Alisée Mignon is a French expat and artist whose life abroad became a journey of self-discovery. Her story moves through the phases of culture shock and the quiet identity crisis that comes when the meaning of "home" keeps shifting — and into the rewards of building a purposeful life in India.

At the heart of Alisée's journey is her creative work: an artist whose pieces each tell a story, drawing inspiration from spirituality and the cultures she's lived within. That same sense of purpose extends outward — into raising children through the hard goodbyes of expat life, connecting with local communities, and giving back to the less privileged alongside her family. Her story spans cultural identity, the expat artist's creative path, and the belief that a life lived between worlds is best spent with meaning and generosity. She is currently back in France.

Api Mirpuri is a global citizen and entrepreneur whose life has spanned Hong Kong, Bangalore, Canada, Prague, and now Pune. Raised in a Sindhi business family, he worked across industries — from a family clothing business supplying department stores in Europe to Hong Kong hospitality — before a single conversation with a chef in Pune sparked the idea for Tutto Bene, the city's first premium gourmet food store, which opened in 2008.

Api's story is one of resilience and reinvention: building a niche market from scratch, educating staff and customers on imported gourmet products, navigating sourcing and logistics across India, and pivoting fully online during the pandemic. Bridging expat cravings and evolving local tastes, he's helped reshape Pune's gourmet food scene. His story spans global entrepreneurship, connecting cultures through food, and the adaptability behind a business that survived and grew through change.

Dieter Withoeck is a Belgian expat with over 16 years of life across borders and a cross-cultural marriage at the centre of his journey. His path unfolds in three stages — the solo adventurer discovering the world on his own terms, the married partner learning to make each move a shared decision with his Indian wife, and the father for whom family reshaped every choice — across Sweden, Belgium, and the US.

Along the way, Dieter has become a keen observer of what it actually takes to belong somewhere new: navigating strikingly different work cultures, from Sweden's consensus-driven workplaces to India's more hierarchical structures; using hobbies and food to connect with local communities; and leaning on family bonds that strengthen with distance. His story spans cross-cultural marriage, workplace culture abroad, and the adaptability a mobile life demands.

Ketaki Tanaji Golatkar is a global communications leader, personal branding mentor, and the founder of Good Day PR and Strategic Communications. Over 21 years, she has worked across agencies in Bombay and London, led a diplomatic project marking 60 years of Indo-German relations, and spent a decade in sports broadcast and governance — including heading Global Comms and PR for the International Cricket Council. She has mentored women across 108 countries and is based in the UAE. 

Kim is a Belgian bio-engineer turned #mompreneur and founder of Kim's Kitchen, a cooking atelier in Ostend inspired by world cuisine. The idea took root when she followed her husband to Bahrain and discovered new flavours and cultures. Wanting both a passionate career and the freedom to raise her three sons, she launched her first workshop in 2019 and has since built a warm community of hobby cooks. She also spent almost 2 years in India as an expat. Now based in Thailand, she's expanding into online classes — driven by the belief that world cuisine should be accessible to everyone.

Luc Mignon is a French national, a former expat, musician, and philanthropist whose life has spanned Nigeria, Algeria, Norway, Italy, the US, and India. A violinist turned guitarist and pianist, he co-founded an electro duo signed to Kitsuné — moving in the same world as artists like Kylie Minogue and Daft Punk — before music became something larger for him: a way to connect people across cultures and a vehicle for change.

Across his moves, Luc has turned that instinct outward — partnering with local artists in Nigeria, and in India sponsoring orphanages, running rooftop concerts to raise funds for local causes, and creating moments of wonder like taking children to see the ocean for the first time. He also speaks candidly about the other side of a mobile life: the emotional weight of returning home, the identity crisis of leaving the expat world behind, and how staying rooted in deeper values — family, music, philanthropy — is what carries him through. 

