Start to scale. Startup and Scale-up Founder Stories.
Activity Overview
Episode publication activity over the past year
Episodes
Building hands-free charging solutions for the Autonomous Vehicle Revolution with ROCSYS CEO Crijn Bouman
24 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Crijn Bouman is a pioneer in EV charging. In 2005 - long before EVs were a hype - he co-founded Epyon, one of Europe’s first fast-charging startups....
Turning CO₂ into future-proof building materials - with Marta Sjögren from Paebbl
10 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marta spent over a decade backing startups as a VC. Now, she’s on the other side of the table, scaling Paebbl across Europe - balancing deep-tech in...
Crafting safe digital habits for the next generation with Marjolein van Tilburg
10 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marjolein is a driving force for digital well-being and responsible tech. In 2022, she left a successful career as a lawyer, mediator, and privacy exp...
Riding the Storm: Philip Hess (Senz Umbrellas) on Innovation and Resilience in Entrepreneurship
25 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Philip co-founded Senz in 2005 with two fellow students. Together they created the 'original storm umbrella' that - pun intended - took the ...
Revolutionizing Nuclear Energy: Thorizons' Kiki Lauwers on Molten Salt Reactors and Sustainable Innovation
18 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Kiki leads Thorizon, a revolutionary deeptech company backed by the EU, creating thorium-based molten salt reactors. Thorizon was founded by Lucas Poo...
Rebuilding resilience: Jouri Schoemaker on Pieter Pot's journey from bankruptcy to crowdfunding revival
30 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jouri is the founder and CEO of Pieter Pot, one of the most talked-about startups in the Netherlands. The online supermarket, known for using jars in...
Jos Lazet's Journey with Blockrise: From Bitcoin Basics to Crypto Leadership
16 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jos is a passionate entrepreneur who started his journey early, registering his first business at the age of just 15. In 2013 he got involved in Bitco...
From Travel Enthusiast to Tech Entrepreneur: The Polar Steps Story with Koen Droste
03 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From a young age, Koen built websites for clients, leading to his first startup, CompanySpot, the Dutch version of Glassdoor. Koen later played key ro...
Plant whisperers unveiled: transforming agriculture and navigating the startup landscape with Berend de Klerk
23 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Berend is on a mission to revolutionize the agriculture industry. With a Master in High-Tech Engineering ánd a Master in Management of Technology, h...
Powering The Green Revolution with DeWarmte: Sander Wapperom's Journey to Sustainable Home Heating
14 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Immediately after graduating from TU Delft, Sander and Auke developed an innovative product called HeatCycle - which recovers all heat from household ...
Scaling with Mycelium: How Bob Hendrikx changes the funeral industry with Living Coffins
09 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Let me introduce Inventor, Biodesigner and Entrepreneur: Bob Hendrikx.With a background in Architectural Engineering Bob strives for a world in which ...
From Boxing Champion to CEO: Josefien Groot's Journey to Technological Innovation and Sustainable Leadership
18 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With a masters degree in Complex Systems, Josefien Groot went from national boxing champion to Scale-up CEO, advocating for a sustainable future. Bef...
How to build a brand in consumer electronics with Repeat Audio founder Dorus Galama
27 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After he completed his master in strategic product design from Delft University, Dorus began to do graphic studio work together with his fellow studen...
Revolutionizing Urban Mobility: Bibi Jorissen's Journey with Umob and the Future of MaaS
20 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With Master’s degrees in Strategy and Marketing, she excelled in mobility. From cutting carbon footprint at General Motors to boosting fleet growth ...
Reflecting on Rotterdam's entrepreneurial ecosystem and getting up-close and personal with Lars & Lisette
22 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In the last episode of this year, Up!Rotterdam's Lars & Lisette reflect on the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Rotterdam and its development ove...
Technology adoption in healthcare and care robot Tessa with Wang Long Li, founder & CEO of Tinybots
19 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
During his PhD research, Wang explored robots' societal impact on the elderly, especially with dementia. In 2015, he left that and founded Tinyb...
