” A hands-on approach works best for me! “

I was born in Rotterdam, but moved at a young age from the Dutch west coast to Enschede in the east, near the German border. There I grew up and finished high school, and moved to the far north to study Law at the University of Groningen.

I didn’t find Law as interesting as I’d expected. My favourite memory from Groningen was the time I spent as the women’s eight coxswain for the student rowing organisation Aegir. Instead, I went on to study Hotel Management in Maastricht, where I acquired a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Hotel Management in 1983.

From then until 1986, I held different positions in the Dutch hotel Industry, including F&B Controller at the renowned five-star L’Europe hotel in Amsterdam. But as I saw the dawning of the digital age, I wondered if this new up and coming industry might offer an even brighter future. I took on a management assistant position in the Dutch subsidiary of the US-based Gould Electronics.

Within a year, I had the opportunity to move to the North European headquarters of the rapidly growing Texas-based company Convex Computer Systems. I began working there as office manager, and left in 1994 as Marketing Communications Manager.

I then entered the venture capital world, working for Triangle Holding, where – often acting as second-in-command – I had the chance to develop my management capabilities at even higher levels. From the venture capital industry it was a short step in 1997 to the world of international real estate.

This sector proved to be the perfect match for my personal interests and the 14 years of business experience I had acquired by then. In 2001-2002, I expanded my professional skill-set by following a postdoctoral Brand Management course led by Dutch branding and business development expert Roland van Kralingen. The insights I received into the value and impact of a brand on a company’s profitability and continuity were crucial in the successful development of the La Perla story.

Since the collapse of the real estate market in the economic crash, I remain available for branding projects in that sector and others, but my interests and focus have shifted in brand new directions.

Since 2013, I’ve been based in Cardiff, United Kingdom, from where I began developing and initiating my current projects. In 2014, I established Artemis Global Art as an export platform for Dutch Modern Art.

I also began seriously following my long-term interest in Reiki and acquired my Master-Teacher certification in 2017. In 2018, I completed the first year of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

HandsonFirst Ltd. was also formed this year as an umbrella under which I can offer my expertise and collaboration in all the areas of interest to me.