Risk perception differs from person to person—and with it, the need for risk insurance. This is where the insurtech startup Karlsson aims to address it, helping those with statutory health insurance find the optimal supplementary insurance for themselves. We asked founders Nikolas Noetzel and Julian von Fischer how exactly Karlsson intends to do this.
1. Who are you and what do you do? Please introduce yourselves briefly!
Karlsson is a digital supplementary health insurance provider. With our solution and our insurance offering, we want to help everyone find supplementary health insurance tailored to their individual personality and circumstances.
The founding duo consists of Nikolas Noetzel (25) and Julian von Fischer (25). We have been successfully developing projects together for six years and studied business administration together at the University of St. Gallen. However, we originally come from very different regions of Germany, Kiel and Regensburg, respectively, which makes our collaboration very diverse!
“There is a big difference in our subjective perception of risk”
2. But that's been around for a long time!
There is exactly one other digital health insurance provider in Germany (or more precisely, in Munich). But they currently focus only on those with full insurance, i.e., primarily those with a gross income of just under €60,000 or more. We offer the immense advances in digital health to all insured individuals.
In addition, we are working on two key points that differentiate us:
First, there is an educational aspect so that everyone can understand our complicated health insurance system in this country in simple steps and knows what is needed to make a good decision.
Second, we conduct a personality test with our customers so that we can offer them the right insurance solution for their personality type. There is a big difference in our subjective perception of risk depending on whether we are extroverted or introverted, and whether we tend to think or feel our decisions, to name just two aspects. However, supplemental insurance policies have so far only been sold as off-the-shelf, one-size-fits-all.
3. What has been your biggest challenge so far?
Clearly, finding an insurance partner isn't easy. We decided to work with existing insurers rather than against them, but there are clearly two speeds. Startups and corporates never have an easy time collaborating, but in the insurtech sector, this is even more difficult – two worlds are truly colliding. We've spoken with more than twelve different insurance companies, and now we have the first offers for collaborations, which we're very happy about.
4. Let’s get down to business: How is business going?
Karlsson is on schedule for our 2018 launch. We're currently in a soft launch phase, which gives us time to test and improve. We've already validated our methods; now we're working on the finer details.
In Munich, a lot is happening in the health sector
5. What does Munich mean to you?
For us, Munich is the best location for an insurance startup because the knowledge is concentrated here. When we travel to partners, we take the subway rather than the ICE. Furthermore, with the Plant1 Insurtech Accelerator is exactly the right program for us to successfully complete our problem-solution validation and benefit from the good mentor-startup relationship. In addition, we cover UnternehmerTUM Xpreneurs Program The technical component is very good and we can also benefit from the experience of local entrepreneurs here. There are certainly more investors in Berlin, but so far they've also been willing to come to us in Munich. Besides, there's a lot going on here in the healthcare sector. And there's a lot less noise about nothing, which we really appreciate. And of course: the best way to attract good people is with a good city – we're big sports fans and embrace this culture at Karlsson too: off to the mountains in both summer and winter!
6. How will your startup become the next unicorn? Or will we see you soon at Epic Fail Night?
Karlsson will make prevention through healthy living as natural as brushing your teeth. And it's worth paying for, not just in Germany, but worldwide.
7. Bavaria or '60?
Easy – the star of the south has only one color: red.
