Established in 2012 and headquartered in Amsterdam, industry-leading hospitality cloud, Mews, has been awarded Golden Scaler of the Netherlands.
[Rotterdam, 5 November 2024] - Using cloud technology to empower businesses in the hospitality industry, Mews has achieved unprecedented growth. Having surpassed a $1.2 billion valuation in early 2024, and serving 5,500 customers globally, Mews is now named the fastest-growing company in the Netherlands based on research conducted by Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship.
During the annual Top 250 Awards Ceremony, CEO Matthijs Welle was handed the Golden Scaler Award by the previous year’s winner, Sonja Meijerink of Valcon. Prior winners include media.monks, Picnic, CoolBlue, JustEat Takeway and Rituals.
Matthijs Welle, CEO of Mews, commented, “It’s an honor to be named the fastest-growing company in the Netherlands. One in three bedrooms in Dutch hotels are managed with Mews, and we are proud to be recognized here. We have huge ambitions to be a global leader, and we now serve hospitality brands in 85 countries.” He added, “We set out to disrupt the legacy technologies that exist in our industry, and we are well-positioned to continue defining the future of hospitality. This award recognizes the hard work of our entire team who are dedicated to the growth of Mews and our customers.”
Top 250 companies innovate their business models in response to megatrends, such as rise and wide adoption of AI, and other societal transitions. Modernising the hospitality sector with digital transformation, Mews stands as an exemplary Top 250 company, combining exceptional growth and commitment to the economic revival of the sector that was hard-hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
ECE selects the Top 250 among Dutch high-growth firms – those firms that achieve an annual average FTE growth rate of at least 20% over a 3-year period. The Golden Scaler is selected using both absolute and relative employee growth measures.
We expect this remarkable growth milestone to be one of many for Mews as the company continues to expand to provide excellent software solutions to hoteliers worldwide.
Combining Growth and Impact
Sustainable scaling, driven by an innovative business model, generates significant spillovers and creates positive societal impact. However, directing these innovative business ideas into a lasting societal change is a marathon, not a sprint. It often takes a decade or more to perfect such models, highlighting the importance of long-term dedication over just a quick start. The Top 250 of 2024 challenges the myth that rapid scaling must begin right from a company's early days, or that there's a set schedule to achieve explosive growth. This year’s Top 250 features the oldest cohort yet, with an average age of 16.4 years. The increasing average age, which rose from 11.3 years in 2022 to 13.4 years in 2023, shows a clear trend: successful businesses are taking their time to grow and mature.
The high-growth landscape is shifting towards more mature companies. While the list is still dominated by firms between six and 10 years old (45%), 35% are between 11 and 20 years old. Founded in 2012, Golden Scaler Mews shares the podium with Adyen, founded in 2002, and Kramer Food Family founded in 2006, with its roots as a family-run business going as far as 1890.
About the event
The event took place in Rotterdam and was supported by the City of Rotterdam. Robert Simons, Alderman of Port, Economy, Hospitality and Governance opened the event and gave a warm welcome to the Top 250. The research highlights were presented by high-growth specialist prof. Dr. Justin Jansen of Rotterdam School of Management.
Top 250 research and the annual Awards Ceremony are supported by the City of Rotterdam, nlgroeit, Dealroom.co, HelloPrint and Upstream Festival.
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About Mews
Mews is the leading platform for the new era of hospitality. Powering over 5,500 customers across more than 85 countries, Mews Hospitality Cloud is designed to streamline operations for modern hoteliers, transform the guest experience and create more profitable businesses. Customers include BWH Hotels, Strawberry, The Social Hub and Airelles Collection. Mews was named Best PMS (2024) and listed among the Best Places to Work in Hotel Tech (2021, 2022, 2024) by Hotel Tech Report, as well as World's Best Hotel PMS Provider (2023) and World's Best Independent Hotel PMS Provider (2022, 2023) by World Travel Tech Awards. Mews has raised $335 million from investors including Goldman Sachs Alternatives, Kinnevik and Revaia to transform hospitality.
About Top 250
Top 250 is an annual research by Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship, initiated in cooperation with prof. Dr. Justin Jansen. The publication of the Insights Report is followed by the exclusive Awards Ceremony, that gathers CEOs and C-level leaders of the 250 fastest-growing companies in the Netherlands.
The Top 250 Insights Report outlines the trends and composition of the group of fastest-growing companies in the Netherlands. The numbers in the report are based on a quantitative model designed to analyse this group, including number of FTEs, age, location, founders, and efforts in sustainability and SDGs.
The Top 250 research was carried out using data from companies enrolled in the research via a survey by Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship, and data from Dealroom and Orbis.
To be included in the Top 250, companies must be headquartered in the Netherlands and meet the OECD (2016) high-growth firm criteria. Growth is measured using FTE data, and the nominees for Golden Scaler, Young Scaler, Impact Scaler and Woman-led Scaler awards are selected by weighing of both relative and absolute growth.
Companies' sustainability efforts are reflected in their ESG reports or dedicated sustainability sections on their websites or separate channels on ESG and SDG initiatives, which vary by industry.
Data collection
As Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship aims to encourage widespread participation in the research, companies registering to be part of the research are responsible for verifying the accuracy of the data they provide, particularly regarding FTE growth. Scaling a company involves fluctuations, and some initially considered for the Top 250 may no longer meet the criteria due to factors such as relocation, acquisition, or bankruptcy between the close of data collection and the Top 250 annual event.
For press inquiries, contact communication team at communication@ece.nl