Gian (31) is the most business-savvy in our Movely team. Good with numbers, has a critical eye and mainly works behind the scenes. He ensures that the company remains healthy and that the great plans we have are also feasible in business terms. He is both our creative soundboard and a down-to-earth Feyenoord supporter, and contributes to the stable foundation on which we are building Movely. Want to know more about this number whisperer? Meet Gian – the Businessman.

Gian’s daily life outside Movely

Gian lives with his girlfriend Safiya in Rotterdam in a beautiful apartment with a view. A unique building, which they have developed with the help of an architect and together with their neighbors. As Rotterdam enthusiasts, it is the place to be for them, because you can see almost all of Rotterdam.

In his daily life, Gian works full-time as a financial controller at a real estate developer. A whole mouth full. “I am responsible for the real estate developer’s finances, taxes and financial statements.” He really likes the real estate industry. “You could even say I have a passion for real estate.”

So Gian knows his way around numbers. And that is precisely the strength of the collaboration with Cammy. He and Cammy are both co-owners of Movemento, the parent company that includes Movely, Striktly and Mama Juana. Gian takes on the role of investor there, and handles the business elements. Together they ensure a healthy business plan, where Gian keeps an eye on whether the figures are also going in the right direction with regard to the great plans we have for Movely.

Entering the salsa scene

In 2015 Gian came into contact with salsa and started taking lessons with El Yoyo. “I thought it would be great to be able to do it. By nature I am not a flexible guy, and I was a bit of a rusty gate. Actually still am now.”

Salsa was not really easy for him. “I had a lot of trouble learning it. I have also taken private lessons for that reason.” Nevertheless, Gian persevered and had lessons for a number of seasons. “I can just do a little dance. But after one song I think; “Now I have to stop with this lady. She’s probably tired of those boring dance moves.”

Gian would like to take lessons with Safiya, but it hasn’t happened yet. “We do dance salsa in the living room, a few spins just for fun. We do that quite often.” While it’s not the most important thing to him, it’s still on Gian’s bucket list to learn to dance well – or just fine – one more time. “It doesn’t necessarily have to be super good. But I have a lot of other priorities so it’s not happening now.”

First salsa party

The first party that Gian visited also made a deep impression: the Striktly King’s Day party in Podium950. “The atmosphere was super good. Young and old dancing together, accompanied by delicious Surinamese food. I really really enjoyed that. That was one of the first big parties in the evening that I attended.”

After that Gian didn’t go to many salsa parties where he could show and apply his moves. “I was often disappointed that those parties often lasted until quite late. Because I work a lot, I can’t easily party until very late. Then I would be worthless the next day.” But luckily there were the Striktly nights where Gian could indulge himself. “I thought it was a godsend that you had Striktly early on Tuesday evening, at Stadhuisplein. I really liked that.”

Foreign attraction

During his studies, Gian lived in Lisbon for a while. Here he picked up some Portuguese and maintained it through contact with Portuguese friends. With serious plans to emigrate, he went to Brazil a few years ago for a language course. The course was in preparation for later living in Brazil for a few years.

During the language course he got a taste of the Brazilian nightlife. “It was not necessarily a salsa club, but a club where different Brazilian music was played.” In order for the learned language to sink in properly, Gian wanted to apply it in practice. He thought the nightlife environment was perfect for this. “It’s quite difficult to just start interacting with the people there. But when you dance, you already have something of an interaction and therefore a starting point.” When I ask him if he also danced salsa there, he laughs. “I used my salsa moves, but maybe it wasn’t always to salsa music.”

Just before his departure to Brazil, Gian met his girlfriend Safiya, so emigrating to Brazil never happened. He stayed in the Netherlands for love (and because of the less attractive business climate in Brazil at the time).

“I really enjoy the scene, I felt were welcome”

When I ask Gian what appeals to him about the salsa scene, his face opens up. He says with a big smile: “I really like the atmosphere of salsa. Very friendly.” But the way they treated each other was also new to him. “Suddenly I was approached by women: ‘Do you want to dance?’ With a wink, not with the thought of seducing you, but really to dance. I also found that very refreshing.”

