“You must test your idea to see if it takes off” • Three entrepreneurs on taking the first step

In 1947, a young man opened his first clothing store in the Swedish city of Västerås. Around the same time, another young Swede from Småland sold his very first piece of furniture. Nearly 80 years later, H&M and IKEA have become global success stories. And Sweden continues to foster some of the world's most innovative entrepreneurs. Today, companies like Spotify and Klarna are redefining entire industries. Tomorrow, the next great entrepreneur may take the leap from an idea to a company. But how do you know when the time is right to begin that journey?

“My advice is simple: just take the first step. If you wait for the perfect moment, chances are you'll never leave the platform. In my experience, you only find out whether an idea works by testing it. The journey may take you somewhere completely different from where you first imagined, but it is through taking action that both we and our ideas grow and develop,” says Beata Kull, who founded Lärargalan at the age of 18 and now leads the Beata Foundation, whose initiatives engage more than 150,000 students across Sweden.

For many Swedish high school students, the Junior Achievement Company Programme (Ung Företagsamhet, UF) is their first experience of entrepreneurship. During the last academic year, students launched 13,520 UF companies across Sweden. One of the most successful was Caforia, founded by five students at Lundellska Skolan in Uppsala. Their coffee blend, made from equal parts arabica beans and locally grown barley, quickly became popular with environmentally conscious coffee lovers. After selling more than 4,000 packages, Caforia won five awards at the regional Junior Achievement finals – including Company of the Year in Uppsala Municipality – followed by three awards on a national level.

“We succeeded because we built a great team where everyone contributed their strengths and put in the work. We worked mornings and evenings, made hundreds of phone calls and built the network we needed. The biggest lesson I've learned is to test your idea as early as possible to see whether it takes off. If something doesn't work, adjust it and try again. Today I'm aiming for a career as an entrepreneur and have already launched another company with friends that helps housing associations prepare for renovation projects – and our business is already gaining momentum,” says Samuel Levén, CEO of Caforia, who received the Young Leader of the Year award at Uppsala Concert & Congress.

Uppsala's thriving life science sector has given rise to many successful companies rooted in research at Uppsala University. At the Biomedical Centre we meet Sara Mangsbo, Professor of Protein and Antibody Drugs, whose research led to the development of the ADAC technology platform. As founder of Immuneed and Strike Pharma, she has received the Hjärnäpplet Innovation Award and was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Swedish business magazine Veckans Affärer.

“My advice to every future UF entrepreneur is to be brave enough to test your ideas. Of course you'll face challenges along the way, but with a solid plan and the courage to adapt when things don't go as expected, you'll discover how rewarding it is to build a business from scratch. Also: find an experienced mentor who can support you, and don't forget to test your product with your target audience to make sure it really solves a problem. By the time you reach your goal, you'll have gained experience that will benefit you throughout both your career and your life,” says Sara Mangsbo.

This autumn, a new generation of high school students will take their first steps into entrepreneurship. Whether one of them becomes Generation Z's next Ingvar Kamprad or Daniel Ek remains to be seen. What is certain is that some will follow in Samuel Levén's footsteps and choose entrepreneurship as their future career. But wherever our ideas may take us, one lesson stands out from Beata, Samuel and Sara: don't be afraid to test your dreams. Success is not about avoiding setbacks – it's about how you choose to respond to them.

“Dream big, take small steps and don't give up when things get tough. The biggest challenges often shape both who we become and the companies we build. As you begin your UF journey this autumn, I hope you'll have the courage to believe in yourselves and in your ideas. It is only when we take the driver's seat in our own lives that we discover what truly matters to us and how we can make a difference for others,” says Beata Kull, who will speak at Kunskap För Livet 2026 on 23 November, inspiring high school students from across Uppsala to take their very first step from dream to reality.

Watch the film Kunskap För Livet

text: Magnus Alsne, photo: Mikael Wallerstedt a o