Negotiating a €40M deal with the EIB and reinventing yourself from a 1 man team to leading 100 people with Mattijs Slee from Battolyser Systems
28 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
With a Master in Hydraulic Engineering from Delft Technical University and an Executive MBA from INSEAD, he spent 15 years with Shell, where his lates...
The opportunities in a $1 trillion Augmented Reality market with Joris Biskop, founder and CEO of AddOptics
24 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Joris Biskop is the former CTO of Luxexcel, 3d printing lens specialist, which was recently acquired by Meta for €400 million. Based on his insights...
How to clean the ocean with oyster reefs, with Oyster Heaven CEO George Birch
23 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
With a background in biology and a passion for environmental conservation, George embarked on a unique journey that led him from asset management to t...
Philips Innovation Award Special: learn about nature inclusive development and how to make the most of a competition like PHIA.
13 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I speak with Auke Bleij, Founder of Respyre - the fascinating startup that helps cities turn green through a special concrete that hol...
Philips Innovation Award Special: Diversity in tech and starting a startup with 7 co-founders, with Marsha Goei from Breeze.
31 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Marsha started Breeze - the worlds first offline dating app, together with 6 co-founders from the Technical University in Delft. That was 2019 and tod...
BAQME founder & CEO Souren Arakelian on the future of urban mobility.
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Souren's career spans across esteemed institutions such as Merrill Lynch and Rabobank, where he excelled in investment banking and M&A.Today,...
WEAR Co-founder Pim Roggeveen on the business of refurbished sneakers and pivoting from service to product
16 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Pim and his co-founder Lorenzo van Galen, are challenging the fast fashion industry. With their company Wear, they are creating the largest platform f...
CEAD founder & CEO Lucas Janssen on product market fit in large scale 3D printing and landing a €1M EU Grant
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In 2014, along with Maarten Logtenberg, Lucas set out on this journey from a garage, fueled by their dream of designing and building cutting-edge mach...
Profitable business models in the biobased economy by Lindy Hensen, founder of Tekkoo and PeelPioneers
02 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In 2017 she co-founded Peelpioneers, the largest producer of raw materials from citrus peels in Europe - together with Sytze van Stempvoort and Bas ...
Staffyou founder Pavle Beslic on innovating the temp staffing business and getting punched in the face
02 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As a chartered accountant Pavle Beslic started his career at Deloitte - after which he decided to go independent and stumbled into the world of recrui...
Arctic Reflections founder Fonger Ypma on his bold mission to slow down global warming
05 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Fonger is an experienced leader in the energy sector. He obtained his PhD in mathematics and physics at Oxford University, after which he worked as a ...
Dekbed-Discounter's CEO Niels Verwij on growth and keeping focus when opportunities seem unlimited.
10 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Niels Verwij is a successful e-commerce entrepreneur. He started dekbed-discounter, a disruptive online duvet webshop, in 2014 from scratch. It disrup...
The Seaweed Company founder and SeaEO Joost Wouters on why we should re-align business and nature
26 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Joost is the founder and SeaEO of The Seaweed Company. A global pioneer in developing high-quality seaweed applications, with farms in the Netherlands...
SolarDuck founder & CEO Koen Burgers on how to prevent rookie mistakes as a founder.
10 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Koen is the co-founder and CEO of Solarduck, the Dutch leader in offshore floating solar. He started his career as a management consultant, before he ...
[April Fools episode - created by Chat GPT 🤗] Stealth founder Rebekah* on building better humans
29 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
***Ok, we have a confession to make. Stealth Founder Rebekah does not exist. Nor does Pilar.One, the company that raised 450 million and grew the team...
Valyuu CEO Ferhat Topuz on building a multi-sided platform in the circular economy and taking investor calls on a train station floor
27 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ferhat is the CEO and Co-founder of Valyuu, the circular economy marketplace to sell and buy pre-owned goods, like smartphones and macbooks. With firs...
Techgrounds MD Abdessamad and participant Katia on opportunities in tech for underrepresented talent
21 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Abdessamad Dari is the MD of Techgrounds Netherlands. With a background in management, sales and system admin, in 2019 he joined Techgrounds. He is Ma...
