Latest News

Colourful and cosy AGM

27/6/2017

On 13 June the Dutch Chamber's Annual General Meeting (AGM) was conducted at the unique location "Skroten" on Djurgården; a colourful potpourri of old-fashion boat interior, shipyard craftsmanship and delicious food.

Besides the AGM and a lovely buffet, participants learned about developments in tourism, digitally as well as IRL in Stockholm's vicinity. John Dekker talked about digitalisation offering new opportunities for travellers, called "localhood", a digital map build on your interests. While Pieter Dingemans talked about his very successful entrepreneurial experience in and views on the adventure business in Stockholm region.

The main decision points at the AGM where
- Discharge of the Board
- Change of business year to calendar year as of 1 January 2018
- Discount for members active in the management of the Dutch Chamber
- Budget that includes costs for setting up a Secretariat

You can find the updated Statutes and our Annual Report on our website. Enjoy the reading! And feel free to contact John and Pieter to find out more about their work.

Festival O/Modernt 2017 with a Dutch flavor

17/5/2017

You can buy your tickets here. However, just like earlier years we can offer our members a 20% discount for Festival O/Modernt. Please reach out to us if you like to make use of this offer by mailing to info@dutchchamber.se

Also in 2017 the Festival O/Modernt will be held, one of Europes most innovative festivals, where classical music meets rock! Besides concerts it consists of art exhibitions and lectures to walks in the park' plus much more. This year's theme is Vivaldi and the return.

The festival is at the Ulriksdals Slottsteater Confidencen from 16 to 21 June. There are more than 40 artists of world class but we would like to underline that you can find the Dutch Amstel Saxophone Quartet with DJ Kypski performing on the last concert night.

Check the full program here!

Open Chamber: the value Cultural Diversity

9/4/2017

We look back on a very successful Open Chamber event, with 150 guests from many international chambers who came together on the 30th of march at the Stockholm handelskammaren.

Under excellent guidance of Gigi de Groot and with main speaker Tord Dyrsson we came together to learn about 'the value of Cultural Diversity'.

After the keynote we formed small groups to discuss cultural diversity in our own personal world. It was great to see that many international chambers participated and we will continue to organize these kind of Open Chamber events!

"An inspirational event in many ways! I went home with good energy and new contacts."

The main speaker was Tord Dyrsson, CEO of Ralph Lauren EMEA, who shared his personal and professional experiences as the globetrotter he is. Besides the great personal stories Tord also gave us insight in the global and diverse world of Ralph Lauren.

An amazing annual dinner at Grödan

24/3/2017

As a picture says more than a thousand words, you find a first pick of pictures below and here.

On a beautiful location in the Östermalm area, we celebrated the 10th edition of the yearly annual dinner. To start with, this event was made possible by our sponsors, Samskip van Dieren, Centric, Stjarblom.se (flowers) and Chris from Bojo Studio (photos). Also we would like to mention storyteller Peter Lilliehöök and liveband Stardust for excellent enterntainment!

With approximately 100 guests we enjoyed a tremendous evening with a high quality of wining and dining at Grödan. And not only that, as many of our members and other guests appreciated the location and the music to catch up with each other or even enjoy the dance floor.

The world really starts in Malmö!

19/3/2017

The last even in the south took place in Malmö and was with the theme ‘The world starts in Malmö’ highlighting why the Malmö and Öresund region is great for business. The 15th of March we gathered in the newly opened Studio, a modern building hosting two restaurants, the Malmö branch of Story hotel, offices and the very popular United Spaces where our event was held.

The event was co-hosted by 7 chambers. Speakers for the evening were Joel Eklund, CEO of TePe and Prudence Persson, founder and CEO of Inustry Frontiers. Except for listening to the great speakers this was a great opportunity to check out the facilities of Studio Spaces, a modern co-working space with all the benefits of having ‘your own office’. Our guests were feeling comfortable in venue and enjoyed light refreshments whilst mingling with the Chambers and each other.

Stay tuned for more successful upcoming events in the South!

