Social Butterfly Club
About
The Social Butterfly Club is a community for people who want to make real connections and experience Berlin together.
Our mission is to help people get offline, build meaningful connections, and create a sense of belonging in the city – through regular face-to-face meetups, shared experiences, and a structure that makes it easy to reconnect.
History
After the pandemic everyone was tired of sitting at home – and I was no exception. 2022, I started organizing small gatherings for my friends and strangers, too. We went stand-up paddling, to the Kreuzberg Festival, played table tennis in the park or spent a day at the airport lake. As these activities grew thanks to Meetup, Couchsurfing and WhatsApp groups, I soon decided to set up my own community: Social Butterfly Radar.
For the next three years, I kept organizing events in my free time – irregularly and mostly depending on my mood. But the demand kept growing, and I began to notice a deeper need: people were trying hard to find social grounding in Berlin, but often ended up ghosted, disappointed, and disconnected. Staying in touch was harder than expected. I realized that something was missing – structure, rhythm, and a little bit of commitment. That’s when the idea for the Social Butterfly Club was born: not just a loose collection of meetups, but a real community with a clear value – and yes, a membership fee. Turning it into a business was my way of saying: this matters, and I’m all in.
Julia Wähnert (Founder)
Numbers
We have been growing fast and we do not stop: Sky is the limit!
4000+
.
Meetup Members
500+
.
Newsletter Subscribers
100+
.
Offline Meetups
Vision
The leisure industry is booming – but it’s booming past one of our deepest human needs: connection. Museums, festivals, workshops, bars – they’re all designed for individuals. Who you go with, who you meet, whether you feel seen – that’s left to chance.
Dating apps promise matches, but leave many people emotionally exhausted. Networking events offer numbers, not names you’d remember. Even casual meetups often feel like a carousel of shallow hellos.
What’s missing isn’t opportunities – it’s structure. Spaces that invite not just participation, but belonging. A rhythm that lets trust grow slowly, playfully, without pressure.
So we built the Social Butterfly Club – a social system that turns activities into encounters, and encounters into community.
We want people to arrive in Berlin and feel like they belong – not someday, but now.
We want to take the pressure out of making friends, and bring the joy back into showing up.
And for those who’ve already weathered the loneliness of the big city, we want to offer a home base
– a place to land, to stay, and to grow roots.
The Founder
Meet Your Host
Hi, I’m Julia Wähnert – founder of the Social Butterfly Club, writer of the blog Die Potentialistin, and a lifelong explorer of what it means to feel connected.
I grew up in a dance school, which shaped how I move through the world – with rhythm, improvisation, and a sense of timing that comes from listening closely.
Later, I performed Egyptian-style bellydance, blending tradition with my own expression.
I’ve studied philosophy, worked in tech, performed on stage, and hosted countless meetups in the parks and beer gardens of Berlin.
These experiences may seem unrelated – but for me, they’re part of one thing: creating spaces where people can meet, reflect, and grow.
Connect
🦋 2 Facts and 1 Lie
Let’s play a little game before you go – which of the following is not true?
- I once had a summer job selling strawberries in a strawberry shaped house.
- I can quote Simone Weil in three languages.
- On normal days, I drink at least 6 cups of coffee.
(You’ll have to join the club or email me to find out. 😉)