Meet collectID founder David Geisser and find out how he uses blockchain technology to protect brands

01.06.2021 08:05, Isabelle Mitchell

David Geisser founded collectID, a startup and Venture Leader Mobile that builds a product authentication ecosystem: collectID equips products with collectID NFC tags to provide a unique and secure message that changes with each interaction. This dynamically encrypted and unique identity is then tokenized and stored on the blockchain, making it tamper-proof. Learn more about David’s expectations for the Venture Leaders Mobile experience, and find out who helped him come up with the name for his startup.

The Venture Leaders Mobile 2021 will accelerate their expansion into the global market and strengthen their business network by attending the Mobile World Congress 2021 in Barcelona, Spain, to meet with top-notch investors and industry leaders. To introduce you to the members of the Swiss National Startup Team, we asked each entrepreneur to complete a short profile and choose six questions from a questionnaire about their personal and professional life.

Name: David Geisser
Location: Goldach
Nationality: Swiss
Graduated from: University of St. Gallen in 2016 (MA in business administration and business innovation)
Job title: Founder and CEO of collectID
Number of employees: 10 
Money raised: CHF 1.2 million
First touchpoint with Venturelab: I did an entrepreneurship course in Schlieren with Venture Leaders in late 2018.  

“collectID provides authenticity, transparency, and customer engagement through IoT and blockchain-technology to companies that struggle with counterfeiting and lack very important first-party data, especially when selling products indirectly.”

How and where did you come up with the idea for your startup?
Already during my studies, my interest in blockchain applications grew rapidly, and I followed the movement closely. After becoming a victim of counterfeiting myself, I realized the vast potential of using blockchain to prevent counterfeiting. This brought me to the idea of collectID: combining NFC [near field communication] tags with secure, immutable NFTs [non-fungible tokens]. Together, they create a secure ecosystem for brands, products, and customers.

What do you expect from the Venture Leaders program, and how will it help you achieve your vision?
Opportunities are there to take them. The coronavirus pandemic continues to have a major impact on the startup landscape. Natural selection is much more intense during these times, and only the best startups will survive. The fact that we are part of this program supports our vision and empowers us to pursue it. Our goal is to use the program to further develop our mobile solution and convince investors of our product. The core principles and advantages of blockchain are linked to the international perception and values that people connect with Switzerland—security, authenticity, and technology. Venture Leaders Mobile will help us promote and drive this development.

What would be the title of your biography?
What a ride! Life is a roller coaster. It has its ups and downs, and there have been many times in life where I felt disappointed, sad, and alone. But I never lost the fun. Even when I don’t know what’s coming, I look forward to it and leave everything that has happened behind me. And now I am here, and looking back, I regret nothing.

What is the one talent you wish you had?
I would love to be able to sing well. That way, I would have a Plan B if collectID didn’t work out.

What is your favorite movie?
Pulp Fiction because I like the way Quentin Tarantino does storytelling.

What is your favorite book? 
My favorite business book is Blitzscaling: The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies by Reid Hoffman and Chris Yeh. This book is full of real-life, ride-or-die choices about today’s biggest tech companies. The book is definitely not promoting risk-averse strategies, but let’s be honest: If you are the founder of a startup, you have to take some risks. No risk, no fun! When reading for pleasure, my favorite book is Inferno by Dan Brown, which is just brutal. Dan Brown writes such a gripping story that captivates me and keeps me engaged for hours. It is the perfect balance to a busy day at work.

What advice would you give your teenage self?
Learn more languages. I studied in Russia for a while, and I noticed that to really dive into the culture, you need to be able to speak the language fluently. I love to communicate with locals, and the most beautiful thing about our world is diversity, and languages are part of it.

How did you come up with the name of your startup?
We brainstormed with my mum. My mom is a genius! No, really, she is very creative. She is a teacher and has a good feeling for word plays. And I love the idea of collectID; it perfectly describes what we do. We give products (collectibles) an ID.

Where and when are you most productive?
At night, either in the office or at home because there are no emails, Slack messages, WhatsApp, or other messages coming in, and I can really focus.

What are your three favorite apps? 

• Uber: It works everywhere.
• search.ch: Where I get good weather predictions.
• collectID: The app helps me to manage my valuable belongings.

What is the most challenging aspect of being a founder? 
Not to celebrate the highs too much and not to get pulled down too much by failures. It is challenging to balance emotions.

What is the most important lesson you have learned as a founder?
You have to network all the time, and if you are the business founder, you should enjoy connecting with others at least a little bit. 

What is the best advice you have ever received and from whom? 
There has been so much valuable advice from many people. If I had to focus on one person, it would probably be advice from our board member and serial entrepreneur Bettina Hein. She gave me so much good advice or challenged us. It is a huge pleasure and honor to work with her on the board of directors at collectID.

What is your greatest professional failure, and what did you learn from it? 
I f***ed up the first year at university because I did almost nothing in high school and still had excellent grades. So I thought I would make it through university without doing much. This was a mistake. I learned that even when you think you are smart, you have to work hard to achieve your goals.

Last but not least, could you show us your workspace? 



For more information and updates on collectID and the Venture Leaders Mobile, follow the Venture Leaders Mobile 2021 team with #VleadersMobile on social media or subscribe to our newsletter. 
 
This year's Venture Leaders Mobile program is supported by Huawei, Swisscom, and VISCHER.