“The experience with the program has been way above our expectations. We received good quality training at the boot camp, valuable feedback from the juries, and vital support from the network of PYS. The team of PYS truly does care about the entrepreneurs.”
— Pranav Tetali, Founder of startup Omni Wind, winner PYS Haarlem 2021
“PYS was a wonderful learning path towards entrepreneurship. They prepare you to present the perfect pitch with confidence.”
— Tymo Berger, Co-founder of LIMEG, winner of the Public Choice Award Haarlem 2021
“PYS brought me focus and provided a stage for Movely to share with a relevant audience.”
“I think PYS gives a great opportunity for startups to learn a very important skill of pitching their idea. We are planning to take the skills we learned throughout PYS and take our startup to a new level!”
“Starting in a hotel room, just before the lockdown there were big dreams of launching our company. Now, the perspective has changed but winning this competition has taught us so much that we are confident we can look for a brighter future. For every other startup out there, a program like Present Your Startup really helps you understand what you are lacking to succeed”.”
— Daniel van Drunen, Winner of Present Your Startup Alkmaar 2020
“Present Your Startup helped me to clarify my story. Not just to be able to explain it better to investors. Also to understand better what a fantastic adventure we have ended up being as a startup. PYS is almost a precondition for success as a startup”.”
— Maarten Strootman, founder and CEO of Pepperfield, winner of the Public Choice prize PYS Alkmaar 2020
“Pitchen in 3 minuten om een investeerder te overtuigen was een grote uitdaging, en het beste wat ik ooit heb geleerd om mijn business op te schalen”.”
— Selima Ajaoun, Founder and Creative Director of Aleeza, finalist PYS Alkmaar 2020
“Present Your Startup: professionele ondersteuning bij het opzetten van het businessplan en de 3 minuten-pitch. Steile leercurve gedurende het gehele traject en een super gezellig team. Een unieke combinatie en een echte aanrader”.”
— Sander van Doorn, founder of Circuvorm, finalist PYS Alkmaar 2020
“Present Your Startup has given DeMonth a platform and equipment to grow. The program really invests in you and now DeMonth’s future is brighter than ever before!”.”
— Gideon Boadu co-founder of DeMonth, finalist PYS Alkmaar 2020
“Extremely proud to have won the Present Your Startup competition! I’ve spent years coaching thousands of people to bring their story and impact to the world - now it was my turn to take the stage and experience the same as my clients. big thanks to Valerie Vallenduuk and her team for building up the program over the years”.”
— David Beckett, Winner of PYS The Netherlands 2019
“Looking back on the past 3 months I have gained experience, contacts, and a lot of knowledge. PYS has created new adventures and opens new doors. It has put me and my team through a focused flow and has accelerated everything. PYS has created a sub-community and supported all participants day and night. It was a blessing to be part of the program”.”
— Philip Schemmekes, co-founder of Triple Threat and Winner of the Public Choice Award PYS Haarlem 2019
“The PYS program has been incredibly beneficial in finetuning my product and go to market strategy, providing feedback on all aspects”.”
— Desiree Bos, founder of Tickete, finalist PYS Haarlem 2019
“Present your startup provides valuable skills and networks to help you move further in your entrepreneurial journey. The program gave me the right tools to feel confident and comfortable on stage. Winning was the goal, but I learned so much along the way”.”
— Jake Raijmann, founder of GlamPop, finalist PYS Haarlem 2019
“PYS is a very valuable program and experience. It has exceeded all my expectations. With the training, guidance, and all-new relevant contacts it brought me, PYS has given me the best support for taking my start-up to the next level!”.”
— Maike van den Brand, founder of Bubbles Bodycare, finalist PYS Haarlem 2019
“You do not only grow your network with other startups, but also with companies and investors if you participate in Present Your Startup!”.”
— Tim van Pappelendam, CEO Maester, Winner PYS 2017
“You must be crazy if you do not participate in Present Your Startup. Valerie and her team have put together a great concept: present your startup! Not only are startups brought into contact with investors, but the guidance, training, network from trainers helps startup prepare better and it gives the startup more knowledge about positioning, financing and stage performance. I got to know Valerie passionated about her activities and involved with you and your startup. An example of this is the introductions to potential customers or network partners! Every startup - even though you are further in the process than just an ‘idea’ - is wise to see what Present Your Startup can mean for you as a company together with Valerie and her team”.”
— Tjalke de Jong, Founder NIGW, finalist PYS 2016
“Because of Present Your Startup I got the story of Waterly sharp. Different doors opened that would otherwise remain closed for me”.”
“Joining Present your Startup was for me participating a competition. At least that’s what I thought. It turned out to be much more than that and during the one-year course I learned a lot more than you could ever learn from a book. ”
— Ralph de Groot, CEO Restoranto, Finalist PYS 2016
“Of course, we went to win, but especially for a pattern of progress, that you continue. Every meeting at Haarlemvalley (old name Present Your Startup) ensured that we took action on company structure, on the product, on our view on funding. That has taken us big steps forward.”
— Willemijn Schneyder, CEO Swipeguide. finalist PYS 2016
“What Present Your Startup means to me? It is a really cool community of young entrepreneurs who work hard together to create something beautiful.”
“Present Your Startup was a very nice experience. We were working on the second round of financing and still we learned a lot of new things from Present Your Startup. They helped us on our way to properly finance for the second time.”
— August de Vocht, NoFoodWasted, Winnaar PYS 2016
“Actually, during Present Your Startup I felt very comfortable, but also challenged and inspired and that’s how I started working, with new energy on my startup.”
