Alexander Nieswandt completed a traditional photographer's apprenticeship in 1990 at Bayer AG in Leverkusen, Germany.. After that, he was a freelance photographer before becoming the assistant to the executive board of Sander, the Cologne-based photo-media service provider, in 1992.. In 1994, he became the long-established company's. managerial partner, responsible for clients throughout Europe.. The company expanded to include German branches in Cologne, Dusseldorf, and Frankfurt.. Nieswandt founded Icony Media GmbH in 2007, which has been a subsidiary of Avenso GmbH since 2009.. As one of the managing directors of Avenso GmbH he oversees production, IT, and customer service and is a shareholder in the company.
