The Dutchman John Jansen must be one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the Low Countries over the past two decades. Just over twenty-seven years ago, he founded DynaFix, a repair company with an innovative vision for screening, repairing and refurbishing phones. It would set the tone for dozens of similar projects that the South Limburg native later brought together under the name “DynaGroup.” In no time, the organisation grew into the market leader in the Benelux for smart, integrated services and solutions across the entire supply chain. In 2019, Jansen sold his last company, it was time for a well-deserved sabbatical. And for a book. Which we had the honour of printing. In tête-bêche format, no less.
“Feel free to interrupt me if I go on too long. My brain sometimes works faster than I’d like, and then my words tend to shoot off in all directions.” John Jansen laughs as he says it. As driven as he is as an entrepreneur, he approaches life with the same enthusiasm and openness. “But actually, that chaos is also my greatest gift,” he continues. “My mind manages to make connections that others don’t see. That’s how I come up with unexpected ideas and solutions. You know, my childhood was quite tough. As a kid, I learned to shut myself off from that difficult environment and create my own world. From a young age, I had to find my own way. To cope with my problems, I came up with all sorts of crazy solutions. That mindset and way of thinking are what I later applied across different industries.”
However “crazy” his ideas may seem, John Jansen is a highly deliberate entrepreneur. You could easily call the Dutchman a serial entrepreneur: over the past twenty-seven years, he has successfully founded more than twenty companies in a variety of sectors. Altogether, he has employed around 10,000 people and collected numerous awards along the way. In addition to repairing smartphones, laptops and coffee machines, DynaGroup also provides logistics services, offers IT, insurance and healthcare solutions, and installs products such as televisions, washing machines and printers in homes and offices.
“And to think it all started with a wild idea in my garage back in the early nineties,” Jansen recalls. “At the time, I was repairing medical equipment. At a certain point I thought: if I can do this, I can repair phones too. Around forty percent of sold devices were breaking down back then, and the repair process took far too long. So I came up with a way to fix phones faster — within 48 hours — and to optimise the entire logistics process around it. Later I did the same with coffee machines, then with laptops, drones, and so on. The approach was always the same: I saw a problem in the market and looked for a solution. Then I brought the right people together to make that idea a reality, which led to the improvement of numerous processes and the development of new supply chain concepts.”
Just before the coronavirus pandemic, John Jansen sold his last company. After decades of working relentlessly — sometimes up to 80 hours a week — he needed rest. “My work had become a kind of drug to cope with the difficulties of my past,” he admits. “By working excessively, I was suppressing that pain. That’s how I’ve always felt it. After selling my companies, I needed a period of reflection. I wanted to recharge. After a while, I started writing things down — what had happened to me over the years, what went well and what didn’t. During Covid, that process accelerated. I spoke with many young people who were struggling with themselves, their jobs, their businesses. That gave me the idea to bring my experiences together in a book. Because by collecting all those stories, maybe I could help others.”
Jansen worked with a ghostwriter and combined his life story with around thirty practical examples for entrepreneurs. As the printing company, we translated that duality into a tête-bêche or flip book format: the biographical section begins on the “front” side, while the tips and tricks start on the “back,” so that the final pages of both parts meet in the middle of the book.
“On one side, I tell my story, with personal anecdotes but also with input from partners, employees and clients. When you flip the book over, you discover thirty life lessons. The main message is that entrepreneurship doesn’t have to be difficult. You have to believe in what you’re doing and then give space and form to your imagination. That’s not always easy, but at some point, you’ll get there. Don’t dwell on what doesn’t work. Try again — and if necessary, try again.”
A thousand copies of the book have been printed, but Jansen is already considering increasing that number. “I’m really impressed with the work delivered,” he says. “Not only with the quality of the printing, but also with everything around it. I visited several printing companies, but at Buroform I had the best feeling: I saw people who are genuinely motivated on the work floor to deliver a top-quality product together. It’s a young and enthusiastic team that works proactively and keeps every promise.
In that way of working, I recognise a lot of myself. The culture within my companies has always been a cornerstone. Your employees must embody the values of your organisation, but you also have to create an environment that makes that possible. People need to feel good within a company. At Buroform, I sense that positivity and drive. There’s something solid there — a story that every team member believes in and wants to be part of.”
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