After an quiet youth in which I subsequently went to HAVO (roughly the equivalent of secondary school) and Higher Nautical College and did courses in Information analysis and system design, I started in 1988 as a freelance programmer. Eventually one of my clients offered me a job as developer of software and graphic systems. Because it was a small business I did the back office (bookkeeping and administration) and the internal sales as well. All in all a fascinating episode during which I learnt a great deal about the many aspects of medium- and small enterprise. I also got involved with my first serious hobby there: photography.
In 1993 I ventured on the Internet. I was member nr. 125 with Euronet Internet. In those days we knew each other by name and used a newsreader, mail, telnet and gopher. Nothing else was available yet. It soon dawned upon me that the Internet had more to offer than just that. Although having a full time job as a project manager at KPN, I decided to keep track of technical developments. When the phenomenon HTML emerged I found that during the evening I should make my own page and started fiddling around with tags and hrefs. I clearly remember the appearance of the first version of Netscape. Soon followed by the first WYSIWYG web editors, which made my Internet life a lot more cheerful. My first site (how sad: just dealing with my person) measured at least 120 kb!
Later on when I moved to China for a year (to work as Director Customer services for Ericsson) I described my experiences on the Internet via FrontPage so I could make the folks at home aware of my adventures on the other side of the world.
After the Chinese episode I returned to the Netherlands in 1997 and once again joined the army of the “sad Singles” (see introduction). Apart from my job as an ICT consultant I soon embraced a new hobby: Champagne. I used the Internet to collect information about Champagne and soon found out that the Net did not offer a lot of information about the Bubbles, none at all in the Dutch language to be exact. At that time the Champagne Information Bureau was manned by one part-timer with a budget of 15.000 guilders (7.300 Euros) annually to advertise Champagne. In my opinion this would lead nowhere. Meanwhile I really enjoyed Champagne and found a mass of useful information on Champagne abroad. So I decided it would be a good idea to share this with other people and have concocted a site on Champagne in the Dutch language. “The Dutch Champagne Pages”. The Internet grew and so did the number of visitors of “The Dutch Champagne Pages”. During the first Year I had 1.200 visitors (If I can believe the counter from that time) Meanwhile I have more sites on Champagne and regularly attract that number of visitors on a daily basis.
My business career went quite satisfactory. After doing some ICT consultancy jobs for, amongst others, KLM and the tax department I had the privilege to work for an American Telecommunication company first for a few months in Paris and later on for two years in Dublin. Expatriate salaries were rather handsome in those days and on top of that all expenses were payed for. This gave me some leeway for my Champagne hobby, meals in good restaurants and interesting travels. Travelling even became my work during the years I worked as Manager Customer Services EMEA.
At the end of the year 2000 I went back to the Netherlands and was given a job as Service Marketing Manager EMEA. This work could very well be done via Internet and required less travelling which left me a lot more time to spend on my Champagne hobby. Therefore the majority of the Champagne Pages date from that period. This was also the moment that I started fiddling with PHP and MySQL in order to structuralise the gigantic amount of data that I gathered over all those years and make it available on Internet. Mind you I was still employed. During evening hours I answered e/mails from visitors of my web-site and scrutinised the internet for more information on Champagne. I added everything I found to my web-site and thus made it into one of the most extensive Champagne-sites in the world.It was then that I also started with the maintenance of www links and made those available via Champagne Pages nl, one of the startpages.
I received many questions as to where to buy champagne. I gave advise free of charge and sent a number of people to firms I had become acquainted with in the mean time. In 2003 I calculated that I helped many an importer to a jolly amount of money without gaining a penny for myself. At that time however I had a problem. My salary had plummeted, so financing my hobby was hardly feasible. If only I could lower the price of Champagne and find a way to earn some money there might be a solution for my predicament. So it won’t surprise you that I decided to establish my own business and started importing Champagne myself. So in August 2003, next to my regular job, I established a firm called ´Champagne-Unlimited`. Champagne-Unlimited has been active for three years now and apart from Champagne the port-folio mentions an impressive number of champagne-related articles and services. Gradually I am becoming a bit of an ‘known name” in the Champagne world, though Champagne still does not provide me with a serious means of existence.