Partnership with Start Up Stockholm

17/2/2017

In November 2016 Start-Up Stockholm and Dutch Chamber of Commerce in Sweden signed a partnership, that has made public in early February. The objective of the partnership is to provide Start-Up entrepreneurs in Sweden with access to more international network and to assist members of the Dutch Chamber in finding their way to help when starting up their own enterprises.

The Netherlands and Amsterdam in particular are high on the list of leading start-up countries int he world. Due to the supportive business climate and eco-system up 40% of the new jobs are create by Startups in the Netherlands read more.

"We experience an influx of people in our operation with business ideas that have early growth potential and who to want to grow quickly in selected markets. We set up the partnership with the Dutch Chamber to facilitate bringing our customers in contact with a broader international network", says Wadih El-Achkar, CEO Start-Up Stockholm.

"The cooperation with Start-Up Stockholm will help to point the way for our members to the help that is available in Sweden for those starting or wanting to further develop their own business. It will also promote the exchange between two leading start-up countries in Europe" says Maarten Merckx, Chairman of the Dutch Chamber.

It is the intention to run a number of joint activities each year. The first of which was the Kick Start a Start-Up event on the 8th of February, organised together with the French and the Southern African Chamber.

For more info on Start-Up Stockholm services , check www.startupstockholm.se

Kick Start a Start Up - Stockholm

15/2/2017

On Wednesday 8 February we had joint event with the French and Southern African Chamber on the theme of Kick Start a Start Up. Over 75 attendees joined to listen to 3 presentations from Start-Up Stockholm - the largest Start-Up help organisation in Stockholm, with whom the Dutch Chamber signed a partnership on 25th January of this year,

Johanna Pihl business dev mgr at of Start-Up Stockholm gave an overview of the tremendous growth in services of the organisation. With over 4000 consulting contacts the largest in Stockholm and still growing.

An innovation is something new that customers are prepared to pay for. It should be neat and not just nice.

Patrik Lindström senior innovations advisor at Start-Up Stockholm shared thoughts on why it is so important that new businesses are not just nice, but really "neat" and the crucial importance of early market validation.

Sometimes it is just as well that you do not know everything because you would never move

Charlotta Lundin had been thinking about starting her own business for a long time because she really wanted to feel personally associated with her product. But you need to jump and from one thing comes the other. Now running three successful businesses a.o. TheLoft, Addexcite and Businesswomen.se.

Joseph Michael from Invest Stockholm, shared his thoughts on why Stockholm is such a good place to be for Start-Ups. Investors are having Stockholm on their radar, talent is gravitating to the city, the growing international diversity is stimulating innovation. Invest Stockholm is doing what it can to promote this thriving Start-Up eco system.

All in all a stimulating evening. Maybe not with all the answers but certainly with a lot of pointers! And a great networking opportunity. Check the photos to see for yourself . click to view all photos

Malmö celebrates the New Year

6/2/2017

On Friday the 21st of January we invited our members and friends to kick off the new year with two very inspiring speakers at the beautiful Wellness Room in the heart of Malmö.

As we all know, a new year is the opportunity for new challenges and new habits. We seem to be more open for novel ways of doing things and we feel positive about improving ourselves and our lives. Many of us make resolutions about ”a new, healthier me” in the beginning of the year and therefore we wanted to give you knowledge and insights that could help to actually keep those resolutions.

The guest were welcomed with bubbles, small bites and a delicious soup. Under a friendly and lighthearted atmosphere the first speaker, Rick Bjelk, an experienced physiotherapist talked to us about training and nutrition in the new year. Many interesting points were raised, including that the most common mistake is that people don’t align their goals with their current fitness regime.

“It’s simple. Just eat what your mum told you to eat”

Second up to take the stage was Jonathan Bulkeley, who had flown in from New York to share his knowledge on how you can train your brain. Jonathan is the CEO of RealMatch, a leader in online recruitment software in the U.S but also an active investor in the field of neuroscience. The last couple of years he has become a frequent speaker on brain training, mindfulness and meditation. Jonathan gave us some inspiring tips on tools you can use to train the different parts of your brain. By doing simple daily exercises you can improve your memory and emotional abilities for example. For many of us, who can’t remember names of new acquaintances or colleagues or what was on the grocery list we forgot at home, this was very positive news. Jonathan suggested that we should try the app MyBrainSolutions to see how easy it actually is to up the speed of our brain and think more positively.

