Remembering Dominik Bärlocher

Dominik was like the sea breeze – at times stormy, other times serene. He was always there for everyone in the editorial team. When something needed to be done, he was always the first to volunteer.

He was more than just a colleague. He was someone you could always talk to – a rock for anyone who needed him. I had the privilege of having him by my side through thick and thin. The road was sometimes a rough one, but with Dominik everything was a bit better.

Dominik was one of the first journalists we hired. He started in September 2016 and significantly shaped Digitec Galaxus in the time he was with us. The company was a part of him. It was clear from the start that he really cared about Digitec, and that held true until the very end. Dominik was a pioneer: he helped to develop and shape the very core of how we tell stories.

To Dominik, the technology we use in everyday life was soulless. His goal was always to breathe life into his texts and videos; to write and speak in a way that even his grandmother would understand. He wasn’t scared to expose the marketing blah of tech corporations. Dominik wanted everyone who read his stories to both understand and find them entertaining.

Dominik wrote and spoke with a power of words like no other. His attention to detail coupled with his enthusiasm made him a passionate, fiery person with a huge heart. He often went very «deep down the rabbit hole» – another one of Dom’s phrases that’ll remain with us. He uncovered perspectives on topics that were possible only because he didn’t just burn for journalism; he blazed for it.

In the six years that Dominik poured his heart, blood and soul into the Digitec Galaxus magazine, he told countless stories that were both loved by our Community and hotly debated. For example, his portrait of a dominatrix, a guide on how to share nudes safely, the printer test that nearly made him go insane, and his comical Apple videos like the one on the iCloth Pro. In addition to all that, there were his numerous rants, reviews and explanation pieces. To the Community, Dominik was either a red rag or Messiah. There was no in-between.

The virtues and principles of journalism were Dominik’s alpha and omega; they were non-negotiable and absolute. He didn’t just work as a journalist. He was one. Being a journalist was his calling.

Dominik was a loving person who enjoyed passionately discussing and debating the topic at hand and never forgot to give praise where it was due. He always had an open ear for his fellow human beings and was always equipped with a piece of advice, a joke, or some daft little remark.

At least once a month he told me how much he loved his girlfriend and that she was the most beautiful woman in the world – and that was that.

A true friendship

Holy smokes, Dominik, could you get on my nerves sometimes! You never could keep your mouth shut. But I’d do anything to hear your voice again. To hear you say «I hate you, too» one more time, knowing full well that there never was nor will be any hatred between us.

I can’t believe that I can quote one of your favourite movies here, Dominik.

And that’s exactly what you did. The only small comfort we have is that you died doing something you loved.

I’d often say that one thing or another was terrible. Sometimes it really was; other times, it was all in good fun. But this time, it’s true in a way that I never could have imagined: you’re gone. We’ll have no more video shoots – neither in the studio, nor on the road. Nowhere. My heart is broken. All our hearts are broken. It was, to put it in Andreas Niedermann’s words, «bloody beautiful» to be able to call you my best friend, mentor and partner in crime. It was an honour.

Farewell, my friend.

Always, Your Stephie