The sons' path into the family business Teamtronic
Karsten Nellemose (left), Poul Nellemose (centre) and Klaus Rise (right) in front of Teamtronic's new head office with showroom, production and warehouse facilities in Odense. Photo: Teamtronic
Poul Nellemose has handed over the helm of Teamtronic to his sons with great success. A handover that was not always in the cards, however.
For decades, Poul Nellemose has held the title of founder, sole owner and CEO of Teamtronic A/S. But in November 2019, Poul Nellemose and his sons Karsten Nellemose and Klaus Rise began a generational change. A generational change that wasn't always on the cards, but which ended up being a natural part of the sons' career dream.
Entrepreneurship from childhood
Karsten and Klaus grew up in a family where entrepreneurship was a natural part of everyday life, where both their father Poul Nellemose and other family members were entrepreneurs and self-employed. This gave both Karsten and Klaus an early interest in trying their hand at entrepreneurship. Even as a child, Klaus tried his hand at small businesses in the nursery.
"As a child, I tried my hand at entrepreneurship. I had aquarium fish in my childhood bedroom and quickly saw a market for selling aquarium fish through the window in the boys' room," Klaus says with a laugh.
This humble start gave him a sense of what it's like to have something of his own and create something from scratch.
Like his brother, Karsten has tried his hand at entrepreneurship and self-employment. After completing his upper secondary education at HHX, he started an online action portal together with his childhood friend Mathias Joachim Larsen.
However, Karsten and Mathias were forced to close the company after a year when they encountered challenges and complications with software system integration. However, the experience taught them valuable lessons that would prove to be significant later on.
From youth summer jobs to careers
Although both sons have always dreamed of finding their own path and starting their own business, they both found job satisfaction and interest in Teamtronic.
Both Karsten and Klaus started in production at Teamtronic as a summer job. The idea was to earn a little money while they considered their future goals and career dreams.
"Over time, I developed a great interest in visualisations and lighting requirements and became fascinated by the software program Dialux, which enables visualisation of lighting solutions for our customers. This interest led me to start working with tenders and lighting calculations, where I found great job satisfaction," Karsten Nellemose explains.
Today, Karsten is Key Account Manager at Teamtronic. With his background in lighting calculation and visualisations, Karsten uses his expertise to understand customer needs, offer tailor-made solutions and advise customers on optimal lighting solutions.
Unlike Karsten, Klaus found job satisfaction and interest in the tasks in production. Here, Klaus quickly realised that working with technology and production fascinated him.
Klaus explains "Geeking out on technical solutions and working hands-on with creating something new gave me the motivation to take responsibility and take on a responsible role in the company and after almost two years as a production employee, I became production manager".
Over time, Teamtronic grew and there was a need for someone to take responsibility for purchasing. For Klaus, it was important to be able to start from scratch and build something new, which matched his ambition to learn while being able to teach and make decisions. Today, Klaus is responsible for purchasing at Teamtronic.
The sons' own path built on a strong foundation
Karsten and Klaus' journey at Teamtronic has not been about following in their father's footsteps, but rather about forging their own path.
Klaus explains - "Our father, Poul Nellemose, never put any pressure on us to take over the company or the title of CEO for that matter. Instead, it's been a dream and a choice that has grown within us."
The brothers have worked hard to create their own direction in the company and dared to dream and set goals for the company's future. Among other things, they have founded a completely new board of directors, acquired the lighting company Open Light Denmark and created a better framework for the company with a new and larger domicile.
"We've always felt that we've had the freedom to shape our own path and that has made all the difference," Karsten continues. "Our father's support has given us the courage to take the necessary steps to create the version of Teamtronic that we believe in."
For the brothers, it has never been a question of maintaining the status quo, but rather of building on the foundation created by their father Poul Nellemose and developing the company in line with their own ambitions and visions.
