How Marius Bos built KOPexpo

Entrepreneurship was not something Marius Bos inherited from his family, but entrepreneurial spirit finds a way. In

Entrepreneurship was not something Marius Bos was taught at home, but entrepreneurial blood runs deep where it can't go... The CEO now has the successful stand construction company KOPexpo. When everything came to a standstill due to corona, the entrepreneur was anything but idle and rolled out two new concepts: 20ft Wellness en Workub. Every bunch of straw blows like crazy, but did that also apply to Marius' career? Who was his wheelbarrow?

Text: Fleur de Jong
Image: KOPexpo

What was your very first job?

''I was 19 when I started as a car mechanic. As an ADHDer, I have about the concentration of a mosquito, so I was unable to complete my MAVO. I started doing a more targeted practical training where I could work with my hands. After completing this, I quickly started tinkering and got into earth-moving machinery, later as a machinist and truck driver, basically everything that had to do with major technical things. It has been a long road for me to get to where my talents lie. Together with my twin brother, we are the first entrepreneurs in our family. Entrepreneurship and taking risks is not something we were taught at home.”

What did your parents do?

''My father was a land engineer and spent decades in the music business, first as a band leader and in recent years also arranging regional bands for weddings and tent parties. My mother has been a pedicurist all her life. Both are now enjoying their retirement.”

How did you get into the industry of your current work?

''At the age of thirty-seven I was a freelancer and hired myself out to a stand builder as a truck driver. I was sent to Warsaw in a truck before Poland became part of the European Union and I played a major role in saving a project that was in danger of failing. Things went wrong on all fronts: we were stuck at the border for a long time, the exhibition location turned out not to be an exhibition location and to make matters worse, the stand had to be delivered at 16 p.m. while we started construction at 15 p.m. At one point the client asked if I wanted to join him as a manager. I worked for him for two years and this is how I ended up in stand construction. After two years I resigned and a few years later someone asked me to start a stand construction company. The best man ultimately decided not to go through with this, but I did."

Who was your wheelbarrow?

''My wheelbarrow is my neighbor from the past, Ewald Siebum, commercial manager at TSN. Ewald knew me as a road construction operator and introduced me to the director of Techno Service Netherlands. Here I was given the opportunity to take a management course and I was able to set up a department with a total of 42 people at four locations. Here I learned what it is like to communicate in an organization and to develop an organization. But also how important middle management is. You need middle management to manage the day-to-day. A company is only valuable if it can function without the entrepreneur himself, that is the key to growth. The department is ultimately from scratch to an annual turnover of over 3 million in 2 years. I am very grateful that Ewald believed in me and put me in touch with the right people, which ultimately gave me this opportunity." 

So you've had a lot of different jobs, did you always know that you eventually wanted to be an entrepreneur?

''I always knew that I wanted to start my own business. But I have learned that entrepreneurship is not an end but a means. It was a great wish. If at some point within a company you are dealing with managers who are comfortably in their comfort zone and you would like to make progress yourself, you will encounter the laziness of your manager. At first my dream was to sit on that side of the table. And once I was on that side, I thought: 'I can do that myself'. ''

What has been the biggest learning moment during your career?

''That is the corona period. At the moment we came to a complete standstill, I only had my organization, all the talent around, myself and of course NOW, who was welcome. I have learned a lot about myself: how creative I am, what I do and don't want and what I find important. We have rolled out two of the four concepts during corona times, two more of which will follow, and these have been a success: Workhub and 20ft Concepts. No one told me what to do during this time. In fact, if I had had to listen to people outside my company, it would have been better and safer not to do it. Then you roll out those new concepts and it becomes a success, which is just super cool."Photo: 20ft Concepts

What is your greatest passion in your profession?

''My greatest passion is impact to make. Impact can be translated in many ways, but for me it means being the best at what you do for your customers. Making a difference and not messing around is just fantastic. With 20ft we want to change people's wellness experience. Building permits, foundations, all things that people no longer have to think about: we install the screw pile foundation in the morning and the unit in the afternoon. From one day to the next you have a complete wellness unit with spa, sauna and shower."

What advice would you give to your (18 year old) self?

''There is no reason to doubt yourself, because ultimately, despite all your shortcomings, you have many talents. Do not doubt yourself.''

Have you been a wheelbarrow for someone?

''I have encouraged several people in my network to take steps or to start their own business. This is actually the principle of entrepreneurship: seeing a need from a specific target group and knowing what the answer to this need is. If you bring these two things together you have a revenue model. When you see someone who is cut from a certain cloth and is good at something, I say, 'dude take that step and do it'.”