You can see from his face that Gian is not enough words to describe the scene. “There is never a fight. I used to go out quite often in Rotterdam on the Stadhuisplein, then I would regularly have trouble with someone. And you never have that with salsa. I find that very positive. You also see that everyone is trying to connect.”

The good food, the people. All together, according to Gian, creates an atmosphere of positivity and conviviality. But he prefers outdoor dancing. A piece of magic. “I actually like dancing outside much more, because then more people are touched by it. People who walk by and think: ‘Hey what is this?’. That doesn’t even mean they dance along, but when they pass they like it, something happens. That creates a positive atmosphere. Or you see that people are teaching each other. It’s a very friendly scene, I like that a lot. They are really just lovely people.”

Fanatic Feyenoord supporter

In this conversation it emerges that Gian is especially attached to the loving sides of the salsa scene. The people, the connection, the space that everyone gives each other and the friendly and positive character. But at the same time I sit opposite a very fanatical Feyenoord supporter. That can be quite a contrast to what some people know from the outside of football supporters.

Gian laughs. He understands that it can seem that way, but he sees it differently. “There is a lot of love involved with Feyenoord, but especially for Feyenoord itself. And it really is a family. It really connects people. So if I meet someone, and he likes football or he is also rooting for Feyenoord, then you immediately have a connection.”

Gian likes to focus on the connecting character as a supporter. “I’m generally a very quiet person, but I really like it once a week or every two weeks to get really worked up about something that I know doesn’t really matter. That’s nice.” He mainly does this in his own way: singing loudly with his Feyenoord mates for his club during a match.

The perfect business match

Gian and Cammy have only known each other since 2019. One day, Gian saw an Instagram post from Charissa, whom he knew as an assistant at the dance class. Charissa and Cammy were developing fanny packs for Striktly. Gian thought it was a cool idea and extended a helping hand. “Then I sent a message saying: ‘Hey I like finances, if you need help, I’ll be happy to think along.’” Cammy was a bit hesitant at first. She didn’t want to just share financial information without knowing who Gian was. “I then stopped by and did some consulting work for her. After a while Cammy suggested: Would you want to become a partner, I’m looking for a partner.”

As co-owner, Gian is an investor, to help build the future of Movely. Together with Cammy, they weigh up the decisions, with Gian focusing on the financial and business part. “I am also a sounding board for Cammy, as a sparring partner. Cammy is the entrepreneur who is on it all day, and I am a kind of advisor who works where it is needed. That can also be operational, for example at the parties.”

Together, Cammy and Gian are nicely balanced. Cammy is the visionary with beautiful big dreams that Movely can grow towards, and Gian keeps a sober eye and looks at the feasibility. “The higher goal of Movely is to connect, and to make everything grow. But at least you have to cover your costs to be able to keep doing fun things.”

The future of Movely

Movely represents the salsa scene for Gian. “It brings fun and positivity. For many people it is a highlight of their week or month. I really like that.”

When I ask him what he sees for Movely in the future, he dreams big: “That we can lift the whole scene and connect it with each other via the app.” But he would also like to expand the scene further. “Connecting people who have not yet been introduced to salsa. Precisely because it is such a positive scene, that we get more people in it. I think we always get better with a bit of positivity.”

Have you been inspired and do you also want to help build the future of Movely? Then follow us on Instagram.
Would you like to talk to Gian about the future of Movely and do you have a serious proposal or creative idea? You can reach him via gian@movely.nl

gian@movely.nl

You might know Cammy (33) from Striktly on tuesdays in Rotterdam. An event that takes place outside on Stadhuisplein in the summer, and indoors the rest of the year. But she is also the founder of Movely. Cammy has a clear vision for the potential of the salsa scene and this is the driving force behind Movely. Do you want to know more about this vibrant entrepreneur in who sees every setback as a challenge? Meet Cammy – La Capitana!

An entrepreneur at heart

In her daily life, Cammy is a true entrepreneur. Five years ago, she built Striktly from the ground up, alongside her full-time job as Marketing and Communications Manager. For three years she has been self-employed and co-owner of Movemento, the parent company that includes Movely, Striktly and Mama Juana. But Cammy has also recently started a company in coaching where she helps people with their habits, goals and personal growth during a brisk walk.