Parya Lotfi, founder & CEO of DuckDuckGoose, on starting a business in deepfakes
12 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Born in Iran, Parya moved to the Netherlands at the age of twelve. She has a background in systems engineering at Technical University of Delft. There...
Peter Paul, founder and CEO of Skoon Energy, on turning crises into opportunities and dreaming big enough
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
With a background in engineering and business, Peter Paul started his career at the acclaimed shipbuilder Damen Shipyards. In 2017, together with Daan...
SocialDebt founder & CEO Jamal Oulel on helping young people to get out of problematic debt.
16 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Born and raised in Rotterdam, Jamal has been involved in a number of social initiatives: from RefugeeHero, Edubility foundation. Starters4Communities....
Nowi founder & CEO Simon van der Jagt on non technical founders solving a technical problem and being acquired
20 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Simon co founded NOWI Energy together with Omar Link, a fellow Strategic Product Design Master student at TU Delft.In 2016, they set out to design a c...
Clinton Bemont, CEO of Maxwell & Spark on accelerating the energy transition and moving to The Netherlands from South Africa.
12 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Clinton is the founder and CEO of Maxwell & Spark, manufacturer of renewable energy systems.Originally from South Africa, he has led highly innova...
Sana Commerce's Michiel Schipperus on how the lessons from the 2008 crisis still apply today.
28 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Michiel is a b2b e-commerce veteran. He joined ISM e-company - which was founded by Jan Kees de Jager and Karel van der Woude - during his Master at ...
Ellen Sano from Yuki on taking over from a founder CEO and what happens after your company gets acquired.
31 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ellen joined Yuki right after they launched in Belgium, where she grew the business with more than 100% year on year. In 2020, Yuki was acquired by t...
Medical-X founder & CEO Dervis Demirtas on scaling a med-tech company.
17 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dervis studied Aerospace Engineering at Delft Technical University. Already in 2002 he invented an endoscopic simulator. In 2010 he became managing di...
Mapiq CEO Sander Schutte on selling to corporates and gearing up for growth in uncertain times.
26 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sander graduated Cum Laude in Biomedical Engineering at Delft University of Technology. Where he also did his PhD and a postdoc until he co-founded hi...
Minite founder & CEO Micky Chen on “Student as a Service”, hiring Gen Z and dealing with investors.
13 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Micky is on a mission to turn today's brightest students into tomorrow's workforce. Her first successful venture was a Harry Potter platfor...
Moonback CEO Niels Meijssen on building and growing an honest booking platform.
07 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Early 2020 Niels wrote an angry post on linkedin: About large platform companies who were asking for government support while generating billions in d...
PHYSEE CEO Ferdinand Grapperhaus on selling sustainability to a traditional industry and the spiritual journey of entrepreneurship.
24 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ferdinand is the CEO of PHYSEE Technologies, which he founded together with Willem Kesteloo in 2014 in a physics lab at Technical University Delft. P...
Hundo.Careers CEO Esther O'Callaghan on ending youth unemployment through web3.
10 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Esther is the founder of hundo careers - dedicated to upskilling the next generation in web3 and metaverse. Esther is a Global Tech Advocate, a digita...
Wouter Goedhart, co-founder of VONQ, on investing in startups and limoncello.
26 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 2006, together with Tycho van Paassen and Remy Verhoeven Wouter built VONQ - which turned out the household name for recruitment marketing - used e...
Hardt Hyperloop co-founder Tim Houter on the future of transport and finding funding.
29 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Tim Houter is the co-founder of Hardt Hyperloop. Founded in 2016, the team at Hardt is working tirelessly to disrupt the transport industry with an in...
Quan CEO Arosha Brouwer on employee wellbeing, Y combinator and traveling.
22 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Born in SriLanka, raised in Australia and moved to the Netherlands. Arosha spent her career in Management Consulting with PwC and with companies like ...
Serial entrepreneur and investor Pieter Schoen about the thin line between bankruptcy and a dream exit.
