"Entrepreneurship is a key part of my life. As far back as I can remember, from my early schooldays, I was wheeling and dealing, trying to trade and 'do business".
Jeroen Schothorst, Chief Executive Officer
Entrepreneurship is a key part of my life. As far back as I can remember, from my early schooldays, I was wheeling and dealing, trying to trade and 'do business'. After a fairly tumultuous time at high school and a 16-month stint as a sports instructor in the Royal Netherlands Army, in 1982 I studied economics for a few months at the UVA (Amsterdam). I soon realized that this was not my calling: in the autumn of 1982 Ben and I started our own company (Cofex) and built the brand Bad Boys into a leading fashion brand with big success in Western Europe. Since then I've always been an entrepreneur.
After Cofex was sold to an English listed company, in 1992 we set up the Emergo Fashion Group BV and acquired the distribution rights to the McGregor brand in Europe. This was how the foundations of our present-day company were laid. Right from the start, the business has been all about growth and progress. "There is no reason to set a limit on our ambitions" has been our motto since day one.
In recent years I've been less involved in the daily, operational running of the business: that's the job of the – largely independent – management teams within our various business units. I mainly focus on strategic choices and opportunities! And also coaching, encouraging and inspiring our management. I travel a lot, spreading my net wide, and this way try to keep a good handle on what's happening in the world, and in fashion, and how it affects our company and our brands.
What moves and motivates me most is the tremendous passion and energy I see in our staff. I'm surrounded by many talented managers, every one of them expert in their field, developing at an incredibly fast pace and, much to my satisfaction, able to take on more and more responsibility. It's a joy to see this group of driven and enthusiastic fashion professionals building upon our success together. I feel privileged to be able to lead them.
For me there is no clear border between my private and business life. I am an entrepreneur 24 hours a day and always watchful for chances and opportunities for our business. Nevertheless, I also spend a lot of time with my family –my wife and 3 boys- and enjoy this very much.
