Steven Klooster (42) becomes the new CEO of TravelBird. The current CEO, co-founder and co-owner of TravelBird, Symen Jansma remains involved as largest shareholder, active advisor and director. Steven Klooster has been working as CFO for the fast growing online travel provider TravelBird since June 2014 and in recent months his responsibilities have expanded as he has taken over more and more tasks from Symen Jansma.
Symen Jansma (43) and Dennis Klompalberts (38) started TravelBird seven years ago. With it’s simplicity in choices and simplicity in booking, TravelBird became an instant success. Their clear and modern approach created a new standard in the world of travel. Along with 446 employees, they have expanded the company into one of the largest and best-rated online travel providers in Europe. Around 15,000 travelers enjoy their vacations through TravelBird daily with high rates of customer loyalty (retention 40%) and customer satisfaction (8.6). However, TravelBird has even higher growth ambitions and an aspiration of becoming a world player in size. In order to achieve this ambition, new steps are needed.
Steven Klooster has contributed to the success of TravelBird over the past three years as CFO and board member. As COO of Lyst, he helped the London start-up and fashion technology company quickly grow, and has collaborated closely with various Internet, technology and services companies, including Ziggo, as an investor and advisor at Warburg Pincus. He studied at TU Delft and at London Business School (MBA).
Steven Klooster (CEO TravelBird): “I am very grateful for the opportunity offered to me by Symen and Dennis. TravelBird is a fantastic company with a unique culture, a lot of energy, positivity, and passion for unique travel and care for the traveler. That’s what Symen, together with co-founder Dennis Klompalberts, has built up from the ground, and this we must maintain. But we can only continue to grow if we further increase efforts to be industry leaders in technology and continue professionalizing our business. My dream is to provide every single traveler with a curated, personal and unique travel experience through continuous technical innovation combined with inspiring personal guidance and emphatic service. In addition, I believe that, as TravelBird, we have a great responsibility to provide the traveler with inspiring travel experiences in a sustainable and local-friendly way. Together with all our enthusiastic colleagues and partners, I will put all my effort and energy into this. ”
Symen Jansma: “The adventure of starting TravelBird has been truly enjoyable. The past seven years have been so much more exciting, so much more beautiful and so much more successful than I could have ever imagined. As of today, we have provided over 5 million travelers an unforgettable experience. It gives me great pride to work with the almost 450 energetic, fun, and creative birdies here at TravelBird. I have always surrounded myself with people who were better in their field than myself. This also applies to Steven. He has the same vision and shares the same love and engagement with TravelBird that I have. My passion and strength lie in building new companies. On the contrary, Steven is an expert in growing companies to the next level. And at this time, this expertise is necessary to make TravelBird a world-class player in the travel industry. I wish him all the strength and success and thank all the birdies, business relationships, and especially our travelers for giving their trust to myself and TravelBird.”
Symen Jansma remains actively involved with TravelBird. He continues as a main shareholder (37.38%), an adviser / director, and as an ambassador / spokesman. In addition, Symen Jansma will be involved in expanding new initiatives and intensive guidance of startups.
The TravelBird Management Team consists of:
Steven Klooster (CEO)
Dennis Klompalberts (COO)
Philipp Wassibauer (CTO)
Jeranne Koekkoek (VP HR)