07 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Pieter is a well known Dutch serial entrepreneur and investor. After founding a publishing business and two IT companies, in 2005 he started NLE toget...
Graciella van Vliet, CEO and co-founder of Closure, on growing a startup in death-tech.
18 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
She co-founded death tech company - yes you heard that right - Closure with Chantal van der Velde in 2017. They won the Philips Innovation Award and m...
Nalden, founder of WeTransfer and Adelee, on surrounding yourself with the right people and keeping a beginner's mindset.
30 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Fast company described him as “A hybrid of the serial entrepreneur Sean Parker and Jason Kottke, the web designer and blogger". But we like h...
Founder and CEO of Nearfield Instruments, Hamed Sadeghian, about scaling up in a highly capital intensive industry.
16 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In 2016, Hamed Sadeghian co-founded Nearfield Instruments together with Roland van Vliet as a spin out from TNO. Nearfield has since then become a lea...
Julian Jagtenberg, founder and CEO of Somnox, about sleep, sales and building a dream team.
01 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Julian is the founder and CEO of Somnox, which he started with fellow students at the Technical University of Delft in 2015. Two years ago they introd...
Jarell Habets, CEO of Shypple, on shaking up traditional industries and the 'quantified self'.
13 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In 2016, Jarell founded Shypple - the "booking.com for intercontinental sea freight that connects more than 3000 companies worldwide." In 2...
EJ Lugt, founder of Nimbuzz and MD at YES!Delft, on dream exits, entrepreneurial ecosystems and sports.
29 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
EJ sold his first business @Media to the Dutch Broadcasting Service in 2001. In 2006, he founded Nimbuzz, which he sold for 137 Million Euros to New C...
Magnet.me founder Vincent Karremans on combining entrepreneurship with politics.
15 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Vincent is the founder and Managing Director of Magnet.me - the online network that helps young professionals find a job they love. In his spare time...
HousingAnywhere CEO Djordy Seelmann on acquisitions, dealing with investors, and fast decision-making.
18 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Djordy is a tech entrepreneur who is passionate about real estate and building impactful ventures. With a Master in Law (Cum Laude) and a Master in ...
Cinzia Silvestri, CEO of BI/OND, about building a business in the pioneering field of Organ-on-chips.
04 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Cinzia Silvestri is the Founder and CEO of Bi/ond, the Dutch biotech company on a mission to enable personalized disease treatment. Originally from It...
LeQuest CEO Hicham Shatou on building a global scale-up and being a family man at the same time.
20 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode features Hicham Shatou, Founder and CEO of LeQuest.Hicham is a man on a mission to improve the world of healthcare. With a background in ...
CEO Jeroen van Velzen on finding a strategic buyer for Roadmap.
06 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode features Jeroen van Velzen, Founder and CEO of Roadmap.Jeroen has an impressive entrepreneurial record. In 2002, he co founded Mobile2Pay...
Equalture CEO Charlotte Melkert about raising your first round of capital, becoming an entrepreneur at a young age and more.
22 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode features Charlotte Melkert, Founder and CEO of Equalture.At the age of 19, Charlotte started her first company, together with her identic...
CEO Jan van der Tempel about his entrepreneurial journey with Ampelmann and everything about building and scaling a successful business.
09 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode features Jan van der Tempel, Founder and CEO of Ampelmann.Jan is the inventor, co-founder and CEO of Ampelmann, the global leader in moti...
CEO Kars Veling about his personal journey growing LessonUp and his dreams for the future.
22 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode features Kars Veling, Founder and CEO of LessonUp.In 2000 Kars founded strategic internet agency Q42, where he was the CTO and is still o...
Helloprint CEO Hans Scheffer on company culture and navigating your scale-up through a crisis.
08 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode features Hans Scheffer, Founder and CEO of Helloprint.He started his first business at the age of 19. Today, he is disrupting the Print I...
CEO Judith Eyck on building travel scale-up Vakanties.nl and acquiring your competitor.
19 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode features Judith Eyck, Founder of vakanties.nl and Managing Director of Zoover. Judith founded online travel agency Vakanties.nl in 2017 w...