Marieke van den Berg

Marieke's fascination with functional outerwear started during her studies at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam. She wasn't just interested in fashion — she was driven by a question that wouldn't leave her alone: why did so many people suffer through Dutch winters in gear that simply didn't work?

After graduation, she spent eight years in product development roles at a leading Dutch outdoor brand. That's where the real education happened. She watched commuters struggle with rain jackets that leaked at the seams, boots that soaked through after one wet ride, and layering systems that never quite fit right. And she realized something crucial — the people designing these products rarely understood what daily life actually looked like for urban cyclists.

A turning point came when she led development on a rain jacket line specifically for courier services. The brief was simple: make something that survives eight hours of rain, doesn't restrict movement, and won't drive the wearer crazy. The result? A product that became standard issue for Dutch couriers. That success proved her core belief — technical outerwear designed with real understanding of actual needs performs better and lasts longer.

Now at sayitloud B.V., she channels that experience into research-backed content about seasonal gear for Haarlem commuters. Her work combines scientific rigor with practical knowledge of local weather patterns, urban cycling culture, and the specific demands of daily commuting in the Netherlands.