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ENTREPRENEURS IN DENMARK

JOBS

Entrepreneurship just comes naturally to some

In our new feature series, The Local looks into a successful entrepreneur's life - the story behind their successes, their major challenges and how being an entrepreneur changed them forever. This week, Sparsh Sharma talks to Peter Johan Sønderby-Wagner, co-founder of Luxplus and Freeway.

Published: 15 October 2014 17:39 CEST
Entrepreneurship just comes naturally to some
Peter Johan Sønderby-Wagner told us that success requires the right combination of hard work, good luck and timing. Photo: Submitted
Some people get bit by the entrepreneur bug, and that is definitely the case with Peter Johan Sønderby-Wagner. The 36-year-old Viborg native took the dating site dating.dk to new heights before recently deciding to pursue a new challenge. 
 
The Local caught up with Sønderby-Wagner to discuss his various ventures, which include the new subscription-based beauty products e-tailer Luxplus and the holding company Freeway, which he co-founded along with two friends back in 1998 when he was just 20 years old. Today, it is behind more than 20 different companies including Lejebolig and the parenting portal Baby.dk.
 
How did you come up with your latest idea?
I came up with the idea of Luxplus after realising one morning that I didn't want to spend the rest of my life as the CEO of Dating.dk. I had done that job for several years and last year I delivered the best revenue and turnover in the company's history. 
 
After realising I had to move on but still wanting to keep my Freeway ownership and seat on the board, I began writing down the list of criteria for my next startup. It had to be in the B2C segment and it had to involve physical goods, as I had sold only bits and bytes my entire career. It had to involve some kind of subscription, as I master a lot of subscription skills like conversion, retention, simulation and so on.
 
With these criteria in mind, I did some iterations and eventually came up with the basic idea for Luxplus: a subscription-based webshop that allows customers to pay a low monthly fee (currently 89 kroner), in return for thousands of products from the beauty, personal and hair care industries at a significantly reduced price. On some of our products, the savings are equal to several months of membership fee.
 
My business partner, Martin Schultz Andersen, and I began our research on this concept in the last few months of 2013 and we launched Luxplus on March 1st. 
 
 
What were the initial challenges? How did you overcome them?
Our main concern is still the sourcing of our inventory. A lot of local Danish distributors don't want to supply their products to us because they don't like our low prices. Legally, I don't think they are allowed to do this but luckily we have been successful in building a very strong supplier network throughout the EU, which helps us get the same goods in stock but without the local distributors in the loop. I guess at some point we'll reach such a volume that they won't be able to ignore us any longer.
 
How has the journey been so far? 
It has been quite a ride. Seven months after our launch, we are way ahead of our initial milestones in terms of active subscribers, daily orders and expansion plans for other countries. 
 
 
How has becoming a serial entrepreneur changed you personally?
If you have the need to build something, you just can't stop. I don't think you can become a serial entrepreneur – it's just something you are. I’m always thinking about my projects, but I also think I have found a good balance between working and spending time with my wife and three kids. If Luxplus turns out not to work, I would definitely get back on the horse and build something brand new.
 
Your message to budding entrepreneurs?
Keep on working and adapting. Everybody can eventually come up with a great idea but only a few can manage the right amount of hard work and get a little sprinkling of luck plus timing.
 

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WORKING IN DENMARK

Ten ways to improve your chances of finding a job in Denmark

Job searching in Denmark can be a daunting and lengthy process with many hurdles to overcome. The Local spoke to Kay Xander Mellish, author of 'How to Work in Denmark', for her tips on submitting a successful CV and application.

Published: 12 January 2023 09:44 CET
Updated: 24 October 2023 16:36 CEST
Ten ways to improve your chances of finding a job in Denmark

CVs in Denmark often have certain aspects of layout, presentation and content in common. By writing a CV that sticks to some of these recognisable customs, you may improve your chances of catching the eye of a potential employer.