Marie Hélène is a French expat, brand strategist, and founder of Black Sheep Kollective — originally from Corsica, now based in Pune. A self-described intuitive, nomadic mover, she lived across New York, Amsterdam, Vienna, and Budapest before landing in India, where she chose to stay after the 2020 lockdown found her at a yoga retreat in Rishikesh.

After starting out inside names like Renault, KLM, and Tommy Hilfiger, Marie built an independent, remote career long before it went mainstream. Through Black Sheep Kollective, she helps companies rebrand and take their story global — human-centric, story-driven, and unafraid to be bold. A dedicated yoga practitioner with over 1,800 hours of training, she credits that discipline for the focus behind her work. Her story spans cultural adaptation, purpose-driven marketing, and the belief that wellness and high performance belong together.

Marie Truchassou, as the founder of My Expat Compass, provides personalized advice and strategies for employees to negotiate expat compensation and benefits. She also provides support and guidance in assessing an international career for the expatriate's spouse. 

Naddy is a multicultural mom, cybernetic engineer, and podcaster whose expat journey has taken her across Mexico, the United States, Germany, and the UK. Along the way she's navigated four very different healthcare systems — including through her pregnancies — giving her a rare, first-hand comparison of how countries approach medicine, from holistic methods in Germany to the systems of the US and UK.

Her story spans parenting across cultures, raising multilingual children, and a transition to vegan living — as well as an open, often-unspoken reckoning with perimenopause and the silence that surrounds it. Part of Naddy's journey is also about identity: an engineer who paused a technical career to raise her children abroad, navigating the career limits of dependent visas, the shifting nature of expat friendship, and the work of staying herself while mothering across borders. 

Sandra Showalter is an American expat and photographer whose journey has taken her family across multiple countries, with India at its heart. Her story captures a tension many accompanying partners know well: the frustration of visa rules that bar skilled expat spouses from working, and the quiet loss of a professional identity built over years behind the camera.

But Sandra's experience is also one of adaptation and finding footing in a new country — navigating the practical realities of expat life in India, from registration and banking to school choices for her children, and embracing everything from queue culture to the colour of Indian weddings. She reflects on how a supportive employer can build a genuine community for expat families, and on the untapped potential of accompanying spouses everywhere. Her story spans the trailing-spouse experience, cultural integration, and the resilience it takes to build a life abroad. Currently, in Colombia as an expat spouse.

Simona Jadranova is a Czech expat who has lived in Pune, India, for over 13 years and is the Founder & Director of Euro India, a boutique consulting firm that helps European small businesses enter and grow in the Indian market.

With a background in business development and market analysis, Simona guides companies through the risks and realities of cross-border commerce. She previously served as Manager for Deinternational Services at the Indo-German Chamber of Commerce, driving market research, company formation, and partner support for foreign entities in India. She also works as an Examiner for Supply Chain Due Diligence Training under the German dual vocational system.

Her story spans expat entrepreneurship, cultural integration, and the balance of personal and professional life abroad.

Thomas is a French teacher who traded the classroom for a sabbatical abroad, moving to India and stepping into life as a stay-at-home dad. His journey is a fresh take on the accompanying-partner experience — one usually told through women's eyes — as he navigates cultural adaptation, the children's transition, and the shifting rhythms of family and social life in a new country.

From food and language to societal expectations around fatherhood, Thomas shares how stepping outside his comfort zone became a chance to rediscover hidden passions and build resilience. His story spans expat life, personal reinvention, and the quiet growth that comes from embracing change. 

Thomas moved back to France in 2025.

Veerle is a Dutch expat-turned-travel-coach whose journey took her from a career as an immigration lawyer to a life lived across Australia, Spain, and Cambodia — and eventually back home to the Netherlands. Along the way, she navigated language barriers, cultural distance, and the quiet difficulty of loneliness, learning to build connections wherever she landed.

Her own experience of both expatriation and the reverse culture shock of coming home reshaped her path: today she's a certified travel and life coach and Reiki practitioner, guiding others through the emotional highs and lows of global living. Her story spans cross-cultural adaptation, repatriation, and the emotional well-being that makes a mobile life sustainable.