Aphrilis
In 2013 I established my Dutch sole propriety under the name Aphrilis Consulting. With this I enabled myself to work as a freelancer on different projects I was interested in. I could easily move across the different Startupbootcamp branches and work on projects for local governments, startups and universities on the side. I mostly focused on Operations Management, Research and Innovation Projects.
The name Aphrilis stems from the Roman spelling of the month April, my birth month. There are two possible origins of the name April or Aphrilis. It either comes from the Latin word aperire, meaning to open or bloom, or it originates from Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of beauty and fertility. In the old days, brides wore Myrtus Communis leaves in their hair and the temples of Aphrodite and Venus (the Roman version of Aphrodite) were surrounded by Mirte bushes. The symbolism connected to my name and birth month were too beautiful to ignore, while choosing a name for my own business.
After moving to Singapore I set up Aphrilis PTE LTD to be able to work again as a freelancer on projects I feel closely related to. I focus on social impact, entrepreneurship, women empowerment and international development. As such I co-founded two social enterprises working on FDW issues in Singapore and sustainable fashion solutions, I pro bono advised social entrepreneurs and reviewed a documentary series, I worked with startups in startup accelerators and now split my time between establishing the startup ecosystem of B. Building Business in Asia Pacific and chairing the Vanderes Foundation.