very start. It was and is the perfect solution for our gallery. Since we have a lot of tourists coming in, it is very important to have the option of card payment.”