International Entrepreneurship - Acquaint

View the website of Acquaint

Acquaint develops smart tools for the internal inspection of underground pipe networks for drinking and wastewater. With their solutions, they can get a better picture of the condition of pipelines and therefore predict their lifespan and possible risks. The company was founded in 2014 by Rudy Dijkstra and Siemen van der Heide. After the founders decided to step down in 2022, Erik Driessen was asked to become CEO. Partly based on his nearly 20 years of experience in environmental and water technology.

What question did you come to YnBusiness with?

We are in the middle of the transition from startup to scale-up and want to further professionalize and grow internationally. We therefore asked Wessel de Vries to think along with us and examine to what extent our internal organization is ready for this. Wessel is theme specialist International Entrepreneurship at both Ynbusiness and GroBusiness and had been aware of Acquaint's international ambitions for some time.

What has the service provided to you?

It was valuable and, above all, instructive. For example, Wessel organized a session to which he had also invited Bram Kruijt, Manager of Projects at Oranjewoud. Together we critically examined all kinds of questions, such as: In which countries are you already active and why? Until then we had often made such decisions on gut feeling. After that session and with the support of Wessel and Bram, we started to approach important issues more methodically. This is slowly bearing fruit.

How did you experience the collaboration with YnBusiness?

The cooperation was excellent. Wessel communicates clearly, plainly and smoothly. He had only one goal: to help our company move forward. As a result, he did not avoid difficult questions. It ensured that we were able to spar with each other in a pleasant and relaxed manner.

Would you recommend our services to others and if so, what would you say?

Oh yes, I would really recommend the use of YnBusiness. Simply because you are assured, especially in Wessel's case, of a good sparring partner with a lot of experience in international business. You just have to make use of that on your way to internationalization.