Funda.nl Hires New Director of Marketing & Communications

Dutch market leader Funda has appointed Charlotte Zelders as director of marketing, communications & PR, a new position in the company.

Zelder joins from the Royal Dutch Touring Club, ANWB, the trade association where she served as Chief Marketing Officer for three years. She is also a board member at The Dutch Association of Advertisers, and spent a further 12 years at PepsiCo.

Joost Dop, interim CEO at Funda, said:

"We are extremely happy with the arrival of Charlotte. She is a real heavyweight and has a wealth of experience in the field of communication and innovation.

"In addition, it is a big plus that in her last role at PepsiCo she focused explicitly on digital and gained experience with the platform side at ANWB; indispensable when you consider that Funda is ultimately a digital platform where everything comes together."

A comment on her personal LinkedIn profile said:

"I fell in love with the brand because of its high functional and inspirational relevance. And am very much looking forward to contributing to the strategy & execution of some significant opportunities that lie ahead, as part of the funda MT.

"After spending my career so far at big corporates that exist for over a century, I can't wait to experience working for a younger, smaller and more entrepreneurial company, that also has the big plus of a people-centric culture."

Founded in 2001, funda is the clear market leader in the Dutch real estate market with significantly more traffic than its competitors:

However, Funda—which is minority agent-owned—is allowing agents to sell their shares in the portal amid a shareholder disagreement dating back to 2021, including the resignation of then-CEO Quintin Schevernels because of shareholder tension.

NVM (the Dutch Cooperative Association of Brokers and Valuers) members were invited to purchase shares in Funda when the portal launched in 2001—but the NVM dug in its heels when the same shareholders wanted to exercise their rights to sell up to outsiders.

In May of this year, a strategic review by the NVM extended an invite to third parties to submit non-binding offers for the purchase of available shares in Funda—a move which will hopefully clear the pathway for further growth for the Dutch market leader.