Michele Matt and Mirjam Affolter, two alumni of the FHNW School of Business, founded the successful camper-sharing platform Mycamper.ch, also known as “Airbnb on wheels”, in 2015. We asked Mirjam a few questions.
Parallel to the founding phase of your start-up, you were studying for a degree in business administration at the FHNW School of Business. Could you use what you learned there?
My studies definitely made a difference, mainly because I was studying part-time while working. The transfer to practice is automatic and you can immediately apply the theory you’ve learned to your start-up.
What tips would you give to students who would like to start a business later?
Get your start-up going during your studies. This is the best time to start something on the side. You are surrounded by experts so if you need help, you can ask questions as you go along. In addition, the pressure to build something new is much lower than after graduation. So, start as early as possible and just try it out.
Mirjam Affolter | Customer Happiness Officer
How did your appearance on the TV show The Lion’s Den with well-known investors influence your start-up?
Very positively. Immediately after the show, we were able to acquire a huge number of new camper owners who had heard about us. So we grew nicely on the supply side. And our media presence also increased significantly after the show.
Were you already an enthusiastic camper before the founding of MyCamper?
I used to go to campsites with my family. The campers came later and now I’ve bought my own bus. You are planning to expand to Scandinavia.
You are planning to expand to Scandinavia.
How far are you with that?
This market has a lot of potential for us. We already hired a country manager in Sweden and are live with a minimum viable product (MVP).