Curious about the entrepreneurial adventure behind inspiring brands, Brand and Strategic Professional Martijn Arets decided to quit his job, hand in his lease car, ignore all uncertainties and follow his dream. For five months, he travelled more than 15,000 kilometres across Europe in a one-of-a-kind 1971 Volkswagen T2 camper van, meeting with the founders, CEOs and brand managers of 20 authentic European brands in what was to prove a unique trip: Brand Expedition. On popular demand, he has bundled the lessons and stories behind 20 appealing European brands such as Lego, Mini, Skype, The Body Shop and Adidas to create Brand Expedition, the book. More information? Check www.brand-expedition.com or send Martijn a Tweet: @martijnarets.

1. READ OUT LOUD
THE STORY BEHIND
- KOZIOL -
ALWAYS AHEAD OF THE TRENDS

2. BEFORE YOU START….
please look into your camera and tell
us slowly your name, city and
country… Then you can start reading
this paragraph out loud… Have fun!

3. While being shown around the factory,
it becomes clear to me that Stephan
does not miss a thing. During the tour,
he has something to say about almost
everything, from the installation of a
new machine to the location of a new
waste bin.

4. The factory is an impressive place,
where you will find dozens of machines
that produce the most amazing objects
with specially created molds. “We
introduce approximately 40 new
products a year. By now, our

5. collection encompasses an average of
400 products, mostly household, office
and gift items such as vases, paperclip
holders and lamps. We are willing to
take on anything: as long as it has
a unique design. A couple of years ago,

6. we launched the eiPott: an egg cup
based on the iPod. Unfortunately, the
lawyers at Apple forced us to take it off
the market a few months later. We do
everything ourselves, from design to
production – which makes us unique,”

7. explains a visibly proud Stephan. “Due
to the fact that we keep the entire
process in-house, we are able to
respond quickly when necessary. When
I have a new idea, I call together our
design team and just four to nine

8. months later you can already find our
new product in the store. This is far
quicker and more efficient than if you
have it done via China. It also allows us
to control the quality and to keep our
inventory low.

9. - END OF RECORDING-