Suki The CEO of CatSwoppr Exclusive Interview - 'Success Is Being Able To Give People More In Use Value'

Suki The CEO of CatSwoppr was recently interviewed by RootsAndRoutesMag.com and below is the Q&A session we had with him.

‘I Feel Very Grateful When We Get Some Smiles On The Faces of Cat Pawrents’ – Suki

Could you provide a brief summary of yourself, including your background, interests, and any significant life experiences?

My name is Suki, I am the founder and CEO (cat executive officer) of CatSwoppr.

I was born in Indonesia, grew up in the Netherlands, and I have a background as a former underground artist. Professionally, I worked in architecture, design and academia and did various projects all over the world. In 2019, I obtained a PhD in the Humanities, and now I am focused on giving back to cats with CatSwoppr.

At this moment, CatSwoppr operates as the first Global Cat PR Agency in the world. With Global Cat PR Agency CatSwoppr we give a voice to cats by sharing their stories with cat lovers from all around the world.

Meanwhile, we are also building our CatScanR, an app that aims to revolutionize the way cat people connect and share their feline experience.

My mission is to digitally empower the continuously unfolding relationship between you, your cat and other cat lovers. Since time immemorial, cats have brought and still bring into our human lives so much joy, relief and happiness. We should be eternally thankful for their existence.

What have been the biggest challenges you’ve faced in your life and how did you overcome it?

Life is for you. Everyday, I try to be thankful for all the opportunities and chances ahead. I do not see any particular challenges. In the past, when reflecting upon it, I might have taken certain directions which did divert me a bit on what I truly need and what is in me. That is no shame I think, and no energy lost, as I learned a lot. I like it that I work towards being more and more myself, doing more and more what I need to do for others.

Can you share a significant aspect of your cultural heritage that has played a crucial role in shaping who you are today?

I am of Javanese descent, I still have a lot of family near the Gunung Semeru Vulcano on Java. I try to visit them every year. They are tolerant, have an open mind, and let others be themselves.

What motivates and inspires you on a daily basis?

Giving back to cats. I feel very grateful when we get some smiles on the faces of cat pawrents and their cats, for instance, by writing a cat story for them, or highlighting their cat in our socials.

Also, our end goal – of having this app that helps cat lovers all over the world finding and making a connecting with like minded people in their direct surroundings – inspires me to make the best out of each day.

How do you balance work, family, and personal life?

Since we do not make any revenue so far – we only have a donation button to find means to cover the website costs – I do have a daily job to support my family. Therefore, just like a cat, I am most active during evening and night hours for CatSwoppr. Of course, my team of CatSwoppr is active during regular working hours.

Can you describe a turning point in your life that helped shape who you are today? Ans:

I once saw a swan in the lake, sun hanging low in the sky, with lights glittering on the water, a magical image, as I was high on life and on my purpose of being. I felt abundance. I had some much love for life. That particular moment, was the moment that I wholeheartedly chose for CatSwoppr and my journey to generate lots of use value for cat lovers worldwide.

Can you share an experience where you felt a clash of cultural values and how you resolved or navigated through it?

I don’t believe in clashes, only misunderstandings, I have to delve deep into myself to see what I do not understand about someone or a situation.

Our CatSwoppr team is culturally diverse with varied skill sets. Though we have a CatSwoppr HQ in Amsterdam Noord, we work fully remote. Our tools: Notion, Figma, Trello, Canva, Discord. We work and have worked with team members from Bahrain, Bulgaria, China, Cyprus, Gabon, Greece, India, Indonesia, Iran, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Morocco, Nigeria, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, The Netherlands, Turkey, Ukraine, Vietnam.

I learn each day from my team members, and I feel very grateful when I see new friendships and bonds blooming within our team across different nationalities and cultures.

Have you faced unique challenges as a diaspora individual, and how did you overcome them while maintaining a strong connection to your roots?

Maybe in the past, as a child growing up in a little dutch village where I did not exactly look the same as the majority, there could have been situations when I was judged differently or so. But this all does not bother me today, I am a captain of my own soul, architect of my own life, writer of my own book. why would I cling to things from the past, I am in love with the future, and that future looks bright, as I am destined to create so much use value for cat pawrents and cat lovers in general.

How has your cultural background influenced your personal and professional aspirations?

Culturally, the Javanese love colors and aesthetics, they like to laugh a lot, humor, the beauty of things, improvisation, I think this I take with me in CatSwoppr.

What is your definition of success and how do you measure it?

Success is being able to give people more in use value, than to take from them in cash value.

Can you share a situation where language presented both a challenge and an opportunity in your personal or professional life?

Cats do not communicate with humans in the way humans do amongst themselves, there might be language barriers between cats and humans. Universal is the language of love, cats and humans both understand without any language what affection and cuddles mean.

Additionally, how do you actively contribute to and give back to both your first and second homes, be it through community involvements, philanthropy, or other means?

In my CatSwoppr team, I often work with people from Indonesia, but also from all other countries. This is, at this point, what I can do for people from my country of birth, to give them an opportunity to have an internship at our Global Cat PR Agency in order for them to finish their bachelor’s or master’s degree.

Of course, later on, when the CatScanR is in full operation, a percentage of profit needs to flow into the CatSwoppr Charity Fund with which we donate to initiatives that help big and small cats in need, ranging from snowleopard conservation programs to shelters for stray cats. By doing so, we try to align our platform and fund with worldwide ideas to protect ‘Life on Land’.

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Global Cat PR Agency CatSwoppr www.catswoppr.io