Start to scale. Startup and Scale-up Founder Stories.

Up!Rotterdam•www.uprotterdam.com

Showcasing the vibrant Dutch entrepreneurial ecosystem - and our journey to support the startup and scale-up founders responsible. Hosted by Lars Crama, edited by Lisette Braakenburg.

Last refreshed: August 23rd, 2025 at 2:23 AM ⓘ

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Episodes

LeQuest CEO Hicham Shatou on building a global scale-up and being a family man at the same time.

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 civil engineering, he founded LeQuest, the leading MedTech company in online training for medical devices. Last year, LeQuest was recognised as one of the 250 fastest-growing companies in the Netherlands. Hicham is also an investor and coach at BlueSparrows, a Delft Based MedTech fund, where he shares his experience and insights with upcoming MedT...

Apr 20, 2021•44 min•Season 1Ep. 7

CEO Jeroen van Velzen on finding a strategic buyer for Roadmap.

This episode features Jeroen van Velzen, Founder and CEO of Roadmap. Jeroen has an impressive entrepreneurial record. In 2002, he co founded Mobile2Pay, the first mobile payment system in the Benelux. After that, he became CEO and co-owner of Sound Of Data. In 2015, together with Koen Bavink and Markus Emmer, he spun out their travel activities, which became Roadmap. They raised a EUR4M series A in 2018. In March this year, Roadmap was acquired by Emburse, a global leader in expense management. ...

Apr 06, 2021•36 min•Season 1Ep. 6

Equalture CEO Charlotte Melkert about raising your first round of capital, becoming an entrepreneur at a young age and more.

This episode features Charlotte Melkert, Founder and CEO of Equalture. At the age of 19, Charlotte started her first company, together with her identical twin sister Fleur. Today, she is the co-founder and CEO of Equalture - the fast growing HR Tech company that is shaping the world of unbiased hiring. Charlotte was nominated most talented female entrepreneur of The Netherlands, LOEY Talent Award, Sprout 25 under 25 and Sifted's top European Gen Z Founders. In this episode, we'll talk to Charlot...

Mar 22, 2021•45 min•Season 1Ep. 5

CEO Jan van der Tempel about his entrepreneurial journey with Ampelmann and everything about building and scaling a successful business.

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 motion compensated offshore access systems and services, used on vessels all over the world. Jan is also the co-founder and director of DOB-Academy and in 2018 he was awarded as an honorary member of the Royal Netherlands Society of Engineers, for his domestic and international contributions to the offshore industry. In this episode, we'll talk to Jan...

Mar 09, 2021•46 min•Season 1Ep. 4

CEO Kars Veling about his personal journey growing LessonUp and his dreams for the future.

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 on the board of advisors. In 2014, he started LessonUp where he is now CEO. Kars is also a Co initiator of Future NL, the foundation focused at bringing digital literacy to the classroom; and until last year he was a member of the Economic Board of the Hague. In this episode, we'll talk to Kars about: How the corona lockdown accelerates the growth ...

Feb 22, 2021•41 min•Season 1Ep. 3

Helloprint CEO Hans Scheffer on company culture and navigating your scale-up through a crisis.

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 Industry by Creating Earth's Largest Platform for Printed Products, Next to that, he is Founding Partner of WeTechRotterdam, an initiative to strengthen the tech community. In this episode, you'll learn: How do you build a company culture for fast growth? What do you do when a crisis turns your business upside down? And, what drives him on a more p...

Feb 08, 2021•47 min•Season 1Ep. 2

CEO Judith Eyck on building travel scale-up Vakanties.nl and acquiring your competitor.

This episode features Judith Eyck, Founder of vakanties.nl and Managing Director of Zoover. Judith founded online travel agency Vakanties.nl in 2017 with Sunweb founder Joost Romeijn as investor. In the following two years Judith led Vakanties to grow rapidly. She was nominated for Loey Talent Awards 2019 and Rotterdam Business Woman Awards 2020. In the summer of 2020, in the middle of the corona pandemic, she successfully acquired Zoover, of which she is now co-owner and managing director. In t...

Jan 19, 2021•41 min•Season 1Ep. 1

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