These presentations opened up for very energetic and hopeful discussions among our guests. We all shared stories and views and got the opportunity to ask questions to the speakers.

All in all, it was a lovely evening to light up the otherwise quite dark January. We all left with new connections and knowledge that will help us make 2017 a great year!

Join us skating for a good cause

22/1/2017

The Dutch Chamber proudly introduces Skate4AIR, a Dutch fund-raiser for children with Cystic Fibrosis! Skate4AIR organises an ice skating challenge for the first time in Sweden, called the Skate4AIR Daylight Challenge. Together we have a put together a unique package for members and followers of the Dutch Chamber.

What is the Skate4AIR Daylight Challenge?
Are you looking for a (new) sporting challenge, you want a real battle against nature's elements and yourself, then this is your chance! Register for this skating experience on Saturday 11 February on Lake Runn.

Read more about this challenge, the organisation and the good cause at the website https://www.skate4air.nl/information-participants-daylight-challenge
and https://www.skate4air.nl/bestemming-opbrengst?locale=en.

Venue
The Skate4AIR Daylight Challenge will take place at the Runn Lake near Falun. Base camp is Framby Udde Resort: www.frambyudde.com.

Fun Program, Saturday 11 February
07.30 Departure to the start skating with the group
07.49 Sunset: Start of the Daylight Challenge
16.35 Sundown: Finish of the Daylight Challenge
19.00 Dinner at Framby Udde
21: 00 After-party at Framby Udde starts

This fun-day program includes registration for the challenge, time registration, arrangement on the ice (food & drinks), skating instructors, preparation of the ice, medical service, a medal and dinner (excluding drinks).
Costs: €95 per person. It is voluntarily to donate an amount to Skate4AIR for the research for Cystic Fibrosis
Option: It is possible to stay at the accommodation Framby Udde on Friday and/or Saturday: €67,50 per person a night (half board).
Register here: https://skate4air.typeform.com/to/cSsm5f

Donation Program, Friday 10 - Sunday 12 February
This program includes the same as the Fun Program supplemented with a Skate4AIR hoodie, participation in the winter activities on Sunday, accommodation for 2 nights (based on half board) at Framby Udde.
Costs: €375 per person. You also participate in the fund-raising for Skate4AIR. (https://www.skate4air.nl/evenement/skate4air-challenge/acties). For more details on this package or other questions concerning this event, please contact project leader Daniëlle Mouissie via challenge@skate4air.nl .

Our first get together in 2017 at the Embassy

22/1/2017

Thursday 11 January Ambassador of the Netherlands to Sweden, Mrs. Ines Coppoolse opened very kindly the door of the Netherlands Embassy for a private tour in combination with the Dutch Chambers traditional New Years Social Event.

We started off with a warm welcome with home-made oliebollen to all present members by the board and chairman Maarten Merckx. In a nicely put- together film with all activities of the Dutch Chamber in Stockholm, Göteborg and Malmö, Maarten thanked the board members for all their efforts to make this all possible and to encourage members to use the Dutch Chamber as a unique networking platform.

Frank Schipper, Public Diplomacy officer at the Royal Netherlands Embassy then gave us a very interesting speech about the history of the building. After the speech we got a private tour at the Ambassadors Residence.

Together with Ambassador Ines Coppoolse all participants toasted on an exciting year ahead. Ambassador Coppoolse hinted in a speech to the challenges and the priorities for the Netherlands Government and Embassy for the coming year .

The Dutch Chamber of Commerce thanked the Ambassador for the always very kind facilitation of several events and the very kind cooperation over the years with all working at the Embassy.

Marjorie Claushuis & Els Berkers

Photography - Chris Jonkers, Studio Bojom