While her businesses certainly preoccupy her, for Cammy entrepreneurship goes much further. Or actually ‘being entrepreneurial’, as she describes it herself. “An entrepreneurial person is the basis in which I recognize myself. For me, that means a mix of spotting opportunities and taking action on them.” As far as Cammy is concerned, the label ‘entrepreneur’ goes further than just in the field of work. “It’s also about confidence. Knowing that if it doesn’t work out right away, it will work out left or right. About taking risks because you believe in a bigger picture or what you are doing it for.”

So being an entrepreneur is really a way of life for Cammy. For example, she is working on her mindset on a daily basis and as a hobby she reads books about strategy and biographies about inspiring companies. She looks at everything with an insatiable curiosity: how do other companies do that, how do you set up a thriving platform and what can we learn from ‘the greats of the earth’? She loves to immerse herself in everything related to (personal) growth. From a Happinez festival, to a documentary to an audiobook about Growth Hacking. “I prefer to focus on personal development rather than shopping.”

Cammy has always had that entrepreneurial spirit. As a child she was already into organizing. “For example, in primary school I started training and coaching the girls’ football team, because then they could improve at the school football tournament. Not because I thought I was better, but because I was getting football training myself and so I had an idea of ​​what such a training should look like.”

First time salsa

The first time Cammy danced salsa is still vivid in her mind. It was 2013 in Madrid, where she was on vacation with a friend. “We were eating , paella of course, and heard nice music. I loved salsa and bachata without even knowing that it had that name.” They went looking for where the music came from, and chatted themselves inside. When she stepped inside Cammy had the ‘wow’ experience right away. The atmosphere, the music and dancing together immediately appealed to her. “And then I was asked to dance. He was a very dominant Hispanic man, and there was no way I could get no in between. I was perplexed. That was my first experience: being completely guided and floating on the dance floor. And after the dance there was no sticking, you got a high-five or a hug. It was the atmosphere where I thought: when I come home I want to do this. Then I want to look it up, then I want to learn it.”

Friendship through salsa

When she got home there was no doubt: she wanted to do this more often! Because the next salsa class season was already full, Cammy was only allowed to participate if she brought a dance partner. “If I have my mind set on something, I go for it. So I thought: no problem, then I need a man. How do I get a man who wants to dance? Facebook! I then made a Facebook call to which Marco responded”.
Marco, now better known as DJ Marco, didn’t know Cammy personally at the time. They were in each other’s network because they were colleagues, but he worked in another branch so they hardly saw each other. Nevertheless, they went on the salsa adventure together.

By starting salsa together, a close friendship has developed along the way. “Apart from dance lessons, you go through all personal developments together, from insecurities from the first time on the dance floor, to going to your first party. Then at least we had each other. To dance with, to hide behind.”
Now, 7 years later, Marco is also a very well-known face in the Rotterdam salsa scene as a Latin DJ and he was the best man at the wedding of Cammy and Bré. What salsa can’t do!

Bellydance queen

Salsa was not the first dance Cammy encountered. By the time she discovered salsa, she already had quite a list of dance styles. “I’ve actually danced all my life. When I was little I loved going to ballet. I did jazz, classical and tap dance.”

When she moved to another city around the age of 15, Cammy started looking for a new hobby and came into contact with belly dancing. “I did that quite seriously. I put a lot of time into it: I followed all the lessons that were available. On average, I attended about five hours of lessons a week. Eventually I also performed with belly dancing, and I even started a dance school in it: AnyBody Move. I was basically the salsa addict as you know me now, but in bellydance.”

She left the belly dancing behind when she left home because other priorities came up. When asked if she would like to take up belly dancing again, she looks doubtful. “It is a phase that has been closed. I tried to pick it up once, but it just doesn’t click anymore. An important part of why I like salsa so much now is the social part through partner dance, belly dancing is done solo.”

From dancer to dance entrepeneur with Striktly

Although Cammy first entered the salsa scene in 2013, in just two years she had packed a full dance floor at the official opening of Striktly in 2015.

