No fuckup, no scale-up: real stories from circular founders during Fuckup Nights

It was a break from pitching, an afternoon of raw and vulnerable stories about the reality of working on and in a capex heavy scaleup. The stories that are often hard to tell, especially when you have poured your soul into building something truly circular, only to see it unravel. But as speaker Bas Jürgens reminded us: “No fuckup, no scale-up. A big thank you to our speakers Corjan van den Berg, Jan Henk Wijma, Kirsten Herben-Steinbusch and Bas Jürgens for their courage, honesty and willingness to share.

This event was about more than storytelling. While there was laughter and head-shaking, there was also space for vulnerability, curiosity and mutual learning. As recent closures of circular factories in the Netherlands show, circular startups face unique pressures from linear competitors, funding gaps and complex infrastructure needs. By sharing both setbacks and successes, we can help them (and each other!) navigate these challenges and make this pioneering road less lonely – and help enablers, from funders to policymakers, understand what it truly takes to build the factories of the future.

Circular Factory is dedicated to fostering mutual learning between circular founders and CEOs through the Circular Factory-program, ongoing events and a community of practice. Circular Factory is an initiative BlueCity and Tekkoo.