Philip co-founded Senz in 2005 with two fellow students. Together they created the 'original storm umbrella' that - pun intended - took the world by storm. 

Later on, Philip joined sleep startup Somnox and coached scale-up founders to implement Rockefeller Habits. With his latest venture - Rotterdam Factoring - he is on a mission to become the largest factoring company in the Netherlands, with no more than 10 people on staff.

In this episode, we'll cover:

• How an innovative storm umbrella - took the world by storm; 
• Rockefeller Habits as a framework for growth
• How to become a Market Leader with no more than 10 employees

Links mentioned:

• People: Philip Hess, Julian Jagtenberg, Verne Harnish, Erik Rutten, Lieke Huisinga
• Companies:  Senz, Philips Innovation Awards, Somnox, Rotterdam Factoring, KNAB Bank
• Other: Rockefeller Habits, OnlyFans Productivity per Employee
• Media: Opgezwolle - Volle Kracht

Kiki leads Thorizon, a revolutionary deeptech company backed by the EU, creating thorium-based molten salt reactors. Thorizon was founded by Lucas Pool and Sander de Groot as a spin-off from the national nuclear research institute of the Netherlands. In 2023, Kiki bemame the CEO. With an Aerospace Engineering degree from TU Delft and an MBA from INSEAD, her journey spans McKinsey, Bol.com, and now the ambitious goal of launching Thorizon’s first reactor.

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• Kiki’s leap from corporate to leading a nuclear energy scale-up,
• The potential of molten salt reactors in changing nuclear perceptions,
• The highs and lows of partnerships, funding, and the “nuclear renaissance.”

Links mentioned:

• People: Kiki Lauwers, Lucas Pool, Sander de Groot, Andrew Buskens, Nima Salami, Jos Lazet, Daan Giesen, Rinke Zonneveld
• Companies: Thorizon, Bol.com, McKinsey, OasysNow, Blockrise, LessonUp, InvestNL
• Media: EU endorsement Thorizon One molten salt reactor
• Other: Slush Helsinki, European Alliance on Small Modular Reactors, Careers at Thorizon, Hackyourcareer.com, DJ F.R.A.N.K. - The One and Only

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 instead of plastic packaging, experienced rapid growth since its launch in 2019, raising €12.5 million in capital. However, in 2022, the company encountered financial troubles, and despite a takeover, faced what seemed like a final blow at the end of 2023 when it went bankrupt. Now, in 2024, Pieter Pot is back in the startup phase with a new round of crowdfunding. As always, Jouri remains determined to make it a success.

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• Driving system change through business;
• Going from growth to getting acquired to bankruptcy to a rebirth; 
• The difference between revenue and profitability;
• How to push forward as a founder

Links mentioned:

• People: Jouri Schoemaker, Michiel Muller, 
• Companies: Pieter Pot, Albert Heijn, Jumbo, Picnic, OnlyFans, Nederlands Kampioenschap Risk, Ekoplaza, Kraft Heinz, Tivoli Utrecht, Anduvi = NVIDIA   
• Other: Crossroads, Startup Utrecht
• Media: Systeem op de Schop Podcast, Crowdfunding Explanation Video (scroll down), De Ondernemer - De Pieter Potcast, M83 - Outro

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 Bitcoin and became captivated by its transformative potential. While pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, his fascination with blockchain led him to found Blockrise, where he now serves as CEO. Today Blockrise is a trusted partner to prominent individuals, corporations and family offices who want to have complete control over their digital assets.

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• innovating in the financial sector
• the future of cryptocurrency as an asset class and
• the opportunities that lie ahead in this rapidly evolving space

Links mentioned:

• People:Jos Lazet, Jasper Hu (CTO),
• Companies: BlockRise, De Nederlandsche Bank
• Media: Dumpert bitcoin.org introduction video,  Michael Saylor: Bitcoin, Inflation, and the Future of Money | Lex Fridman Podcast #276, Emerce article, Blockrise.com Education Page, Podcast: Bitcoin for Millenials Bram Kanstein, Book: A Beginners Guide to Bitcoin, Book: The Bitcoin Standard 
• Blog: Custodial vs Non-Custodial Wallets, Book: No Rules Rules by Reed Hastings and Erin Meyer, Start to Scale Podcast Episode with Hans Scheffer, Jason Mraz - Curbside Prophet, 
• Other: AFM License, MICAR License, Bitcoin ETF 

From a young age, Koen built websites for clients, leading to his first startup, CompanySpot, the Dutch version of Glassdoor. Koen later played key roles at platforms like Hyves, Relatieplanet and Dumpert and co-founded Upcoming, a news and entertainment platform. In 2015, together with 3 co-founders, he founded polarsteps. 

Today over 10 million travelers from all parts of the world use the app to plan, track and relive their adventures. So does my wife - as I found out only this summer.