The creation of Striktly actually went very gradually and arose out of self-interest, says Cammy. She took her first salsa lessons with Typical Tropical, with Cher Soraya with Mike as an assistant. Yes, Movely team member Mike! (read the interview with Mike here). From the dance class, the need arose to practice more often. What was available in the area was not up to par. Together with Robert and Marco she came to a solution. “Let’s practice together outside in the summer. Then we have our own ingredients, our own music, our own day. That was LOTS. Marco came up with that name, Latin On The Streets.”

LOTS worked well in the summer with nice weather, but since the Netherlands does not only have sunny days, the ingredients of what Striktly is today came together. “We wanted to fulfill our own wish to be able to practice ourselves. There was never the intention of an event. But when it started to rain, we ended up at Coconuts.” One thing led to another, and September 2015 saw the first official Striktly event on Tuesday. “For me it was really a playground of learnings and challenges. Basically designing the ideal evening and how to achieve that.”

Striktly has made Cammy a familiar face in the salsa scene among dancers and other dance entrepreneurs alike. Although Cammy isn’t afraid to chat with everyone or grab the microphone, this isn’t necessarily the nature of the beast. “What people don’t expect from me is that I don’t like being in the spotlight at all. I do it because there was no one else to do it, and now I’ve gotten used to it.”

“Salsa is my life”

When asked what salsa dancing means to Cammy, she answers resolutely and nods in the affirmative: “I think I can say that salsa is my life. I owe what my life looks like now to salsa”. Cammy takes us along: that’s how she met her husband Bré and her business partner Gian in the salsa scene, and she has developed close friendships. But it also gives her purpose and meaning in life. The network she has built up with the help of salsa also proves to be valuable outside the salsa scene: “for example, my freelance assignments came from my connections in the scene when I stopped my full-time job.”

Movely as a connecting factor

Cammy started Movely because she saw that things could be better in the salsa scene. In her opinion, the scene is ready for an upgrade and professionalization. “Everyone goes through a dance journey: from your first lesson to being asked to dance for the first time. From choosing your dancing shoes for the first time, up to and including which festival I’m going to. That whole journey is hidden. You have to put in a lot of effort to get your information. That works, because the people who are enthusiastic collect it for themselves. But I believe that if you help each other, you can get a lot more out of the scene. That is already happening, people help each other but it remains on a small scale. You just have to have the right connections or be in an active WhatsApp group, for example.”

According to Cammy, islands are created in the current way and there are certain connections that are not made. She cites the example of someone who is particularly enthusiastic about a specific Cuban dance teacher, and another in the scene who is desperately looking for such a teacher. However, the tip for that great teacher doesn’t get past the first person’s network because this teacher couldn’t be found on the internet. Movely can build that bridge by bringing everything together in one place. Win-win according to Cammy. “When they come into contact with each other, the dancer gets the time of his life, and the dance teacher can continue to practice his profession better.”

Because there are islands now, there is a dependency around them, and Cammy wants to get rid of that. “So that, regardless of who you know, you can easily find your way in the salsa scene and have a lot more fun as a result.” This will also help make the scene more accessible to new people.

Movely as a piece of ideal world

With a nice backpack filled with dance experience in different dance scenes such as jazz ballet or belly dancing you can ask yourself: why salsa? “Because that’s where the community aspect is. I’m sticking to that. The social aspect of salsa, that’s what I find so fantastic.” Cammy wants Movely as an organization to act primarily as the glue within the dance community, by bringing all existing parts together. Supporting on the social, information and skills aspect.

Cammy really sees Movely as a piece of the ideal world. “Where it may be about seeing the best in people. I want to set up something that also carries those core values ​​behind the scenes.”

Are you inspired by this article and do you want to contribute to Movely’s journey? Or would you like to participate in brainstorming sessions that Cammy occasionally organizes? Then send a message to cammy@movely.nl.

If you follow Movely on instagram you may have seen her on the stories. Hiske is 31 years old and lives in Rotterdam. She has been active in the salsa scene for years and at her peak danced up to five times a week. Unfortunately, she has only danced occasionally for the past few years. Fortunately, she has found another way to stay involved with the good vibes from the scene: by working at Movely. Meet Hiske – the Spotlight.

