“Diversity in the community creates wonder and innovation”: an interview with Dènis Assen of Growing Emmen

By Redmar Bosma

“The strength of Growing Emmen is the entrepreneurial neighborhood, which includes a diverse group of people”, states Dènis Assen (43 ), who founded the start-up incubator in 2018 together with his partner Alya. “We have actually dedicated partners, such as the town, NHL Stenden and the province and now have more than 150 members, mainly business owners. A few of them take their first cautious steps towards entrepreneurship as members, while others are already really knowledgeable and looking for a fresh viewpoint. The product we sell, therefore, is a meeting. Diversity in the neighborhood creates wonder and development, and a new company is developed in no time.”

Complete service- consisting of an app

Growing Emmen also provides physical space for entrepreneurship, with numerous conference rooms within which occasions, master classes and workshops are arranged. There are also 27 office and twenty ‘flex desks’. And, usually, they are all full, says Assen.

“We transferred to the Parallelweg in July to broaden our space, and we might have to move again after a while! Last week we received 8 brand-new registrations, and I am very delighted with how things are going”, states Assen.

“Organizing training and courses is now canceled due to the Coronavirus, however luckily office leasing is still working out. Business owners discover it good and safe to have their own place”, he states.

The business has likewise presented an app, states Assen. “It consists of a great deal of info about our members. If you have an idea, you can toss it in, which can produce a so-called “Growing Circle”. This is a group of individuals who have an affinity with the same subject and can talk about it with each other. This is how new plans occur. “

Using contacts

“Prior to I started Growing Emmen, I worked as a regional marketeer for the Emmen region, to name a few things. It is likewise about linking, bringing celebrations together and strengthening each other. Similar to we do here. I worked as a freelancer for a while. That was really extensive and you constantly work for somebody else “, says Assen.

Assen was influenced to begin Growing Emmen after attending a theatre performance. “I soon realized that it is very tough work. My other half and I often work 6 days a week. However it’s a lot of fun to do, so it definitely pays off”, he says.

If Assen were to utilize his own company as a standard, he believes that international business in and around Emmen will continue to get. “We are getting more and more business owners and students from abroad to join us. They frequently attend our events, which remain in Dutch. So it appeared more practical to us to arrange an international day, the last Thursday of the month, on which students, business owners and specialists are provided a phase. The working language will then be English. By doing this they are familiar with each other much better and feel at house here.”

Image: Dénis and Alya Assen courtesy of Growing Emmen.