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• How a passion for travel turned into a business 
• Growing to 10 Million users
• Knowing when it’s time to hand over as a CEO

Links mentioned:

• People: Koen Droste, Niek Bokkers Job Harmsen, Max Neustadt, Laurens Groenendijk, Nalden
• Companies: Polarsteps, Hyves,  CompanySpot, Glassdoor, Relatieplanet, Upcoming, Inkef Capital
• Media: Koen's Polarsteps Profile,  Teleporter, House of Deeprelax 
• Other: NPS Net Promoter Score, Yoga Nidra meditation

Berend is on a mission to revolutionize the agriculture industry. 

With a Master in High-Tech Engineering ánd a Master in Management of Technology, he founded Plense Technologies together with Thijs Bieling. 

They use a patented technology with smart sensing devices that literally listen to plants - and turn that into data for growers.

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• Measuring the inner working of plants;
• The importance of tough love from critical advisors;
• How to make the most of a competition like PHIA.

Links mentioned:

• People: Berend de Klerk
• Companies: Plense Technologies, Philips Innovation Award, YES!Delft
• Other: Xylem
• Media: The Opposites - Slapeloze Nachten

Immediately after graduating from TU Delft, Sander and Auke developed an innovative product called HeatCycle - which recovers all heat from household wastewater. That led them to win the ASN World Prize in 2020. Later they added the sleek and smart AO heatpump, that won the iF Design Award 2024 out of almost 11,000 entries from 72 countries. Today, DeWarmte is well underway to install their 3000th heat pump by the end of 2024.

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• A smarter way to get residential homes off natural gas;
• Anticipating changing market dynamics;
• deWarmtes recent crowdfunding campaign

Links mentioned:

• People: Sander Wapperom, Auke de Vries, Willem Kesteloo, Bob Hendrikx, Jan Pieter Versluijs
• Companies: DeWarmte, Rubio Impact Ventures, Fotoniq, Loop Biotech, Solar Monkey
• Media: Crowdfunding Campaign, Sing my Dream Around - Silver Pozzoli, Upstream Festival

Let me introduce Inventor, Biodesigner and Entrepreneur: Bob Hendrikx.

With a background in Architectural Engineering Bob strives for a world in which we work in symbiosis with nature. In 2020 he founded Loop Biotech, on a mission to revolutionize the funeral industry - through coffins that turn people into plant food.

Bob's journey received widespread attention, making headlines in Wired, CNN, The Guardian, and the BBC. VICE Media even awarded him the title of Human of the Year. 

His backers include Dragons' Den investors Pieter Schoen and Shawn Harris and we have a scoop: as he just closed a 2M crowdfunding round last to propel the business into its next phase of expansion.

In this episode, we'll cover the following topics:

• Innovating in the funeral industry;
• Scaling up in Mushroom tech;
• Building a company with your fiancé

Links mentioned:

• People: Bob Hendrikx, Lonneke Westhoff, Pieter Schoen, Shawn Harris, Tony Robbins, Duke Urbanik
• Companies: Loop Biotech, Dragon’s Den, YES!Delft
• Media: Lighthouse Family - High

With a masters degree in Complex Systems, Josefien Groot went from national boxing champion to Scale-up CEO, advocating for a sustainable future. 

Before reaching the age of 21, she had already established and sold her first business specializing in circular products. In 2017, she co-founded QLayers alongside Ruben Geutjens. Her significant contributions have been widely recognized through numerous accolades, including the prestigious European Rising Innovator and EY Emerging Entrepreneur Of The Year awards. Despite her industrial pursuits, Josefien has a love for nature and lives off grid in a self-built tiny house with her partner and their daughter. 

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• Why we need to fix energy inefficiencies in industry;
• How to combine parenthood with scaling up;
• What off grid living teaches us about nature;

Links mentioned:

• People: Josefien Groot, Ruben Geutjens
• Companies: QLayers, UNIIQ, NPEX, ECFG Venture capital, Rotterdamse Havendraken, Welna
• Media: Voedselboscast, European Rising Innovator, EY Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year, Up!Rotterdam Finder, Alexia Chellun - the power is here now

After he completed his master in strategic product design from Delft University, Dorus began to do graphic studio work together with his fellow student Delft Tom. 

From a deep love for music and the determination to stand up against the industry with products that produce massive electronic waste - they started Gerrard Street, in 2015, which was later renamed Repeat Audio. 

Today, Repeat offers a range of modular high fidelity headphones. Notable users include the Metropole Orchestra, and one of the most important Dutch rappers, Sticks. 

Dorus also finds time to play the piano and gives back as a volunteer by helping refugees. 

In this episode, we'll talk about:

• How to build a consumer brand in the circular economy;
• Pivoting from product as a service to product sales;
• The fine line between failure and success in crowdfunding

Links mentioned:

• People: Dorus Galama, Tom Leenders, Sticks, Willem de Bruin (from The Opposites)
• Companies: Repeat Audio, Sennheiser, Sony, Frame.Work Laptop
• Media: Yes - Rhythm of Love, Dorus as a guest in Upstream Talks