Hiske’s daily life

She cannot describe exactly what Hiske does in her daily life in one sentence. “Tough question, I’m a bit of a jack-of-all-trades?” In 2020, Hiske worked for three days at our parent company Movemento: the company that manages both Striktly and Movely. As a Customer Experience designer she was responsible for everything related to the user experience, both online and offline. Because no events could be organized due to corona, her attention has been completely on Movely since April and she has mainly focused on creating visibility for the brand. From 2021 she will continue this for a few hours a week.

In addition, Hiske has her own company with various activities in which telling stories is her common thread. She has been a freelance copywriter and has her own blog. “I like to share my own brain farts.” But recently she also gives Human Design readings to give clients insight into themselves. “What I really like is that you can see the potential of someone in such a chart, and you can really empower people with it if they start to see themselves that way too.”

The workshop that changed her student life

Although she used to go to the Latin festival Dias Latinos in Amersfoort with her parents every year, salsa dancing only started to itch when Hiske took part in a workshop at the salsa student association SoSalsa in Delft in 2007. There she discovered the feeling that she now describes as ‘dance flow’. “It’s a feeling of letting go or surrender or something? When I dance I’m better than I actually am. It shows me a bit of the best version of myself.”

Soon she was addicted to salsa and wanted to experience this feeling as much as possible. “I went to all the parties of the association, and I was always the last one left.” She mainly learned salsa by just doing it. She already had a dance background with street dance, and progressed quickly because she was easy to follow and covered a lot of dance miles. “It really depended on which dancer I danced with. How that person leads completely determined how I danced. That was not always appreciated by everyone.” she laughs. It was only when Hiske auditioned for a show team two years later that she started taking lessons. She was allowed in the show group on the condition that she would still learn the basics. “I had no spinning technique and bumped too much. Thanks to the show team, I quickly got a lot better.”

The student association SoSalsa was the connection with the salsa scene for Hiske. It was kind of a small community within the bigger scene. She was very active in the association. She had already served on several committees when she was asked for a PR role on the board. “It actually seemed cool to have been on a board, it’s also good for your resume. And I was already breathing salsa, so it was a logical choice.”

Dancing discomfort

The fact that Hiske’s life grew out of salsa during her studies is also reflected in her education. During her bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design, she took part in the HEMA design competition. The problem she wanted to solve was one that she always had herself: “As a woman, when you go dancing, you usually have no pockets in your dress and no bag, because that is floating around. So I always put my money and the wardrobe receipt in my bra. Well, you dance – so you sweat, so you could pick that receipt off your skin at the end of the night.” Hiske won the HEMA public award design competition with her design, the “cleavage wallet”. For the women who recognize this problem: this wallet for in your bra is still for sale at HEMA.

A life without salsa

Although Hiske doesn’t dance much anymore, the salsa scene has left its mark in different layers of her life. “I started walking and dancing in heels because of salsa. People around me thought that was crazy too. you heels? you dresses? huh? I think it was a bit of rediscovering my femininity, secretly.”

Hiske thinks the great thing about the salsa scene is that wherever you go dancing, you can come alone and then be sweet all night. “If you go to a party, in any country, you can always dance. You kind of speak the same language.” She has been dancing alone in London, Berlin, Barcelona and Rome. Her trick as a woman at a party when you go alone? “Find a man who can dance well for a show-off dance for everyone to see. Then you will be covered for the rest of the evening.”

When asked what her life would have been like without salsa, she looks sad. “Pathetic. Then I wouldn’t have been with my current boyfriend for over 10 years, I wouldn’t have the same friends I have now and I would have had a boring student life. It really had a big impact on my social life. So without that my life must be very sad.”

Movely

Being able to work at Movely has brought Hiske a little closer to dancing. “I think it’s a combination of a bit of nostalgia because I always thought the salsa scene was very special, and making a bit of an impact.”

The bit of impact that Hiske wants to achieve with Movely is close to the impact she is trying to make with her own company. “What I like about Movely is that it represents my own core values. Such as empowerment: bringing out the best in people. The feeling I already experience while dancing, then I’m on fire, to bring that feeling up in the entire scene.” She is therefore very motivated to help make Movely great. “For me, Movely represents the best the salsa scene has to offer.”

