[ad_1]
The Netherlands was recently in the international news for the spectacular failure of VanMoof, a startup once dubbed the Tesla of electric bicycles. The Dutch founder squeezed bulky e-bike batteries into a sleek frame, a bike that won him 200,000 passionate fans around the world, but forced him into bankruptcy late last year.
“The headline said, ‘Van Moof has become Van Poof,'” says Vilma Chira, a professor of entrepreneurship at the University of Amsterdam. “But that’s a bit unfair. … Amsterdam is a city of 900,000 people, and 65% of venture-backed startups in the general region of Western and Northern Europe are located here. ”
Why I wrote this
a story focused on
In the Netherlands, the bankruptcy of an e-bike company obscured a vibrant startup ecosystem. What’s behind this small country’s entrepreneurial spirit?
In fact, the Netherlands plays a major role in Europe’s startup ecosystem. We have a culture that encourages risk-taking, universities that attract skilled talent from around the world, and an entrepreneur-friendly government. Experts say Europe could become a world leader in entrepreneurship if the Netherlands can overcome some limitations, including rising anti-immigration sentiment and an uneven track record in scaling up. Says.
“The Netherlands can be a laboratory for all kinds of entrepreneurial experiments to address societal challenges,” says Eric Stam, professor of entrepreneurship and former head of the economics department at Utrecht University.
The spectacular failure of VanMoof, the Dutch company once dubbed the Tesla of e-bikes, has dominated business headlines about the Netherlands.
Founded by two Dutch brothers, VanMoof squeezes bulky e-bike batteries into a sleek frame and floats around the streets of Amsterdam. The bike won him 200,000 passionate fans around the world, but it was forced into bankruptcy late last year.
But in many ways, its rise and fall speak to the entrepreneurial spirit of the small country that gave rise to world travel giant Booking.com and electronics giant Philips.
Why I wrote this
a story focused on
In the Netherlands, the bankruptcy of an e-bike company obscured a vibrant startup ecosystem. What’s behind this small country’s entrepreneurial spirit?
“The headline said ‘Vanpoof has become Vanpoof,'” says Vilma Chira, professor of entrepreneurship and innovation at the University of Amsterdam Business School. “But that’s a bit unfair to the city and the country. Big companies are thriving, Amsterdam is a city of 900,000 people, and 65% of venture-backed startups in the general region of Western and Northern Europe It is located here.”
In fact, the Netherlands plays a big role in Europe’s startup ecosystem. We have a culture that encourages risk-taking, universities that attract skilled talent from around the world, and an entrepreneur-friendly government. Experts say its startup culture is closer to America’s fast-paced capitalist ethos than France or Germany, and could help Europe become a world leader in entrepreneurship. But the Netherlands must first overcome several limitations, including growing anti-immigration sentiment and an uneven track record of scaling up.
“The Dutch are sailors and traders and have always done business abroad. They have always expanded,” says Dr. Chira. “Now they have a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem.”
Atmosphere of “Let’s try it”
Amsterdam is already one of Europe’s fastest-growing startup hubs, and the market capitalization of startups founded in the Netherlands could reach a total of €400 billion over the next decade.
Port towns have many attractions as laboratories. It boasts her second largest airport in the European Union after Paris. It is also the city where more UK-based companies re-located after Brexit than any other European city.
In addition, it has a university system that attracts world-class talent. Satya Ankur has given up on a career in technology in India and plans to stay in Amsterdam, where he is further studying computer science. “I love the openness here, the hierarchy is not so obvious.” [than in India]” says Anker. “I can talk to professors like colleagues.”
A number of entrepreneurship programs await him after he graduates, including a university-sponsored grant of €10,000 to test vetted ideas, and incubators will also intervene with higher funding levels.
Jonathan Sitrak, professor of entrepreneurship and innovation at the University of Amsterdam, says a few cultural “intangibles” also increase the energy around a startup. “There’s a lot of romanticism around entrepreneurship in this culture,” he says, noting that students and the general public are “very interested in startups and what they do.”
Its culture has been formed over centuries and stems from the Protestant work ethic and the concept that “making money is not a bad thing, building a business is not a bad thing.” In contrast to the more Catholic traditions of neighboring countries, these traditions clearly influence “the way society behaves,” says Dr. Sitrak.
For example, there is little bureaucracy and you can easily set up a company in an afternoon at the appropriate government office. “This happens very quickly and is very accessible to both Dutch speakers and non-Dutch speakers,” says Dr. Sitrak.
Social realism emphasizes taking on challenges without fear of failure. “The Dutch created an atmosphere where you put a little money into something, see if it works, open your own shop and try it out,” says Dr Chira.
And they do. In the Netherlands, healthcare and fintech occupy the top two spots, accounting for the largest share of startup funding, similar to the US. We also have strengths in electric mobility, life sciences, sensor technology and many other industries.
Lenora Chu
Weakness
With all this business activity and influx of talent, Amsterdam is spread out from corner to corner. Housing is expensive and in short supply, and the Dutch education minister has proposed restricting foreign admissions to universities to address the “unstoppable pace of internationalization” in education, the workplace and communities. ing. The country’s far-right party won the largest number of seats in a single bloc in November on an anti-immigration, anti-EU platform.
But Eric Stam, professor of entrepreneurship and former head of the economics department at Utrecht University, says the “influx of skilled talent” goes back to the Golden Age of the 17th century, which gave rise to the painter Rembrandt and the United East India Company. .
“To some extent, the Dutch government and society have forgotten this part of the Dutch success,” Dr. Stam said, noting that there is a widespread view that immigration has a negative impact on the Dutch economy.
Another problem: Many Dutch startups don’t scale up well. Dr. Stam says that the number of startups and amount of venture capital is “in the top league in the world.” One would expect a higher position given the overall strength of the ecosystem. ”
VanMoof can be considered another case study of failed scaling.
The rise and fall of VanMoof
“People liked the design. They wanted it,” Andres Martinez, founder of WheelGood, an Amsterdam bike repair shop, says of VanMoof’s early success. “I ditched my car to ride a bike, as many do. [customers]”
Although VanMoof rapidly expanded globally, it was unable to keep up with demand for its services and ended up selling its bikes below cost.
Still, it was the Dutch spirit that generated the company’s initial success, and it should be celebrated, says Colin Westerwoudt, an Amsterdam-based entrepreneur who rides a VanMoof bike to work.
He compares the company to Tesla. Tesla received some bad press for engine fires and other technical problems, but ultimately helped advance the electric car market. “Van Moof is the same way,” he says. “Change is hard. They innovated and now we see a lot of companies copying their bikes. We have to be proud of that.”
Overall, experts say the Dutch ecosystem is in decline.
“The Netherlands can be a laboratory for all kinds of entrepreneurial experiments to address societal challenges,” says Dr. Stam, professor of entrepreneurship. “There are not many economies where the room for maneuver and the appreciation for creativity is so developed.”
[ad_2]
Source link
