Learning to recognise your unconscious patterns, discovering where they come from and understanding how they can influence your daily choices, work and relationships with colleagues. Learning to bring things from the undercurrent to the surface and build bridges with others.
Marieke Kamphuis and Machteld Rijnten of The Substitute can talk about that. At the beginning of the year, they started their participation in the Social Entrepreneurship Course at Utrecht University.
The Circular Revolution in the Furniture Industry
"The Substitute is the guide in the sustainable transition of the furniture industry," says Machteld Rijnten, who co-founded the company alongside Marieke Kamphuis. "We bring different players in the industry together and develop the knowledge and tools that accelerate the circular transition across the sector. The mission of The Substitute differs in some respects from most other social enterprises. While most focus primarily on people, ours is more about driving the sustainable and circular transition in the furniture industry—focusing on the planet. That, too, is social entrepreneurship."
Marieke adds: "The Substitute was founded in 2021. As of 2024, we are at the point of taking the next step to scale up. To ensure we have a solid foundation for that growth, we started the Social Entrepreneurship Program in January. We are taking it together as a duo, whereas most participants complete the program on their own."
Substantive and Personal Development
The program consists of 15 training days, including two two-day sessions dedicated to personal development. These sessions also address patterns within team collaboration.
"That's the beauty of this program—the blend of strategic content and personal growth," Marieke explains. "I have participated in accelerator programs before, both as a participant and as a coach, but nowhere have I seen this combination."
She continues: "The first of the two personal sessions was about personal leadership. What gives me energy? What am I doing this for? What patterns do I have that hinder me in the growth of my company? It gave me tools to recognize my own patterns."
"The second session, which took place in September, focused on systemic work. Sometimes there are personal matters lingering in the underflow of a working relationship."
“What patterns do I have that hinder me in the growth of my company?”
From Downstream to Upstream
"As partners, you run the business together. You are two different people with different personalities and different backgrounds. A little bit of friction is healthy—it gives you strength. But it shouldn't create noise. Unaddressed noise causes progress to stall in dissatisfaction or a sense of 'oh, never mind.' But that doesn't make it go away; it just simmers beneath the surface. During those two days in September, Machteld and I brought several things out of the underflow into the open and talked them through so we could align better. This trajectory gives you a structured reason to engage in those conversations and resolve things. I find it to be one of the most powerful parts of the program. After all, strong collaboration is vital when scaling your business—and not just with your business partner."
Machteld adds: "You learn to look at what you carry with you as an entrepreneur—what your 'backpack' holds—and how to extract the positive aspects from it for your business. The group consists of mission-driven entrepreneurs, which creates a great group dynamic. I learn a lot from other people's cases, even though every entrepreneur works in a different sector. Furthermore, the program offers a safe environment, which is essential for personal growth."
"I also gained a lot from the sales training," Marieke continues. "Who makes the decisions within a company? And how do I get a seat at the table with that person? On top of that, I learned that sales isn't just about presenting—it's also about asking active, insightful questions."
“You learn to look at what you take with you as an entrepreneur, what your ‘backpack’ is, and get the positive points out of it for your business.”
As a Team in the Training
"We are among the few who are taking the course as a duo," says Marieke. "I really want to emphasize: more people should do this. It is incredibly educational. You are essentially forced to set aside time together to work on your business, you engage with the material as a team, and you can alternate. If one of you already has expertise in a certain topic due to background and experience, the other can take that session and acquire the knowledge too. It also saves time. As an impact-driven entrepreneur, you're often even busier than a 'standard' entrepreneur. You're not just running your business; you also have to educate people on the impact you make and why things need to improve. That makes it extra demanding and time-consuming. Having someone to go through the program with makes a huge difference."
"But perhaps most importantly," Machteld adds, "you learn to speak the same language. That makes building bridges to one another a whole lot easier."