That One Thing

#24 The Netherlands: Changing the world one (homecooked) meal at a time

Entrepreneur #24 out of 100: Mahmoud El Wakil from Egypt, building Homemade in the Netherlands When Mahmoud told me, “I want to change the world,” I laughed. I thought he was joking. But I owe him an apology, because he was completely serious. Mahmoud believes he can build a better world by creating a short and sustainable food supply chain, sourcing meals from people nearby. In doing so, he creates opportunities for those home cooks to support their own livelihoods. This idea has the potential to make a meaningful difference in the Netherlands—and an even bigger impact in developing countries around the world. It became the foundation for Homemade, a food delivery platform where people can order meals from home cooks in their neighbourhood. In this episode, we talk about: 💡 How he became the biggest shareholder in the store of his school  💡Why he thinks solving world hunger shouldn’t be difficult 💡 The big dreams and impact he is planning to have with Homemade A conversation about entrepreneurship, having a big vision, and why you should never laugh at people with big dreams.

#23 Netherlands: Keeping your founding team (of 6!) together untill the exit (Robert-Jan Verheggen)

Entrepreneur #23 out of 100: Robert-Jan Verheggen, co-founder of Klippa Building a startup is hard. Staying in it for almost 10 years is even harder. Doing it with six co-founders—and successfully exiting together? That’s rare. In this episode, I talk to Robert-Jan Verheggen, co-founder of Klippa, a Dutch tech company that recently made a successful exit after nearly a decade of building. He started Klippa with six technical co-founders, and together they navigated the full founder journey: from idea to team formation, through cashflow stress, competing job offers, motivation dips, and finally, to the finish line. Two months ago they sold the business, with the same 6 founders they started with. We talk about his personal journey, how they picked the founding team (or maybe how it picked itself), and the realities of building a company in the Netherlands. In this episode: 💡 How to keep going when you're building with a large founding team 💡 What happens when the money runs out 💡 How to make big decisions—like selling the company—together 💡 And if selling your business is needed to make it all worth it A conversation about founder drive, finding fun in building businesses and what it takes to keep a founding team together.

#22 Poland: Why every founder needs a hobby (Konrad Pawlus)

Entrepreneur #22 out of 100: Konrad Pawlus from Krakow, Poland Konrad Pawlus didn’t grow up with early access to tech: he got his first laptop at 17. But that didn’t stop him from co-founding SALESmanago, one of Europe’s largest and most influential marketing automation platforms, and successfully exiting the company as CTO. As I mentioned in the last episode, I recorded this conversation in Krakow, where I was hosting a congress. I asked around for local founders to meet, and someone recommended Konrad. Her previous boss, she said, had exited his company and now owned a huge Barbie collection. It turned out it was a bit more nuanced than that, but ofcourse I was curious. Twenty-four hours later, we were recording this episode. We talk about the mental load of entrepreneurship and how Konrad found a way to balance that pressure: by collecting LEGO minifigures. In true founder style, he automated the entire process. Eventually, the collection outgrew his house and became a full-blown museum. In this episode, we explore the one thing that helps him step away from the daily intensity of building companies: 💡 Why every founder needs a hobby💡 How stepping away from work can create space for new ideas💡 And why Konrad insists his museums are not businesses (even though they’re run like one) A sharp and personal conversation about focus, energy, and the unexpected benefits of building something just for yourself.

#21 Poland: When and how to pivot (Dominik Swadźba)

Entrepreneur #21 out of 100: Dominik Swadźba from Krakow, Poland As part of my journey to interview 100 entrepreneurs around the world, I recently found myself in Krakow. I was there to host the World News Media Congress, but I never travel without my podcast gear, hoping to meet founders wherever I go. That’s how I met Dominik Swadźba, founder of uPacjenta.pl: a startup that connects patients and nurses for services like at-home blood tests. (And no, this is not a Theranos story. Their success is built on strong links to certified labs.) We talk about his story as an entrepreneur, what it is like to have a dad that is a successful entrepreneur himself, and Dominik’s first ventures. Then we dive into a topic every founder eventually faces: pivoting. Dominik went through several pivots. For example, early on, when he realized that the initial feedback he received from close family and friends might have been too positive, leading him to build the wrong thing. Later, COVID hit, causing a huge external shock that also opened up unexpected opportunities. We discuss: 💡 How do you know it’s time to pivot, especially when something kind of works? 💡 What signals do you listen to? 💡 And how do you bring your team with you? A great conversation about the messy middle, decision-making, and what it's like to have a father who is hard to beat.

#20 France: Building a start-up around a new innovation (Sacha Morard)

Our next guest in episode # 20 of That One Thing: Sacha Morard, co-founder of Edgee. I have said it before: I am a bit hesitant to interview only tech entrepreneurs, as this is the anti-bullshit podcast and well: let’s say tech founders are not always the most humble and realistic entrepreneurs out there. But: am I glad I talked to Sasha. I almost TRIED to get him to brag about his business, but without any success. With Edgee he is not only building an entire new technology, he is doing it scalable and fast: him and his co-founder raised 3 million EUR after being in business for just 6 months.