Jimmy Östholm Home » Sideshifters » Östholm, Jimmy Full interview How our passion can help to create a purpose-led businessJimmy ÖstholmOct 22, 2019Global ChallengesSociety and CommunitiesBusiness and OrganisationsPersonal DevelopmentEnergy Transport and EnvironmentFinance and Funding Short videos Find your purpose – never give up!Jimmy ÖstholmOct 22, 2019Personal Development Change begins with youJimmy ÖstholmOct 22, 2019Society and CommunitiesBusiness and OrganisationsPersonal Development 1 2 3 … 5 › Breakout videos How can we build a successful business, self & world as a whole?Jimmy ÖstholmOct 22, 2019Global ChallengesSociety and CommunitiesBusiness and OrganisationsPersonal Development Small companies have the capability to drive big changeJimmy ÖstholmOct 22, 2019Society and CommunitiesBusiness and OrganisationsPersonal Development Challenges & solutions to starting a new businessJimmy ÖstholmOct 22, 2019Business and OrganisationsFinance and Funding 1 2 › Jimmy Ostholm Founder, Velosophy About the interview How businesses can support the less fortunate people in the society Challenges & solutions to starting a new business The capabilities that small companies have, in bringing positive changes Encouraging people and businesses to find purpose that will lead them to creating success How to create a better world through our passion [VIEW BIO] About Jimmy Founder, Velosophy Bicycle enthusiast Founder of Velosophy, a bicycle manufacturing business where a circular mind set, profitability and social responsibility go hand in hand One for one business model: for every bike sold, one is donated to a girl in Africa to make it easier for her to access school and receive education Determined to find a deeper purpose for the bike business won a prize of the European Parliament for best innovation in circular economy in 2019 Believes a bicycle is well fitted to meet the transportation, infrastructure and sustainability challenges that large cities are facing If you could invite 1 person to a dinner party – who would it be and why? Jeanne d’Arc. Not only is she a strong female convincing a male world (at a time when the patriarchy was rule) that her dream was worth following, she did it without any obvious personal gain – for a greater cause. To discuss courage, grit and belief with her would be great. The only problem would be my poor French … What motivates you? Makes you happy? A bike ride. Definitely a bike ride. What advice would you give your 10-year-old self? I’m not sure I have so many advice for the 10-year me … I followed my dreams then as I try to do now and when you are 10 anything is possible, right? So telling a young me to stick to my dreams would be ”pushing at an open door …” And I wouldn’t tell young me that stubbornness is a great quality, because then already stubborn young me’s family would have gone completely mad … If you could make 1 global change – what would it be? Oooh, that’s a hard one … But I would make sure that boys and girls across the world had the same rights to study and make choices about their own lives. I think that would have a huge impact on improving quality of life and reducing conflicts across the world. What are your Top 3 achievements? – Taking my dream seriously and daring to act upon it. – Founded a company that really makes a difference. – Reduced my carbon footprint based on travel habits and food preferences. What does sustainability mean for you? Common sense and responsibility. What was the most important event/influence that changed your perspective? My perspective is changing all the time. For me it’s a consequence of learning and finding out new things. Like when I learned that a bike can be the difference between life and death in some parts of the world – which lead me to start Vélosophy. Is there anything else you would like to share with us? Often we focus a lot on success stories, but what I think is far more interesting are the stories of struggles. The struggles that sometimes lead to success. Because it’s in the struggle you find the learnings. Calling all Sideshifters! Know somebody who should share insights and effective solutions as one of our Sideshifters? Or want to add your own expertise? Get in touch to apply and discuss
