Host 1
Welcome to the Two on One podcast. I’m František, and sitting next to me is Honza. On this show, we invite inspiring Newton University students who’ve made things happen and have valuable experiences to share.
Host 2
And our guest today is Štěpán Jakubec—a Newton student proving that age is never a barrier to making an impact. Štěpán, welcome!
Štěpán
Thanks for having me, guys!
Host 1
Štěpán proves that when you combine athletic discipline, creativity, and the drive to do things your own way, you build something meaningful. Štěpán, what were your very first work experiences like? As far as I know, one of your earliest gigs was working as a stagehand, building festival stages and wading through deep mud. Tell us about that!
Štěpán
Yeah! Actually, to give you guys a visual, I brought a photo along.
Host 1
Show us!
Štěpán
I brought this picture so you can see how I started four years ago—literally wading through ankle-deep mud. That’s me right in the middle, looking completely exhausted. We were working an event in Frýdlant. There used to be a nice lawn there... until we arrived. We spent the day loading heavy stage decks, unloading trucks, and running event production. It was brutal physical labor, especially when it poured, but honestly, it was an awesome first gig and we had a blast.
Host 1
Would you consider that your official launchpad?
Štěpán
Without a doubt. I was fifteen when I started—right when you're legally allowed to take on summer jobs. When you don’t have specialized skills yet, you've got two working hands, so I hauled stage gear. I was a roadie.
Host 2
Some people work at a coffee shop; others haul scaffolding through the mud!
Štěpán
I’ve never worked in hospitality—I’d drop and spill everything if I tried carrying trays. So I chose the "mud bath" route instead!
Host 1
Obviously, you didn’t plan on staying a stagehand forever. How did you get into marketing, and what were the first projects you launched?
Štěpán
My very first project—when I decided I was going to be this big-time marketer—was an Instagram page covering the Czech music scene. In my teenage naivety, I thought, "We'll run it in English, go international, American-style!" I was seventeen, blew 17,000 CZK on it, and made a grand total of five dollars back. At that age, that was pretty much all my savings. It was a humbling reality check because I thought marketing was easy. But building that failed page landed me an internship at one of the top marketing agencies in Liberec. I learned an immense amount there, and that’s how my journey took off.
Host 1
Your main focus right now is the Sportymáček project. Tell us about it—how and why did it start?
Štěpán
Both my parents are lifelong athletes and entrepreneurs who run sports-oriented businesses. Sportymáček has been running for about four years. It originally started as an educational B2B service for preschools—our coaches would train kindergarten teachers so they could lead proper physical education classes with the kids. It’s built on the principle I live by: don't just give someone a fish; teach them how to fish. We'd hear stories of teachers accidentally endangering kids trying to teach basic somersaults because they lacked physical literacy training. So my parents focused on fixing that. It was strictly B2B, traveling from kindergarten to kindergarten. Today, we work with over a hundred preschools and train more than six thousand kids. Last summer, I sat down with a pen and paper and designed the B2C branch: Sportymáček Online. An all-in-one mobile platform for moms on maternity leave, offering guided movement workouts for kids, combined with verified pediatric content. We’re currently in talks with a major hospital to integrate pediatric health, hygiene, sleep routines, and nutrition guidance. Credit for the original foundation goes to my parents, but I built that final puzzle piece to bring it online and scale it. It's still in active development—we don't have hundreds of thousands of users yet since I'm coding and building a lot of it from my bedroom, which brings plenty of new challenges and growing pains, but it's an incredible learning process.
Host 1
You describe yourself as a "tech geek." What does that look like in practice?
Štěpán
Picture a guy locked in his room late at night, pitch black, blinds drawn, freezing cold, sitting in a hoodie with blue light blasting his face until 3:00 AM while everyone else is asleep! I went to a technical vocational high school where they taught us a bit of everything: web development, camera sensors, apertures, hardware—I graduated in all of that. I can write websites directly in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. I grew up gaming and tinkering with computers. Even while playing competitive youth football, that digital creative world was what truly excited me.
Host 1
Speaking of playing elite football—what made you walk away from the pitch and pivot fully into marketing? Was it a conscious choice?
Štěpán
I could spin a long story, but the simple truth is: I just wasn't good enough to go pro. When I reached the top academy level around age sixteen, I was competing against guys who had been training in elite academies since they were eight. My dad played football too, so I loved the game, but those guys had invested far more time from an earlier age. Once you reach the top tier, the atmosphere changes completely. It's not just having fun with your mates anymore; every teammate is competing for your spot, only a handful make the first team, and Czech league salaries aren't setting you up for life unless you make it to the Premier League. Fortunately, I did well in school, so I didn't have all my eggs in one basket. I decided to pivot.
Host 2
Building an app is one thing; getting users onto it is another. How have you been handling marketing and user acquisition for Sportymáček?
Štěpán
We haven't kicked off full-scale mass marketing yet because the platform is still being polished. Originally it was going to be a simple web app, but then we decided to build native iOS and Android versions for the App Store and Google Play, which took extra time. Then a hospital reached out wanting to provide verified medical resources for parents. Having certified medical stamps on our materials instead of generic AI summaries was well worth the wait. In terms of marketing so far, the brand has been built largely through live community activations. For example, we built a stage in front of the Liberec Town Hall—bringing back my roadie days—and hosted live fitness sessions with kids so passing parents could see our coaches in action. Right now, it's driven by offline grassroots events. Once the app is 100% ready and we pull the trigger on digital performance marketing, it’s going to be huge. My ultimate dream is running a nationwide TV spot during prime-time shows like Survivor, but that requires major sponsor backing.
