Access to the Tuesday Breakfast network for service providers
The Tuesday Breakfasts are designed for executive and operational leaders from international manufacturing companies with a presence in Flanders. To maintain the quality of exchange, participation is limited. The number of consultants, service providers, and advisory profiles in the room is intentionally kept low. Access is possible under three conditions: This structure ensures that the…
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Tuesday events are back
This time in Ghent, Belgium. Over breakfast. Live broadcast across Europe.For a limited group of executive and operational managers in international manufacturing companies, as well as selected institutional stakeholders and professional investors. Three focused sessions: Tu 29/4 — Back to Europe. End of “made in China”? with keynotes from the industrial procurement of the LEGO…
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Many talk about a European tech stack. We are going to build it.
Discussions around reducing dependency on non-European technology have intensified. Most remain at the level of positioning, policy, or isolated initiatives. The approach here is execution through capital allocation. An investment vehicle is being prepared to support the construction of a European technology stack, covering the full chain from foundational layers to applications: The strategy is…
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Askend and ImpactBuilders join forces to bring Estonian e-government excellence to Flanders
Tallinn / Ghent — Estonia’s leading e-government IT services provider, Askend, is expanding its reach into the heart of the European Blue Banana region — Flanders. To establish its presence in Belgium’s most digital-minded region, Askend partners with ImpactBuilders Industry, leveraging the network and 30 years of experience of its founder Jan Lagast. Through this…
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Continuing the partnership with the Ukrainian Embassy in Estonia
On 14 October, Jan Lagast visited the Embassy of Ukraine in Tallinn to continue the partnership initiated with Ambassador H.E. Maksym Kononenko and now carried forward by Ambassador H.E. Volodymyr Boiechko. The partnership strengthens business collaboration between Ukrainian and European companies. The Embassy will share business partner deals with ImpactBuilders, and ImpactBuilders will try and…
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Built in Europe, for Europe — our core initiatives’ common cause
Europe is too dependent on other continents — for capital and for goods. The classic angel-to-VC chain sells out promising NewCos, while global supply chains for basics like food, clothing, and housing remain fragile. Our answer: keep ownership and value creation in Europe and localise a larger share of critical supply chains on our continent.…
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Constructive meeting with the new Belgian Ambassador in Finland and Estonia
Last Friday, we had the pleasure of meeting the new Belgian ambassador for Finland and Estonia, Karel Tousseyn, in Tallinn for an introductory meeting. With Finland growing in international relevance, and Estonia playing an increasingly strategic role in Europe’s economic and digital fabric, it’s valuable to have a direct and constructive connection with our Belgian…
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European Lingerie Group and the search for a hybrid retail model
Indrek Rahumaa, founder of the European Lingerie Group (ELG), is preparing the group for a substantial investment round as a step toward a future listing on the London Stock Exchange. Across Europe, lingerie producers face the same challenge: online sales remain difficult, and many retail stores struggle to stay financially stable. ELG needed a way…
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Let’s unite Europe through business and art
The Uku Art Festival in Tallinn brings together the wartime work of forty contemporary Ukrainian artists, exhibited simultaneously across seven museums in and around the Estonian capital. ImpactBuilders proudly supports this initiative led by the Ukrainian Ambassador, Maksym Kononenko. The festival resonates with our shared belief in uniting Europe through the powerful channels of business…
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At the Rotary Club Tallinn Global about the future of Europe
The English-speaking Rotary Club “Tallinn Global” received the Tallinn City Chapter of the ImpactBuilders Foundation on one of their club meetings. Attendants were from Norway, the UK, Belgium, Estonia, Switzerland, and Lithuania. Our founder Jan Lagast inspired them with a speech about the future of Europe. “It is high time that we become less dependent…
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Three solutions and two initiatives for a more resilient Europe
Europe needs its own tech scene, a more integrated continent-wide supply chain, and a Europe-rooted capital market. That’s what we believe at ImpactBuilders. Our role in this is modest but constructive. With two initiatives, we support the foundation of a more self-reliant Europe. From what we’ve seen in the mainstream media, a lot of European…
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Inspiring MBA students at Taltech Business School
Last week, 30 MBA students of Taltech School of Business and Governance got inspired by Federico Pirola and Jan Lagast. Federico is the guest lecturer of the course “Business Internationalisation”. He asked Jan to join in one afternoon, and bring several stories from his more than 30 years of experience in doing business internationally. Jan…
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The ImpactBuilders Universe is ready for the European business community
Five years after the first ideas were sketched, the ImpactBuilders Universe is now ready for its cause to change how European businesses are designed and managed. We want businesses to thrive, to connect across Europe, and to bring joy to clients, collaborators, and everyone who is impacted by their activities. The first ideas were sketched in November 2019, just 5…
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Creating a new horizon for the French online retailer Dessus-Dessous
Dessus-Dessous, a subsidiary of the Baltic industrial holding European Lingerie Group (ELG), had been through several management changes in a short period. By the time former ELG CEO Neeme Jõgi asked ImpactBuilders’ Steven Storms to take a temporary management mandate, both the team and the investors had lost confidence. The company was close to bankruptcy,…
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Balti Logistika and the rise of MyDello
When Balti Logistika created its digital freight platform MyDello, the idea was clear: offer a modern way for clients to manage their shipments online. Over time, the app grew, the logistics business grew, and both became tightly connected in daily operations. The team worked hard on both fronts, but something kept slowing the digital venture…
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Similar dreams can bridge fundamental differences and … connect two different worlds
Re-story and ImpactBuilders both understand businesses are an important actor in our journeys to create impact. However, our approaches are fundamentally different. Nevertheless, since we have similar dreams, we do feel connected and get inspired by the other party’s approach and activities. A few years ago, Mischa Verheyden (l) and Geert Degrande came over…
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