The relationship between the Netherlands and Türkiye goes back decades. What started in the 1960s with labour migration evolved into something much deeper: a vibrant Turkish community that became part of Dutch society while maintaining strong cultural and economic ties with Türkiye.
Alongside this community, a strong Turkish-Dutch entrepreneurial ecosystem emerged. Today, tens of thousands of businesses founded or led by entrepreneurs with Turkish roots are active across sectors such as trade, logistics, manufacturing, retail, hospitality, technology, construction, and professional services. Organizations such as HOTIAD, MÜSİAD Nederland, TOV Nederland, and other entrepreneurial initiatives have further strengthened collaboration and economic exchange within this ecosystem.
At the same time, Türkiye itself has changed profoundly over the past two decades. The country has developed into a dynamic industrial and technological economy with growing international ambitions. Turkish companies are increasingly internationally oriented and actively looking for partnerships beyond their traditional networks and borders.
Türkiye’s participation in European programs and innovation instruments such as Horizon Europe, EUREKA, and Eurostars has accelerated this development and created new opportunities for collaboration between Turkish and European organizations, including companies, universities, research institutes, and public organizations.
The growing engineering and manufacturing capabilities emerging from Türkiye are increasingly visible internationally. Advances in sectors such as automotive, advanced manufacturing, aerospace, defence technologies, electronics, and industrial production demonstrate the rising competitiveness and technological strength of Turkish industry.
And yet, despite all these developments, one challenge continues to return in conversations with organizations in both countries:
“Finding the right partner remains difficult.”
In many discussions I had with companies, universities, entrepreneurs, and public organizations in both Türkiye and the Netherlands, I noticed a strong appetite to collaborate — not only across borders, but also within the Netherlands itself.
Organizations are constantly searching for suppliers, technology partners, distributors, innovation partners, investment opportunities, and access to new markets. Yet discovering the right organization often still depends too heavily on fragmented networks, personal introductions, scattered directories, or coincidence.
As a result, valuable opportunities are missed before organizations even get the chance to speak to one another.
That observation became one of the main reasons behind the creation of TurkDutch Marketplace.
The platform was not designed as another open business directory. It was created as a more curated and structured environment where organizations can discover relevant partners with greater context, transparency, and confidence.
While the platform is strongly rooted in the Dutch–Turkish corridor, its purpose is broader. It aims to help organizations in the Netherlands find each other more effectively, stimulate collaboration between Dutch and Turkish organizations, and create stronger connections around trade, innovation, entrepreneurship, and knowledge exchange.
A Dutch company looking for a technology partner in Eindhoven, a Turkish manufacturer seeking distribution channels in Rotterdam, a university searching for innovation partners, or an SME looking for expertise within its own region — all are examples of collaborations the platform aims to support.
TurkDutch Marketplace is intended for companies, universities, research and technology organizations (RTOs), public institutions, sector organizations, and entrepreneurs who are serious about building meaningful partnerships and exploring new opportunities.
The ambition behind the platform is simple:
“To make collaboration between organizations more accessible, more transparent, and more effective — within the Netherlands and across borders between the Netherlands and Türkiye.”
We hope TurkDutch Marketplace becomes a place where meaningful partnerships begin, ideas evolve into projects, and organizations discover opportunities that otherwise might never have crossed their path.