Frontiers are constantly being pushed at Simplitude, and new innovations in digitalization are now waiting to be launched internationally.
- We got off to a good start and that was largely thanks to Dalarna Science Park," says a proud CEO Fredrik Hoel.
Much has already been written about the Borlänge company Simplitude's journey from a small, tentative start-up (which entered the incubator in 2019) to today's greatness "in a larger, growing suit" with interest from more and more customers, both in Sweden and abroad. The six founders certainly had a large experience base behind them when they joined the company together, but there were still many concerns when a direction for the future had to be identified.
- This is often the case at the beginning of a business journey. There is a great need to figure out how to work together and make wise decisions. Our motto from the beginning was 'doing the right things' rather than 'doing things just right', there is a big difference. You lose momentum if everything is done perfectly from the start. We needed to get started. This can be the most difficult challenge in digitalization, to take a long-term view, make decisions for our customers and prioritize the crucial aspect of doing "the right things". But we've gotten good at it, and gained the trust of the market.
Looking back today, Fredrik is quick to pay tribute to those who have contributed to the success in various ways.
- We had Jörgen Bond at Dalarna Science Park as a coach in the incubator during the first years. We were very surprised that that height existed in Dalarna. He coached at the level we needed, it was fantastic. This is a big reason why we actually dared to believe in ourselves and also make large, absolutely necessary investments.
A strategic innovation partner
Summarizing Simplitude's business idea can be done in different ways, the traditional one is to talk about a consulting team that packages offers in business development and digitization, but also in brands and design
- We are a "one stop shop" today, with everything under the same roof, it is unique with all the different skills that give us the ability and power to implement strategic creativity in a profitable way for the customer. It's management consultants in Italian suits and backslicks mixed with developers in Star Wars-tisha and designers in fashionable outfits, three companies in one, you could say, where we thrive incredibly well together. It is important to always be responsive and let each other in, it is the different approaches that drive us forward. Something that characterizes us is that we are constantly looking for the holes in the market, and when we identify them, we try to find solutions for them together.
The latest example has generated a new subsidiary that is expected to have an enterprise value of one billion within three years. Here too, Dalarna Science Park has been involved, albeit on a smaller scale than in the company's start-up phase.
- It's a platform for padel and tennis where we have gathered everything that you otherwise need lots of apps to manage, such as booking, points, loyalty and much more. The platform will make everything much easier for both padel hall owners and users.
The innovation is called "Court 22" and was released on the market on December 1, and according to Fredrik, it will have a tangible echo in the padel world, as it is an example of what characterizes Simplitude in general, that is, "several solutions in one".
- Already now we know several hundred facilities that will join in 2023 and we have found very good investors and sellers. In Sweden alone, there are half a million people who regularly play padel and 5,800,000 hours of playing time were booked in Sweden alone last year. Now we are taking this global where the big market is and I am overwhelmed by how big this can become.
And the company is not only growing in height and business ideas, they continue to grow organically as well.
- Despite the pandemic and recession, we have gone from nine to 21 employees, and beyond the New Year we are growing with offices in both Stockholm and Örebro. Despite the economy, we have many and stable assignments, it works because we are so broad and become niched thanks to that. And we have several business ideas of our own that we are quite ready with, which we will soon see if they take off. It is also important to us that we do something for the environment, that people and our planet feel better, and we usually link our digital movements to the 2030 Agenda goals.
Fredrik is aware that other start-up companies in the county are looking at Simplitude's journey with interest.
- We are happy to be a catalyst for other start-ups in Dalarna. I'm so proud that we dared, made it work and that we are now taking off in the way we are. We can inspire others, because many other start-ups at these levels otherwise stay at Stureplan.
Jörgen Bond at Dalarna Science Park has been hailed as a business coach. Speaking about Simplitude's latest innovation, Court 22, with its subsidiary Simplitude Bookings, Jörgen says
- Innovation for me is the ability and power to profitably implement strategic creativity. It is not enough to have just any good idea, it must also be strategic and sellable to someone who is willing to pay for it to make it profitable. So to succeed in innovation, you need the courage to include other people and also different perspectives. If there is one thing that stands out about the team behind Simplitude Bookings, it is precisely the power of implementation and the ability to include diversity of both people and perspectives.
