Many service providers in Luxembourg are not easily accessible to the significant number of expats who have recently relocated to the Duchy. The community-driven online directory, myguide.lu, aims to address this issue.
Upon moving to a new country, the first thing one has to do is figure out the essentials: electricity, gas, banking, network providers, and more. However, this can be a challenge for expats as many Luxembourgish service providers lack search engine optimization and are available in too few languages.
“A lot of those websites are only available in French, and to my surprise, many companies in Luxembourg still have very poor internet visibility,” notes Martin Jäger, founder and eCommerce professional.
Despite Luxembourg having more national languages than most countries—Luxembourgish, German, and French—many expats who recently arrived here do not speak any of them. Martin, a former Amazon employee, first encountered this problem when he moved here five years ago and then again recently in conversations with his Amazon colleagues.
“When I moved to Luxembourg five years ago, the English spoken in town wasn’t very good. Today this has completely changed, which is why I think having an online community that reflects this is important.”
Martin Jäger, founder and eCommerce professional
“When you first move here, you can consult some online expat guides or articles on RTL and Luxembourg Times, but these are usually quite subjective,” explains Martin.
To address this issue, Martin created myguide.lu, a community-driven online directory aiming to provide a comprehensive overview of “everything expats need in Luxembourg to get their daily life in order.”
The directory categorizes and ranks service providers, ranging from essential industries like banking, insurance, and real estate to activity-based ones such as hiking, festivals, and shopping outlets. Users can leave ratings (0-5 stars) and write reviews for each service listed.
“Currently, myguide.lu ranks the different services based on my preferences, but once enough reviews have been accumulated, they will be ranked by the community’s preferences,” says Martin.
Looking beyond Luxembourg, Martin plans to add a short English description and a link to the designated website for every category. While all services currently listed are based in Luxembourg, he intends to include some that are close to the border as well.
In the near future, the directory will introduce new categories, including spas, gyms, hospitals, and more. An upcoming suggestion box will also allow users to propose categories or links that might be missing.
