A year after its launch, Dutch innovation program Sport eXperience has found some initial success in helping guide sports startups and early-stage companies at the intersection of sports and technology. In the past year, the organization has held three separate workshops for young entrepreneurs as they look to refine their product or company, develop a clear business strategy and connect with a wider network of industry professionals.
Led by Founder Arno Hermans, the Eindhoven-based Sport eXperience has worked with a number of companies over the past 12 months including Icebyk and Idrættens Analyseinstitut, a Danish independent non-profit founded by the government to monitor sports trends, in addition to startup FreeSense Solutions, which is developing a sensor to measure the pressure on horse reins.
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“The workshops and coaching at Sport eXperience helped us define a focussed approach and to choose for working with a launching customer,” FreeSense Solutions CEO Alex Serrarens said. “Moreover, we gained more focus in our communication.”
Added Henrik Brandt, Director of Idrættens Analyseinstitut: “We discovered a gap between trends in sports in the field of participation, social inclusion and health on the one hand and business on the other hand. Then, we bumped into this specific program for innovators in sports. Sport eXperience helps us gain inside in the business side of sports and shows us how to stimulate entrepreneurship in the field of sports. We are currently in the Netherlands on a study trip to see examples of sports innovations.”
As 2017 approaches, Sport eXperience hopes to build an even bigger global sports community and impact dozens of other early startups looking to break into the sports world. On Feb. 3, the innovation hub will also host a day-long conference titled Entrepreneurs Determine the Future of Sports and will bring togethers speakers from companies like Under Armour, TomTom Sports and the Sports and Fitness Industry Association, among others.