The Koning Willem I Award is the Netherlands’ foremost entrepreneurship award. The awards are presented every two years by the Koning Willem I Foundation, with the support of the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, recognizing companies that demonstrate bold, forward-thinking entrepreneurship. Queen Máxima is the honorary chairperson of the foundation.

Polarsteps received the award in the Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SME) category. The other winners were Spierings Mobile Cranes in the Large Enterprises category and DO IT Organic, which received the Sustainable Plaque. At the award ceremony, Olaf Sleijpen, president of the Dutch Central Bank, highlighted the shared qualities connecting the three winners: “Vision, courage, and decisiveness. That is the kind of entrepreneurship the Netherlands needs today.” 

The jury praised the courage, determination, and perseverance with which Polarsteps has been built, highlighting the company’s ability to develop a globally scalable technology platform from the Netherlands without compromising on vision, culture, or social responsibility. “In doing so, Polarsteps has proven itself to be a powerful driver of progress, fully in line with the spirit of the Koning Willem I Award. The company’s measured approach to scaling, combined with a sharp focus on innovation, values, and social relevance, makes Polarsteps a compelling winner within a strong and diverse field of contenders.” 

Clare Jones, CEO at Polarsteps, is thrilled with the award win: “Though Polarsteps has scaled internationally so much lately, we are incredibly proud to be a Dutch company and have been deeply supported here in the Netherlands. This recognition and the ceremony with Her Majesty Queen Máxima have been so meaningful for us, and a chance to celebrate our Dutch roots.” 

Co-founder Koen Droste adds: “When Niek Bokkers, Maximiliano Neustadt, Job Harmsen and I started Polarsteps 11 years ago, we agreed on one thing from the very beginning: we wanted to be proud not only of what we would hopefully achieve, but also of how we achieved it.”

Maximiliano Neustadt, co-founder and CTO at Polarsteps, agrees: “We're honored that the Koning Willem I Foundation has recognized Polarsteps as an example of European entrepreneurial success. From day one, we made intentional choices to build on strong Dutch and European values while pursuing global ambitions, and this award is a testament that we're on the right path.”

This recognition adds to a strong run for the company. Polarsteps was recently ranked among the top 1000 fastest-growing companies in Europe by the Financial Times; named Mobile App of the Year in the TravelTech Breakthrough Awards; and selected by Apple as one of its top three most-loved travel apps.

About Polarsteps

Recognized as one of Europe’s hottest scaleups, Polarsteps is the market-leading travel app that helps over 20 million travelers worldwide to plan, track, and relive their adventures in a beautiful and seamless way. Using pioneering technology and design, the all-in-one app builds itineraries, maps travelers’ paths across the globe in real-time, and provides a new way to share travel experiences. Headquartered in Amsterdam and powered by an international team of 100+ passionate travelers, we’re becoming the essential tool for modern-day explorers — before, during, and after their trips.