A true entrepreneur starts his career as a young boy. Peer Kölendorf established his own business before graduating from high school in Copenhagen at the age of 18 in 1966. In 2002 his company was the 250th largest company in Denmark measured by sales revenue and the 1st measured by growth and profitability. Whilst developing the company, he graduated from the University of Copenhagen with a Master’s Degree in Political Science and later a Master’s Degree in Law. As neither of these qualifications really gave him sufficient knowledge about managing a company, he went to INSEAD for one year in 1977/78 to obtain the MBA diploma. At that time the company employed 8 people and unfortunately it was necessary for him to act as CEO during most of the INSEAD year. He never enjoyed lunch with his fellow MBA students but, each day, went to his Fontainebleau home to have a telephone conference with the sales manager of the company in Copenhagen. Coming back to Copenhagen in 1978, he put to use what he had learned at INSEAD. A formal strategic planning process was implemented and since that time the company has focused on wireless communications only. His company, COMITEL, is a major player in several areas of wireless communications in Denmark and abroad. Sales revenue will exceed €270 million in 2004. COMITEL is involved in the trading of GSM mobile phones across the world. Comitel has made two significant investments in the mobile phone sector which have proved to be very successful: CBB Mobile – a GSM service provider selling airtime via the Internet, having a market share of 5% in Denmark. It was sold in 2004 to one of the mobile phone operators in Scandinavia for €20 mill. SMS – a company selling logos and ringing tones via SMS and MMS in Denmark, Sweden and Germany with a market share in Denmark of 40% of this special market for teenagers. It was sold in 2004 to a major Norwegian publishing company for €2,5 mill. Comitel has been split into several smaller companies intended to be sold or merged with other companies. His vision is to create a holding company structure with many entrepreneurial companies financed and controlled by Comitel. Apart from the successes, there have also been failures during the years and this has created a solid base of experience for establishing and growing companies hopefully without repeating the mistakes. Peer has no intention of retiring before the age of 80.

Business Planning Workshop.