She already brings this feeling of empowerment back in her work in various places. For example, she writes the interviews with the team to introduce them. “I have deliberately chosen to present our team members as ‘Heroes’. Because they are. I want them to reread their interview that they feel themselves growing and see and think of themselves in the best light; ‘Wow, is that me?’ So far that has worked out quite well.”

Because salsa has meant so much to Hiske in her life, that is also part of what she wants to give attention to in the community. Connecting the dancers with the help of stories, because according to her they have a connecting effect. “There are all kinds of special stories in the scene that are worth bringing to light.”

In a year’s time, Hiske can imagine that Movely has really taken on a face from the community and that it represents what people in the salsa scene experience, sharing beautiful experiences and stories.

Do you want to share with the community what salsa has done for you or do you have another great dance story? Mail your story or talk to Hiske, you can reach her via hiske@movely.nl.

The first thing you notice when you meet Mike is his big smile and his playful and warm energy. Michael (30) lives in Vlaardingen, dances passionately and likes to play video games. At Movely, he will use his skills for one day a week to make the app as fun and engaging as possible. Meet Mike – the Gamification Wizard.

Mike’s daily life

Mike is a star at explaining things and loves to pass on his own skillset. He applies this in various places in his life. In his ‘day job’ he is a trainer in leadership skills, soft skills and communication. He has done this at companies such as KPN and Coolblue.

But he does not only apply his explaining skills in the corporate world. He is also active in the salsa scene and passes on his knowledge as a dance teacher. Although Mike has taught salsa, bachata and kizomba classes, lately his focus has mainly been on bachata and kizomba. “It is difficult to maintain all three dance styles at a high level”. However, Mike has always continued to give salsa lessons at “Blinde Liefde voor Salsa”, to the blind and partially sighted. At the moment, because of corona, that is the only lesson he still gives. Although it’s a bit quiet now, Mike is eager to pick it up again: “I can’t wait to teach dance again.”

Outside of his professional ambitions, Mike also likes to spend his time playing video games. These are both inspiration and relaxation for him. “I’m pretty good at video games. When people meet me in my professional life, they don’t expect me to. And people who meet me playing games don’t expect me to have a professional life.” He also gets a lot of his gamification inspiration from the games he encounters in his private time.

The 13-year-old that took dance classes with his mom

Mike picked up the salsa virus early on. He first came into contact with dance when he was 13, although that first time was not entirely voluntary. “My mother bribed me. There was a start-up lesson from Salsaventura in Vlaardingen, and it was on the verge of not going ahead”. Although Mike really didn’t want to, he eventually went along. After the first lesson he was hooked and within a few weeks he was hooked. “I really couldn’t do it, I really had the coordination of an Easter egg. If they said left foot forward, then I put my right foot to the side.” The course lasted ten weeks, but soon it was no longer a must for Mike: “it was really my highlight of the week”.

Most 13 year old boys have very different hobbies. Pointing out how special this is and that he was there so early, Mike jokes that he needed the lead. “I really had no talent when it came to dancing.”

Too young for salsa parties

A year after his first class, Mike went to a party for the first time, again with his mother. The party under the Erasmus Bridge made a deep impression. “I first learned bachata at salsa under the bridge.” From then on he wanted to go to parties much more often, but that was not allowed because he was still too young. Due to circumstances, Mike couldn’t manage to keep dancing around the age of 15 and so there was a dance break of a year. When Mike was 16 he picked up dancing again and went to parties again. “I would go to dance class with friends, they would have contact with my mother and they would have to bring me home at a certain time.”

Now when Mike sees dancers under 18 in the scene he thinks it’s very cute. But in his 16-year-old shoes, he didn’t experience it that way at all: “I didn’t feel cute then, I felt very mature.”

From showteam to teacher

Michael had lessons at Typical Tropical and danced in a demo/show team, where there was training without a specific performance goal, led by Cher and Randy. “We got along really well, and had a really good time together.” When Randy moved to the other side of the country, Cher became the dance teacher and looked for an assistant. Cher saw potential in Mike and approached him to become an assistant when he was 19. “I thought it was very exciting, and super scary but I said yes.” It was then that Michael’s teacher career began, trained by Cher and later Helen. “Those are really my salsa teacher moms”.

