04 Dec '24
Over four years ago, Tom van de Vrede, along with his three co-founders Tom Helder, Sylvester Machielse, and Jorrin Sebregts, started the software company levvr. They developed a platform - a so-called Project Control Hub - that helps manage complexity in large construction projects. They have grown significantly over the past few years, both in terms of the team and the impressive list of clients they serve. However, this growth did not come without its challenges. Tom talks about the legal challenges of growing from a start-up to a scale-up.
But first, a little more about levvr and their mission: “You only need to open the newspaper to read about construction projects that go significantly over budget or experience huge delays. A major cause of this is ineffective information management. That’s where we help our clients. Parties are often still stuck in a document-driven way of working, causing teams to spend up to 40% of their time searching for and contextualising information to make important decisions. We help them step out of this documentation and manage the information in one place: the levvr Project Control Hub. This streamlines collaboration between parties and enables them to standardise their way of working across the entire project organisation. This helps reduce risks and save time and failure costs.”
Levvr was founded in February 2021 and now counts major names like Heijmans, the Municipality of Amsterdam, and Movares among its clients. “With our platform, we enable engineering teams to really focus on what they are good at. Our mission is: to unlock the full potential of engineering teams.”
“When we first started, we handled some legal matters ourselves. We quickly realised that we needed to professionalise this to cover certain risks. For example, my three co-founders worked at a competitor before starting levvr, we needed an improved commercial contract, a good employee contract, and we actually needed all kinds of other legal support. Think of issues around copyrights, trademarks, company structure, general terms and conditions, and a privacy statement.” Through a start-up consultation hour, Tom ended up at Ploum, where he could ask his first questions. “Interestingly enough, we then chose another firm due to costs.”
“But then suddenly a bailiff showed up at the door. At the law firm we were working with at the time, I felt like I was determining the strategy to solve this than the partner sitting across from me! Then I called Sabin (Tigu), during his vacation. Two days later, we met at the office, and Ploum took over the case and supported us very well and professionally. Without going into further details, we reached a very good solution after a long process. However, this could have also meant the end of levvr if it had not been managed well. The timing also helped: if this had happened a few months earlier, we might not even have made it. We hadn’t yet raised the funding to secure the right legal support. Because you can be right, but with good support, you ensure that you also get your way.”
“At Ploum, I feel like we are really a priority. Besides that first case, we have received broad support from Ploum in a start-up-friendly way. From commercial contracts and privacy to advice on funding rounds and the registration of our trademarks. We have gradually built a good foundation so that we could grow together into a more mature company. Growth comes with the usual ups and downs. But it’s reassuring to have a good law firm by your side.”
“Some legal matters were not high on my priority list, but now I think: yes, that’s really important. My advice to other start-ups would be to reserve time in the start-up phase to properly set up the foundation of your company. And really take the time to find the right firm to help you with that. Don’t choose the cheapest, but the one you think can provide you with the best support.”
For levvr, the focus is currently on further developing the product and exploring the international market: “We are currently busy differentiating ourselves even more in the market. Data-driven work is already being done in Dutch construction, but how do you standardise your way of working to keep risks manageable? That’s where we will serve the market, and that story is resonating well. Additionally, we are exploring international growth markets, where investment levels in infrastructure projects are still much higher. That obviously offers opportunities. But we are doing this decisively and step-by-step.”
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