FHS in VVSB presentation magazine

'VVSB is a club after my own heart'

Noordwijkerhout – grown and become big, but always stayed at home. This is typical of Nico Geerlings. That is why VVSB suits him so well. They are similar: the entrepreneur and the football club. The growth of his company FHS went almost in sync with the rise of VVSB in amateur football. Grown big by working very hard, but always with both feet on Noordwijkerhout soil.

His experience and way of working over the past 19 years determine the success of FHS, now and in the future. Nico Geerlings is the founder of Flexible Human Services. Together with his brothers, he ran the agricultural family business. Faced with scarcity in the Dutch labor market, he was one of the first to see the opportunity to bring hardworking Polish people to the Netherlands and help them find work with various clients. This is how Flexible Human Services was founded in 2002. From the beginning, Flexible Human Services cared for the vulnerable people. It was a matter of course that they provided good conditions in the areas of work, housing, guidance, training, insurance and transport for their own people. But Nico Geerlings also made sure that he was at the table with municipalities, governments and industry-related consultation structures to stand up for the labor migrant in general. In 2002, FHS started with around 70 employees, and after 19 years, the company has grown into an organization where approximately 2,000 people work daily. Healthy growth was and is necessary to be able to guarantee the quality that is now offered in the future.

VVSB experienced something similar. Within that period, VVSB rose from a modest village association to a well-known amateur club. Naturally, the highlight was reaching the semi-finals of the KNVB Cup tournament exactly 5 years ago. Nico, born and raised in Noordwijkerhout, has always supported VVSB with his company, as a supporter and certainly also as a sponsor. He is slowly daring to hand over the daily management within his company to, among others, his daughter Nathalie, although he will never really stop working completely. "No way, I still enjoy it far too much! Working with young and talented people keeps me young. But it's good that Nathalie is taking over the daily management at FHS, together with a young and dynamic management team. She is ready to keep FHS ahead of the curve," says Nico. Nathalie: "I am proud of the company that my father has built up in a relatively short time. FHS wants to be so much more than just an employment agency.

We aim to take care of concerns, excel in our areas of expertise, share with others, and ensure that everyone within FHS complements and strengthens each other. This approach allows us to achieve optimal solutions for both the long and short term. I am committed to working hard on this with our FHS team in the coming years.”

A smile appears on Nico's face when we talk about the remarkable cup adventure of 'his' VVSB. "The quarter-final against Den Bosch and the semi-final in the Galgenwaard against FC Utrecht are etched in my memory. But you know what I secretly find most beautiful? Standing on the sidelines at the Boekhorst sports park, watching a training session or a game of my youngest son Jesse! Seeing the joy that the Noordwijkerhout youth get from football, no cup success can top that for me! Of course, during that period, all the experience of the players and the knowledge within VVSB came together, in my opinion. Just like in my company, actually: core values such as talent development, team spirit, togetherness, and being there for others are also highly valued within FHS. I wish that for VVSB too, and that's why I recently extended my sponsorship contract with VVSB with pleasure; VVSB is a club after my heart.”

At FHS we always have an eye for talent: anyone who wants to grow can really grow within our company! VVSB has the same in mind: giving talented football players, preferably from Noordwijkerhout, the space to grow to a certain level. We want to work hard together for that. With Peet van der Slot, Wout Heemskerk and Tijs Knapp there are again a few real Noordwijkerhout boys in the selection. Hopefully more young talents will be able to join the Sunday selection in the long term. I would certainly applaud it," Growing and becoming big, but

and at the beautiful and renovated sports park de Boekhorst. Nico and Nathalie Geerlings are happy to put their signature on it.

Text and image from the 2021/2022 presentation magazine of VVSB