International dance career

Over the past 12 years, Mike has danced in many different locations. “I don’t even know if I could list them all, because there are really many.” Although he has danced in Portugal, France, Sweden and Iceland, among other places, it did not stop at Europe. Jamaica, Vietnam and Shanghai have also been checked off his list. With kizomba, he has taught in many of these locations. “I’ve traveled a lot more with kizomba than with salsa, in a lot less time.”

One of the festivals that impressed Mike the most was the old Amsterdam Salsa Festival. This was his first introduction to dance festivals. “It was epic. The people who come from all countries, the passion for dancing that comes together and the level of the dances you have.” A few years later on his second visit to the festival, even though he had paid as a guest, Mike volunteered to step in when the organization needed help during the festival. “I have stayed every year from that day until the festival was closed. I’ve been in the organization for about five years because I think it’s such a cool festival.”

Such a festival brings out the best elements of the salsa scene for Mike. “The salsa scene cannot be categorized demographically.” His eyes light up when he tells how people from all over the world, systems and castes meet in the salsa scene. “When a doctor and a municipal official walk past each other on the street, they don’t greet each other. They don’t understand each other’s worlds. And the next day they might be dancing together. It connects.”

“Salsa really shaped me”

Because Michael started dancing so early, he believes this has had a major (positive) impact on his development. “I was able to three-quarters skip a lot of teenage insecurities. It really shaped me to a great extent.”

Dancing still has such an important place in Mike’s life. The social aspect, being sociable with other people is an essential part for him. “I would still go there to enjoy it, even if I couldn’t dance anymore.”

Upleveling the scene

Mike sees Movely as a visionary company. “I have always felt and found that there is so much more to do and get in our world (salsa scene).” According to him, there is still a bit of professionalism missing and the entire scene can still take steps up. “We started with a party price of €5, and if you paid €10, you were going to the biggest party you could imagine. While if you want to buy a ticket for Sensation, you will soon pay between €50 and €100.” Mike believes that such amounts give organizations much more body to be able to do cool things, to really go for a ‘wow experience’. Something that rarely happens in the salsa scene. Now it’s all about passion. Which according to Mike is already very nice, but only the beginning. “There’s so much more to it, and Movely is the company that’s going to make sure it comes out.”

Gamification-expert at Movely

Mike has a background in Communication and Multimedia Design with a specialization in gamification. He sees great value in applying this in the salsa scene as well. For example, he describes E-Gym that has revolutionized sports by adding gamification. “Hanging on fitness equipment is not fun for anyone, but the moment you can get rewards or gain insights that are really great for you, for example how balanced your body is, and how young your muscle groups are, then it’s suddenly fun. Getting motivation that works for you as a person is what good gamification can do.”

Upleveling the dance scene is something we should do together, according to Mike, which makes it important that the members in the scene are actively involved. “What can we do to make sure that people feel motivated to join the community, to help each other, to actively participate in making our scene more beautiful?”

Do you want to contribute ideas or share what motivates you in the salsa scene? Or would you like to chat about gamification? Michael is your guy, because he can chat about these topics for hours! You can reach him via Michael@movely.nl

Call her the glue of the community, the connector: Chantal, 38, lives in Leerdam and brings the Movely community together. Today we get a look behind the scenes at team member Chantal: who is she, what is her appeal with the salsa scene and what will she do at Movely?

Chantal’s daily life

Besides the fact that Chantal is the mother of a beautiful 10-year-old daughter, she also works at Rabobank. She has been working there for 12.5 years in various positions, including community management. “I learned a lot there. For example, what triggers a person to want to belong to a community?”

She currently takes care of connecting colleagues all over the world who work in the agricultural sector. “You have to deal with different cultures and language barriers, which sometimes makes it more difficult to connect. Someone in Brazil has a very different kind of culture than someone in Australia.” Although there are many differences, Chantal does not look so much at what separates them, but looks for the common denominator: the interfaces that connect people. Because that basis of connection is necessary for growth. “You want them to be able to connect with each other, so that they can learn from each other and network.”