1. Length

“Keep it to one excellent page, or two if you’re more senior. I’d say if you’re aged 30 and under, one page will be enough. Only add the jobs that are relevant. Employers don’t want to hear about that restaurant server or babysitting job if it’s not relevant to the role,” Mellish said.

2. Format

At the top of your CV, a paragraph describing your experience, skills, education and character is a common way to lead into a CV. This text can be adapted depending on the job you’re applying for and how you want to present your skills.

“Add three adjectives about yourself that you can support with an example, rather than ten adjectives with no story. For example, say you are innovative for this reason. People don’t like hot air in Denmark,” Mellish said.

Aside from the profile text, chronological lists of qualifications, relevant employment history and other relevant experience should be kept brief enough to fit the one to two pages.

3. Show your personal side and a photo

It is expected that applicants include a section about their hobbies, even family situation on their CV in Denmark, as well as a photo, to give a sense of who they are as a person.

“Danish employers are interested in you as a human, more so than employers in other countries so include information about yourself, including your age and your hobbies.

“Choose a good quality photo that is not too serious but shows you looking friendly and approachable,” Mellish said.

4. Story telling

“Think in terms of story telling”, Mellish advised. “Pure letters and numbers don’t mean a lot to employers in Denmark, they need to know what projects you’ve done, what role you played and what kind of person you are through your CV.

“So rather than writing ‘I have these grades’, it’s better to say ‘I worked on this project, it took this long, I achieved this'”, Mellish said.

5. Hit the ground running

Mellish called this “plug and play”, where you show you will slot right into the company and get going with the role.

“When employers are reading your CV, they want to know what you can do on day one of the job. Sell your ability to solve someone’s problem. You need to give the impression you can add value straight away.

“In Denmark the average length of time in a job is two and a half years, because you can take your pension when you move, so employers don’t want someone they need to spend time training,” Mellish told The Local.

READ ALSO: Five tips for writing an effective Danish CV

6. Teamwork

“Group work is very important in Denmark, more than individual achievements. So talk about your teamwork and how you worked with a group to produce a good business result. It shouldn’t be ‘me, me, me’ – that’s a turn off,” Mellish said.

7. LinkedIn

“People in Denmark love LinkedIn so you need a fabulous LinkedIn profile with a good picture. Before anyone calls you for an interview they’ll have looked at your LinkedIn profile.

“In your profile, include the storytelling, explaining the projects you’ve worked on. If your job involves a uniform, I recommend wearing it in your LinkedIn photo so people get that impression of you right away. Your background photo should also be work-related, not rainbows or puppies. Use it to tell the story of who you are,” Mellish advised.

8. Unsolicited application

This is when you approach a company or department you would like to work for, without a job being advertised. The Danish term for it is uopfordret ansøgning. 

“Many people make contact on LinkedIn and ask to meet for a coffee, where they chat and rather than pitch for a job, they ask if the person knows anyone looking for someone like them. Danish employers welcome this and many people are hired this way,” Mellish said.

Another way to network is to join a union, Mellish advised. They often have career events but can also help read your contract when you get a job offer, or help with any problems in the workplace. 

9. Ring the recruiter

The phone number of the hiring manager will often be in the job advert. Mellish advised finding a quiet place to ring them from and spending ten to fifteen minutes asking some good business questions.

“This also helps you work out if you might want to work for this person,” Mellish said.

“Send your CV within 24 hours of the phone call and mention you spoke to them in your application,” she added.

10. Patience

“On average it can take six months to find a job in Denmark. If it’s under this, you’re lucky. If it takes a year, it’s not you, it just takes a long time because employers are looking for someone to fit into their team.

“I wrote 100 letters, I got ten responses, three interviews and one job which I had for eight years,” Mellish told The Local.

“Danish employers are not always good at getting back to you. If you don’t hear anything, just keep applying for other jobs. If you sent an application on June 1st, you could send a follow-up email on June 15th, then you’ll have to leave it and move on,” she advised. 

Kay Xander Mellish’s book ‘How to Work in Denmark’ offers both job-searching advice and tips on how to succeed in the Danish workplace.

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