Martin Navne & Kristoffer Degn
Knowledge is the most important thing in a company
Martin Navne and Kristoffer Degn are the strong team behind Custimy, which has reached a great milestone in the first half of 2021. Martin was responsible for the idea behind Custimy, way back in 2017 an idea began to take shape, he could see a gap in the market , a gap that over the next few years, no one filled. A lot has happened in technology and therefore it has also been possible to develop Custimy. After a thorough investigation of the market, the technology and the possibilities, Martin took hold of Kristoffer, who at the time was marketing director and had extensive knowledge of the E-Commerce market. After Martin had pitched the idea to him and he had read the 300-400 pages of material Martin had prepared over the years, he couldn't be more than in love with the idea. All the initial work resulted in them founding Custimy on 10 July 2021.
Martin and Kristoffer did not have a definite dream of becoming entrepreneurs, it came quite naturally to them. What drove them to start the company Custimy was their ambition to make a difference. And then they both think that technology is absolutely fantastic. Both have tried the start-up life before, so it wasn't the first time they were driven by this journey. "We love to take the initiative and remove the ceiling for what we can achieve. There is a big shortage on the market, so of course we are also driven by that.”
Custimy delivers a full cloud solution in the form of their Customer Data Platform. It analyzes and systematizes E-commerce companies' customer data, so that the company has the insights to create better customer experiences. It is a tool that large companies make use of, but which the small companies did not have access to until now. Custimy ensures that the large companies do not outcompete the small ones. "We create business equality between large and small companies", therefore Custimy is also among the most accessible CDP platforms in the EU in this area. "We standardize very complex software so that the smaller companies don't just make decisions based on their gut feeling." Custimy helps to centralize and gather all the company's customer, product and marketing data in one place. This creates a far more representative picture of one's business. Google Analytics is only the tip of the iceberg of data, you need more than just that to create the best customer experience.
A big milestone
One of the major milestones in the software industry is getting funding. "Creating software requires a lot of money." But Martin and Kristoffer's business idea hits the spot, they solve a need that has resulted in them getting 1.4 million dollars, despite the fact that they have only been in business for 10-11 months. "It creates confidence in the journey and the team, while at the same time you get assurance that you are on the right track when there is someone who wants to invest money in us."
They have created a strong management team, "it is a solid foundation." Going forward, there are ambitions that Custimy will be all over the world, there are already the first customers outside the Danish borders as well.
Good advice from the team behind Custimy
It is not a good idea to do business solely based on something you like, you will have to have other parameters in mind. Of course you have to love and be passionate about what you do, but you also have to look into whether there is a need for your business idea, otherwise the life of the company will not last long. In addition, you must also consider that the market is constantly changing, so your business idea must be adjusted accordingly.
"The passion must match the market."
"You have to figure out how much you want this." It's hard to be an entrepreneur, that's why the team behind Custimy says that you need good support from your private life, for that you need an external network – Startup Central, professionals, consultants, the team in the company. "It's about putting the right knowledge into play."
You must have self-awareness and be able to say to yourself that it is not in that area of the company that you must put your efforts and focus. You must spend your energy on what you are good at, other areas you must consult. To begin with, you wear all the hats, but you have to look at what is most urgent and where you have to put in and which areas you have to leave to others. If you don't do that, you end up doing 10 things at once, but each thing only gets 10% of your time, Martin and Kristoffer say.
Their quote from Albert Einstein originates from there: "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." It's about adaptation. The quote falls into a good synergy with Custimy.
"You have to bring in people who have good knowledge. People give good advice and many are willing to help for free. You must not underestimate the trainees, the top do not always have the right knowledge. Getting a different set of eyes on a situation is healthy. Innovation rarely comes only from the top.”
Startup Central has helped Martin and Kristoffer with
The team behind Custimy talked a lot with Anders from Startup Central, "he has great energy". What they have used most as members of Startup Central is the knowledge part. They have used networks to acquire a lot of knowledge which they could take further in their company. "Startup Central is a facilitator - a direct entry point to knowledge."
Martin and Kristoffer say that if they were to start a new initiative, they had it at hand. In addition, they could have used even more of what Startup Central offers.
There is a good synergy between Startup Central and Custimy. Startup Central helps the self-employed and entrepreneurs live out their entrepreneurial dream. Custimy helps these entrepreneurs look at their data, thereby creating better customer experiences and thus getting satisfied customers.
Follow Martins & Kristoffer's entrepreneurial journey
If you also want to follow Custimy's fantastic journey and are curious about what the next big milestone is for them, you can follow along on their website, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn
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