Family person

Chantal is half Indonesian and half Dutch and proud of her roots: “I’ve been to Indonesia before, and I also went to the house where my father grew up. That was really cool.” Her goal is to do the same trip with her daughter, sister and her children. “I am very proud of my background. I think it’s important that my daughter gets that way too.” That is why Chantal raises her daughter with the language, the culture and the food. “The food is super tasty, so Indonesian cooking is mainly done at home.”

In any case, family is very important to Chantal: “I am really a family person. I like the feeling of family: the love to each other, togetherness. That’s really who I am.”

When Chantal started dancing at Striktly in Rotterdam, she discovered the same feeling: “It touched me so much. I also experienced the feeling I have towards my family there.”

Dancing is living

Dancing has always been a passion of Chantal and therefore a large part of her childhood. “I started ballroom dancing when I was 12. Latin really was my preference: cha cha, samba & rumba.” From the age of 16, the interest turned more towards street dance, hip hop and later Zumba. She rarely sat really still. When a colleague told her in 2003 that she was going to salsa lessons, Chantal wanted to join immediately. “That colleague friend went to take dance lessons in The Hague, I lived in Soest, and she lived in Almere. I would have dinner with her in Almere, then we would drive together to The Hague for an hour of lessons and then drive back to Almere together where I sometimes stayed the night.”
Because she had so much fun at dance school Salsero, Chantal stayed there for a few years until she thought: “This can probably be done much closer to home”.

That is how she ended up at Union Salsa in Utrecht where she stayed for years and ended up in a bachata show team. There they trained fanatically for a performance; three times a week was the standard. “We had a lot of fun. I am very happy that I had the opportunity there to develop myself and take my dance experience to a higher level.”

A dream came true for Chantal when she got the chance to teach. “It was really cool to see people grow enormously in dancing, but also in the fun they have. To be able to contribute to that makes me very enthusiastic.”

After three years she made the choice to stop teaching. “After a while it is just not possible to combine it with your full-time job and being a mother.”

Since then, she has mainly been found at parties and socials to fulfill her dance craving. “I’d rather challenge myself in the salsa room than in the bachata room. I really like spiders, especially when things go well haha.” For example, Chantal’s record of spinning with partner is 12 spins in a row. She says she can’t do that anymore. “I remember I was very happy and jumped. I’m still standing and I can just continue the dance!”

Although she mainly travels all over the Netherlands for all the parties and drives from Utrecht to Rotterdam every Tuesday for Striktly on Tuesday, Chantal has also danced in some exotic places. “When I go on holiday or a weekend away, I usually look for: which parties are there and is it near the hotel?” She has already danced in Mexico, Brazil, Miami, Frankfurt and Antwerp. Croatia is still on her dance bucket list. Just like Latin Weekender and Antillean parties that unfortunately cannot continue this year.

Now that there are restrictions for dancing during the corona crisis, Chantal experiences a considerable loss. “I really feel a hole now that we’re not allowed to dance. I don’t feel complete.” In order to keep the dance fire going, she dances at home with her daughter or with her sister. “Just turn on the music. Then I feel that enthusiasm and that passion for dancing again. Then my dancing heart jumps again.”

Movely Community

Chantal has a strategic view, psychological knowledge and an intrinsic drive to connect people. That, in combination with her hands-on knowledge from her community management role, makes Chantal the perfect candidate to work at Movely to help strengthen the community. She does this one day a week next to her job at Rabobank.

For example, she maps out for Movely how we can create a safe and inspiring environment where everyone can express themselves best. “I really want to expand the community. That we can share everything in the field of dance. But also connection in everything that is already available. Events, dance classes. But we need each other for that.”

There are already many Movely members who are all eager to go to a party again. Chantal thinks that too should be given attention: “Especially in this time, how can we help to keep your passion, even though we can’t dance now?”

Bringing all these elements together is the core of the community, according to Chantal. The connection she refers to: “When I think of Movely, I think of joy, enthusiasm, connecting, together, sharing passion, and above all open. You feel welcome to participate in everything that is offered. Trust and openness.”

From that feeling, Chantal goes in search of what is needed: “I want to be ‘seen’ when I register or join something. I also want that for the members of Movely: a warm welcome.”

Chat & think along!

Do you have great ideas that match this? Do you want to have a nice chat or think about the community? Join the conversation in the app or contact Chantal by emailing her at
Chantal@movely.nl