wouter van der kolk & maarten vrouenraets
The Vitamin Pioneers
There is no doubt that Wouter van der Kolk and Maarten Vrouenraets are hard-working men with a passion for their entrepreneurial journey. The young gummy vitamin brand they are growing, YOUVIT, was incubated by a tight-knit team of driven entrepreneurs and has brought a unique line of premium-quality vitamin gummies to market in 2017. Its latest creation is YOUVIT Collagen, a gummy focussed on skincare, developed in collaboration with Erha Skincare, Indonesia’s leading skincare clinic chain. YOUVIT’s products are currently available at nearly 20,000 stores across 130 cities in Indonesia, with the brand planning to expand across three other Southeast Asian markets by this semester.
As Co-founder and COO, Maarten has built YOUVIT’s sales and distribution capability from scratch, while immersing himself in all other aspects of the business when required. A system engineer by training, he shares how the entrepreneurial path has been paved with countless rewarding achievements and challenging obstacles. “I have experienced first-hand how working together with a driven founding team has been instrumental in overcoming both personal and professional challenges. Building out the daily routine of problem solving into a collaboration with a wide range of inspiring partners, a core team of 45 passionate millennials and numerous sales representatives and merchandisers, I have been impressed by the resilience of the Indonesian society. Showing a tremendous drive to perceive sticky problems as opportunities for personal and professional growth.”
This is certainly a notion shared by Wouter. As Co-founder and CEO, Wouter’s biggest role lies in building an effective, ambitious and highly motivated team, that currently consists for over 60 percent of female millennials. He does so by creating the right organisational structure, hiring talented people, building a strong culture and setting the team up for success through structured goal setting tools and performance tracking. “This has resulted in a highly effective team, that is making waves in the consumer health segment, while staying ahead of the competition,” elaborates Wouter. “Supported by our experienced Indonesian partners such as Diono Nurjadin, Commissioner and Founder of Cardig Aero Services, and Daniel Budiman, Co-founder and Co-managing Partner of Mahanusa Capital, I am proud of growing YOUVIT from just an idea into a fast-growing consumer health business, while leading a passionate team of millennials across multiple cities, who all wish to create Emerging Asia’s leading vitamin brand.”
Wouter shares how the strength and health of relationships with stakeholders, partners, and people that can inspire and help, is often the key determinant of success. “In Indonesia, I learned to invest time in building and nurturing relationships. Reaching out pro-actively to people, helping others without expecting anything in return, and trusting that if you give, eventually karma will catch up with you and doors will open that you didn’t even realise were there,” he asserts. “Coming from the Netherlands, where the business climate is less personal, and having an analytical mindset and introverted personality, it took some time before this point really hit home and I had incorporated it as part of my routine. But now that I have, I can hardly image how I could be effective without it.”
On the topic of building business relationships, Maarten emphasizes a win-win approach. “Growing a business is not about getting more out of your own hands, but empowering others to get more out of their hands,” he says. “Business relationships are about truly taking care of the interest of partners and be willing to make a deposit in their emotional bank account, before you make any withdrawals. I had to learn how to thoroughly understand the needs of others, while being open to selfless support in order to foster the achievement of their goals.”
Looking ahead, Maarten wants YOUVIT to contribute to unlocking the potential of Indonesia’s 85 million millennials through premium quality nutrition with natural ingredients that is accessible to all. “In the years to come this next generation will lead the nation and guide the younger generations about what it means to live a wholesome life,” he shares. “A wholesome life that I hope will embrace an active and healthy lifestyle as an enabler for happiness and success. With the recent cycling trend in Jakarta and more and more healthy food places popping up, I have great confidence society is step by step moving into the direction of considering health as it’s true wealth.”
Further reinforcing their point, Wouter shares his hope of educating people about the importance of daily vitamin intake. “The average diet unfortunately lacks many of the essential nutrients the body needs. These deficiencies hamper healthy growth and development of kids, while affecting immunity, energy levels and longevity at all ages. It’s is holding this generation back from achieving their goals in life.” he points out.
“We are here to turn this around and help millennials and their families achieve their goals by supporting a healthy, active lifestyle. This generation wants to pursue their personal aspirations, while also enjoying time with the people they care about. With health as a fundament, we believe they can make this happen and, for example, be both a successful entrepreneur and a great mom at the same time, or both a corporate career tiger and someone that cares for the local community. In other words, both express their personality and fit in.”
“It’s very fulfilling to see how far we have come, and to imagine that millions of families are healthier and happier thanks to our products. I’m proud to be building a company with a real purpose that can help this beautiful nation thrive. In the next five to ten years, I hope to see an Indonesia that embraced a healthy lifestyle and thrives like never before.”