A chat with Nick Nedelchuk
At Penta we are all about lively neighbourhood spirit and are firmly anchored in and in exchange with the communities we are a part of. Our Mover & Shaker for this month is an entrepreneur who shares the same passion and values, and this shines through in his company. Nick is founder and CEO of Localie, a startup with a presence in 350 cities on all continents. Through Localie, travellers can meet up with inspiring local hosts who will show them around the city, which beats a standard tour or travelling on your own any day. Localies are fully vetted and act just like a friend who is happy to meet you and show you all the hidden gems of their city. Our team at Pentahotel Moscow tells us this is a big success with our hotel guests!
Penta: What do you think of garden gnomes?
Nick: I was born and raised in post-Soviet Ukraine and Russia, where garden gnomes were symbols of the shiny western culture, featured in numerous movies and cartoons. Of course, they meant something special to me and to all other fellow kids who were getting inspiration and dreaming of putting one on the lawn next to our house. By the way, even though I moved to the West and have been living in the Netherlands already for over three years, I haven’t made it yet. Now that you reminded me of a childhood dream, I should probably consider visiting a garden store next weekend.
P: Where do you feel most at home? Where is your ‘hood’?
N: Great question. I changed schools seven times, as my parents were often moving to new places. Later I continued moving with my job. This background taught me that every place can be perceived as home. In the last year, I spent nine months throughout different locations in Russia developing Localie. Right now, I’m at my home in the Netherlands where I feel the most relaxed.
P: Tell us about a project that is keeping you busy in this period.
N: It is Localie, for sure. I started my career in the corporate world — with Ford and later IKEA. But quite early on I realised that entrepreneurship is a path that suits me better. I quit my corporate job in August 2019, and since then have been dedicating all my time to Localie. Our mission energizes me — we are looking forward to helping many people experience new destinations in a better way.
P: Who are your role models?
N: With the latest news about successful entrepreneurs finding ways to travel to space, I can’t resist naming Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson here — the pioneers of private space travel. Their example proves that everything is possible and can be achieved with enough effort.
P: You have ten seconds to tell our readers why they should check you out.
N: My team at Localie and I are building something new and cool for the whole global travel industry. This should be worth your attention if you are a big fan of travel — just like me.
P: Who is the last person you called?
N: Oleh, a tech lead of Localie, who is in charge of software engineering. He’s our tech genius!
P: Pizza or burgers?
N: Burgers! If you’re a burger lover too and visiting Rotterdam any time soon, hit me up on Localie and I’ll show you where to get the best in town.
