InSkin Media – the first major step out of the comfort zone and a bet on oneself

In 2006, I saw an opportunity, as I had many times before, but this one was quite outside my comfort zone. After years at Oracle, where I learned how a large organization works, and after my experience at the Norwegian startup Digitania, where we experimented a lot, I somewhat recklessly agreed to a partnership with Patrick Knight. Rashly, because it was something quite different, more daring. I found myself in a foreign country, unsure of my English skills and, above all, unsure of myself. But I felt I had to try. InSkin Media and Patrick Knight’s mentorship catapulted me somewhere far away.

I took all my savings, had no salary or security, and decided to invest in the British company InSkin Media, which we founded. It was a step into the unknown. I flew to Bournemouth every week, financed my family life from my savings, and instead of security, I had only faith that it made sense.

With my friends Patrick Knight and Vineet Kothari, we embarked on a project that had what seemed at the time to be a crazy goal—to change the way people perceive advertising. We wanted to solve the problem of “attention scarcity” – the lack of real attention in the digital world. We believed that advertising could be visually powerful without being intrusive. That it could engage without annoying.

Our PageSkin format wrapped websites in a creative way—instead of being distracting, the ad became a natural frame for the content. Even before that, InSkin, a frame around the video player, encouraged clicks. It worked. The results were hundreds of percent better than any other format at the time.

We financed everything from our own pockets for a year. I traveled around Poland, Germany, and London explaining our vision. Meanwhile, Patrick found his first angel investor, then another. The wheel started turning. Patrick invested the most in the company; in fact, everything the company paid for came from his money. Vineet financed development because he had a medium-sized development and design company in Kolkata.

For me, however, it wasn’t just an investment in the company. It was primarily an investment in myself — in my ability to operate in a foreign market, negotiate with C-level people from media houses, and think globally. Patrick became my mentor and friend. He taught me that courage isn’t about not being afraid — it’s about moving forward even though you are afraid.

In 2021, InSkin Media was sold to Azerion, a company listed on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange. It was my first big exit. But more importantly, it was my first lesson that the best investment is the one you make in yourself when you’re not yet sure if you can do it.