Ever since my firm became known I was requested to host Champagne events. During these happenings, starting in 2003, I made it my habit to open a bottle of Champagne by means of a saber . This little trick did not go unnoticed. As a result I was asked by the then residing Ambassador of the Confrérie du Sabre d’Or to become a member of the three-headed board of the Confrérie. The Confrérie existed but did not really seek the limelight at that time. Being a marketing man I felt I had to come up with a plan to make ‘sabering a bottle’ better known to the public. If in the mean time you happen to know the phenomenon or have seen a bottle being ‘sabered’ I may assume that my plan has worked. In 2004 the residing ambassador resigned and I was asked to take over. Of course I accepted gratefully and the last couple of years the Confrérie really went well. The ambassadorship consumed quite a bit of time and more and more required availability during working hours. Since the mortgage needs to be paid during work hours I need to be billable and concentrated on my job. So, I recently handed over the ambassadorship to my good friend Jeroen Bos and became a regular board member again.
The events organised by the Confrérie and my website made gave my name some publicity. Armed with my sabre I went to virtually every Champagne-exhibition. The media who now-a-days seek their information or sources on the internet succeeded in finding me and every now and then I was allowed to write or vent my opinions on the stuff in articles or broadcasts. Meanwhile I get the feeling that I am to become a sort of Dutch Celebrity! Last year my mug was seen on Dutch TV for about as much as five times and the Confrérie and even my website are being written about.
All this is fine but as I mentioned before a handsome turnover or a realistic salary are still to be wished for. Probably due to the fact that I am not a ‘lean and mean’ salesman (and refuse to become one). I like to please people by doing things for them but am a bit reluctant to ask for money. So I shall have to attract a more commercial thinking person or remain working for a boss and keep Champagne as a wonderful hobby and a pleasant means of making money on the sideline. This hobby surely has its jolly side-effects. The other day I was called by a person who told me of a plan to build a record-braking champagne glass-tower. Was I willing to become manager of the team of builders? The meaning of all this being that the glasses used in this record-stunt were to be sold off and the revenue donated to the Emma Children’s hospital. I just love Champagne stunts and the cause of the Children’s hospital also has my sympathy. So I said yes of course! My boss kindly granted me a week’s leave and before we knew it we had a world-record and loads of media-exposure.
What I am going to do after all this? I don’t have any specific plans and take life as it comes. I have some long-term goals and won’t do anything that would compromise them. The Confrérie is doing fine, my website thrives and everything is going well, business-wise as well as privately. Every day I enjoy Champagne and the cheerful people and events that come with it. My hobby and everything around forms a perfect counterbalance for my career in the ICT world and probably prevents me from becoming a nerd or a workaholic. I am perfectly happy with my girlfriend who is with me for seven years now. Without restraining me she keeps me on the straight road and warns me when I’m in danger of taking too much on my plate. We each lead a rather busy, independent life but I relish every moment we spend together, in the company of friends be it at home in a restaurant, on the golf course or in a swimming pool or travelling.
Perhaps some information and details for the interested reader (and that’s what you are, or else you would have left way before)
Recently I have switched to a new Internet-technique that uses NET and MS-MQL. It took me some time to get the hang of it but it offers a number of new possibillities that also come in handy for my ICT job. I will apply this new technique on my websides and in due course will purchase my own server.
After that I will make the websites available in English (and later on in French and German). Last month I did a little bit of testing and saw that within one month I got almost as many hits on the English site than on the Dutch one In order to cover the costs of the Internet (that in the mean time uses up a substantial part of my budget) I will put Champagne-related banners on the site and I shall provide third parties (preferably Champagne-confrères) with shelter on my new server-site. I think that this will work well. Upon inquiry it appeared that people prefer looking up this (my) site to going to commercial sites. Apparently because I tend to give an unbiased and playful opinion on Champagne and all things related. I don’t try to fob off nor impose anything on people..
Next to my job as an Project/interrim manager in the ICT business I will keep up my Champagne-hobby, the membership for the Confrérie du Sabre d’Or as well as Champagne Un-limited. At my work I am a dedicated fan of Prince 2, a project management method that is virtually appliable to anything. I am looking forward to start teaching Prince2 courses to other project and interim managers in the course of this year. Hopefully I wiil succeed this year in becoming active in the internet, financial and/or energy line of business. My job keeps me on my toes and provides for many interesting situations which make me use my brains and creativity in a pleasant way. I am also an AVATAR MASTER, which is also comes in handy before, during and after work.
As for the rest. I will not chase away hens laying golden eggs and will as little as possible shy away from interesting new challenges. Life is too short it should be enjoyed at the maximum every given day.
Carpe Diem,
Jeroen van Craaikamp