Hammering the F5 key

Nadja Hipp and Samuel Trüssel are the "f5 agency." Around a year ago, they moved into their new office at Speicherstrasse 3. (Foto: tiz)

The final decision regarding the color has yet to be made. For now, it is violet-blue. In the evenings, this is how the lighting shimmers in the display window of the "f5 agency" at Speicherstrasse 3.

"I can control the lighting color through the app. We'll keep experimenting. Almost anything works except red," jokes Samuel Trüssel. He makes up 50 percent of the agency and is responsible for the creative aspects of the work. The name, however, is the brainchild of founder Nadja Hipp.

"The 'f5' addition refers to the function of the F5 button on the keyboard when browsing the Internet: refreshing websites and reloading content."

Keeping content up-to-date is a significant challenge for many companies. Nadja Hipp observed this during her work as a consultant for large companies in Eastern Switzerland. "Daily business naturally always takes priority. That leaves little room for conceptual thinking, initiatives, or creating digital content."

This is where the f5 agency comes in as an external partner. "As external collaborators, we have the freedom to implement such initiatives and produce new content. Once the ideas take root and the project is complete, we are happy to step back."

IT-Projects and Design

Nadja Hipp’s professional career began with a bold decision: She left the structured path of high school and became self-employed.

"That was the time when the Internet was just emerging. It was like a gold rush. I bought myself a laptop and learned how to create websites. That later landed me a well-paying job in IT," she explains.

After a family break, she worked in IT at Raiffeisenbank and in industrial marketing. During this time, her determination to become self-employed again grew. "One of my first clients was the Canton of St. Gallen – the task was to optimize the websites."

Later, as a project manager for the Energy Agency of St. Gallen, she moved to Teufen and, in 2017, founded the company F5netlive GmbH with Daniel Niklaus of Netlive IT AG.

During this period, Samuel Trüssel also joined. Originally trained as a metal construction drafter, he retrained in visual communication. "I worked for various agencies in St. Gallen, but also for IT pioneers like 'VadianNet,'" he says. Shortly after moving to Teufen in 2018, he noticed the job ad from Nadja Hipp.

Fresh Start at Speicherstrasse

Around a year ago, Nadja Hipp decided to refocus on conceptual projects with a strong design emphasis.

"Design and experience make the difference in how well products and services sell. Development is merely a means to an end," she explains.

With this realignment, she also parted ways with Netlive IT and changed the name to "f5 agency." For about a year now, this agency has been based at Speicherstrasse 3, comprising Nadja Hipp, Samuel Trüssel, and a network of external partners.

Currently, in addition to classic web optimizations and digital content, they are also implementing physical projects to support sales, designing visitor spaces, and creating company logos and brands.

"When people ask me what we actually do, I always say: Facelifting and digital sales," Hipp concludes.

Source: Tüüfner Poscht | pd/tiz