Meet Celina Sadijo from the FEM-START Team!
Meet Marieke Siemerink from the FEM-START Team! Hi Celina! We’re thrilled to be chatting with you today. Could you share a little bit about yourself?
Coming from a background in filmmaking, my passion for connecting people and taking action led me to organize hackathons and establish the women in VR meetup group in London. Unfortunately, at the time, it wasn’t a safe space for women due to prevalent locker room talk. Despite feeling insecure and being told I didn’t belong because of my film background, my journey evolved through co-working spaces and journalism. I interviewed startups in immersive tech, leading to involvement in tech-for-good initiatives like the ‘XR Diversity Initiative.’ The turning point was my project using virtual reality (VR) for foster parent training, rooted in my personal experience as an adopted individual. The project, ‘Being Me,’ revealed the impact of abusive environments on neural pathways. Creative art therapy, as we co-designed with BAAT therapists during the lockdown to create the software laid the foundation for Anomie, driven by a desire to help those who’ve faced similar struggles.
My journey into the social VR world during lockdown revealed parallels with therapy. Seeking input from therapists and coaches, I engaged in co-designing to understand their needs. Winning InnovateUK awards, including the ‘Women in Innovation’ award, provided crucial capital for prototyping. I met my co-founder on Twitter before joining the accelerator. Joining an impact accelerator aligned with my mission proved instrumental. Learning and growth during the pandemic stemmed from this unique experience.
Engaging in virtual events, conversations with early adopters in charities, schools, and NGOs, and being part of relevant WhatsApp groups formed the core of building relationships with customers. Paid pilots, trialling and finding ambassadors who support us are essential to our success.
Attempting a Virtual Reality NFT auction in 2022, despite good intentions, proved challenging due to external factors like the war in Ukraine. It taught us to thoroughly evaluate events and community work beforehand. Additionally, handling data from various software without a proper framework was overwhelming. Adopting tools like Obsidian with metadata helped streamline data collection, emphasising the importance of organizing information efficiently.
Transforming an idea into a viable business is undeniably the most significant achievement for Anomie.
Apply to awards and competitions, seek support, and build a network to propel your product forward. Embrace a growth mindset and view failure as a crucial part of the learning process. Surround yourself with cheerleaders, people who believe in your vision, challenge you, and provide constructive feedback. Don’t fear launching an imperfect product; the market will guide your improvements. Visualize your goals, identify obstacles, solve the top three, and move forward.
Anomie has some exciting developments in store! Contact us through our website if you are looking to buy and use Anomie. We are also collaborating with a charity to create a training program for clinicians to use Anomie for therapeutic purposes. The program will be accessible to anyone with a browser, headset, or WiFi. We’re also exploring generative AI, mixed and augmented reality, engaging in discussions with investors. Keep an eye out for the latest updates as we continue our journey of self-discovery!
If you want to know more about Nina’ company Anomie, click here!
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Meet Marieke Siemerink from the FEM-START Team! Hi Celina! We’re thrilled to be chatting with you today. Could you share a little bit about yourself?
Meet Lulu Skantze: Founder of StoryTime, the magazine made for your children to learn through the power of story-telling! Hello Susanne! We’re thrilled to be
Meet Marieke Siemerink from the FEM-START Team! Hi Marieke! We’re thrilled to be chatting with you today. Could you share a little bit about
Meet Lulu Skantze: Founder of StoryTime, the magazine made for your children to learn through the power of story-telling! Hello Susanne! We’re thrilled to be
Please don’t hesitate to send us an email at
info@FEM-START.com
Join our new free 2-month training, sponsored by Rabobank! Starting on the 6th of May and running until the end of June in Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Rotterdam.
The enthusiasm for this training program is high and it’s full at the moment. If you’re interested or you have any questions, please contact us via info@fem-start.com!