Undiemeister is often asked how it is possible that two former bamboo underwear rivals started working together. It is high time for an explanation, but first a little history and background. Quite an exciting story!
In 2011, Rik Vegter (former lawyer) decided that it would be nice to “do something” with tangible products, instead of intangible legal advice. Something you can hold on to, something tangible. With his brother, who was already an online merchant at the time, he wrote a list of what requirements those products should meet. Sustainability was at the top, immediately followed by quality. And of course a product that is always in demand, so a large market. Bamboo textiles, which Rik had already encountered in China, stood head and shoulders above everything else at the time.
No sooner said than done and without being hindered by any knowledge, but with great enthusiasm, Greendaddy was started. Even without capital and without stock, but with a lot of guts. Stock was bought with money from orders. Customers had to wait a while, but that was no problem at all. After two years, money was needed to continue the company and it was raised through crowdfunding in record time.
While Rik, who had meanwhile bought out his brother, was still very much a pioneer, convincing the consumer of all the benefits of bamboo, new parties hatched plans to follow the bamboo initiative. One of those parties was Bamigo.
Bamigo was looking for an entrepreneur with guts, e-commerce knowledge, and experience to set up the company as CEO. The company had to be established on a large scale by someone who was willing to get stuck in and start from scratch as a real entrepreneur. Jeroen, who had already proved in a short time that he could scale up a business quickly, was the ideal candidate. No sooner said than done.
At the time, Rik was happy that new providers such as Bamigo made their appearance because now bamboo textiles were becoming a real market. With real competition and everything that goes with it. It was inevitable that sooner or later the two would cross paths. One had the market, the other wanted it. At the time, there were some intense conversations between the two. The competition was getting tougher, perhaps not something you expect from people who share each other's ideals. And more competitors popped up in the meantime. Actually, only Google benefited from that. Everyone must have noticed the boom in TV ads.
Fast forward to 2019. Jeroen Adriaans left Bamigo in the summer of 2018 in search of a new challenge. Jeroen's first child was on the way and other things just became more important. Moreover, Jeroen increasingly began to doubt whether bamboo and especially bamboo viscose, was really that sustainable.
That doubt had also struck Rik Vegter. Although bamboo was a good step forward compared to conventional cotton, there was definitely room for improvement. Both in quality and in sustainability. Rik wanted to take that step, with a new fabric and a new brand. On to 2.0. And who better to market a new brand than Jeroen? So Rik contacted Jeroen Adriaans (to his great surprise), and the conversations between the two went well. The rest, as they say, is history.
The two former rivals joined forces and Undiemeister was born. Jeroen as an idealist and Rik as an experienced pioneer, complement each other perfectly and now combine almost 20 years of experience in the market of premium and sustainable textiles. A better combination is practically unthinkable.
Birds of a feather flock together, or do they? Jeroen and Rik share the same passion for entrepreneurship, sustainability, and premium quality. Both believe in better and sustainable articles, without compromising. In fact, with Mellowood®️, Undiemeister has a fabric that has raised the bar on both quality and sustainability, with major advantages over bamboo.
So for anyone wondering how rivals get together, the answer is easier than you think. Putting egos aside and finding each other in a common goal and shared passion.
It is really that simple!