Host 1
TV ads are a massive financial commitment.
Štěpán
Definitely, that's a whole different budget tier.
Host 2
It’ll come in time!
Štěpán
I hope so!
Host 1
You’ve achieved a remarkable amount in marketing over the past four years. In fact, I selected you as one of Newton’s top ten inspirational students. How did that recognition impact you?
Štěpán
It was great, but it brought plenty of pressure! I’ve always had the inner confidence to believe I can figure things out, which people sometimes mistake for overconfidence. But that self-belief is the only reason I dared to build an app and pitch it to hospital boards. I still get nervous and sweat through my shirt before big pitches, but I trust myself to deliver. What I hate, though, is when people present success dishonestly. I could sit here and brag about presenting to hospital executives, but my story started with me hauling truss in the mud. I despise social media "gurus" flexing rented Lamborghinis and pretending they made millions overnight from nothing. Everyone starts from a different baseline. Without the foundation my parents built with the original Sportymáček, I wouldn't have been able to build the online app. Whenever I speak on panels or mentor students, I’m brutally transparent: I started as a clueless kid who blew all his money on failed projects, had doors opened by his parents, and worked hard to make the most of those opportunities. I don’t wear a Rolex; I wear a Casio.
Host 1
After speaking at those seminars, other students started approaching you for advice and coffee chats. How do you handle that attention?
Štěpán
It’s flattering when people appreciate what you’re doing, but I simply don't have the bandwidth to grab coffee with everyone. You quickly learn to distinguish between genuine peers and opportunists. When someone is working on their own project and approaches me with a clear, two-way value exchange—"Hey, I'd love your take on this, and I can share my insights on that"—that’s great. But when someone just wants to pick my brain for free solutions without putting in the work, that feels transactional. When you’re starting out, people doubt you; once you start winning, everyone wants a seat at the table.
Host 1
When we first met in class, I asked you challenging questions to test your critical thinking and see how you’d handle the pressure. You handled it brilliantly, and now we collaborate on real-world projects. Are there other marketing campaigns you’re currently working on?
Štěpán
Plenty! Beside Sportymáček Online, I manage multiple client campaigns. My philosophy is building seamless conversion funnels. If we run a video ad, every single step must be mapped out: from the view to the landing page, to the lead form or purchase. I treat marketing like a McDonald’s self-service kiosk: intuitive, frictionless, and automated. I hate ads that end with "interested? send us an email"—you lose 90% of potential buyers right there because people don't want extra friction.
Host 1
Sportymáček was nominated for the Czech Goodwill Awards 2025. How did that turn out, and who nominated you?
Štěpán
We still have no idea who submitted the nomination! If that person is listening, thank you—we made it all the way to the national finals. We didn't take home a trophy, but competing against established enterprises that have been engineering sensors for NASA and Tesla for thirty years was a great reality check and learning experience.
Host 1
I attended the gala with your parents, and interestingly, the awards show was hosted by an AI virtual presenter named Berta. As a marketer, what was your take on that?
Štěpán
From a pure PR perspective, it worked brilliantly—it generated buzz and got everyone in the room talking about it. But from a functional event-production standpoint, it had limitations. The AI followed a rigid pre-rendered script. When an award winner wasn't in the room, a human emcee would seamlessly improvise and save the moment; the AI couldn't adapt on the fly. It was a great marketing gimmick, but human hosts are still essential when things go off-script.
Host 1
AI generated the buzz, even if the tech is still evolving.
Štěpán
Exactly. I use ChatGPT all the time while driving—I connect it to my car's audio system and have it quiz me on advanced Meta Business Manager and Google Ads setups. It’s an incredible sparring partner, even if it occasionally hallucinates.
Host 1
You manage marketing across four family-owned companies while taking on external clients. How do you balance university with all these projects?
Štěpán
The beauty of digital marketing is that you can work from anywhere with a laptop. The curse is that you can work everywhere, all the time. If I leave my laptop on the desk, I feel guilty for not optimizing ad campaigns or answering emails. Unlike a shift in hospitality where you clock out and leave work behind, managing live ad spend is a 24/7 mental loop. When external investors and corporate partners get involved, the stakes go up—you can’t afford missed deadlines or botched budgets. It definitely keeps me up at night!
Host 1
We also teamed up on the municipal marketing project Dáme úřad Říčany. What’s the goal there?
Štěpán
The city manager of Říčany approached us to build a modern brand identity for their municipal office, which is consistently ranked as one of the best-run local authorities in the country. Municipal marketing is tricky because public administration operates under strict regulatory constraints—you have to make local government engaging without crossing professional boundaries. We’re building out long-term strategies to modernize their citizen communication.
Host 1
How has your competitive football background shaped your work ethic?
Štěpán
Team sports teach you how locker rooms work. I captained youth teams, and I also spent time riding the bench. You quickly learn that you can’t get along with everyone and that people have different personalities. That experience is invaluable in business. If you make a mistake in a team environment, the entire squad feels the consequences. It built my accountability and communication skills.
Host 1
Looking back, what has been your single biggest growth challenge?
Štěpán
Building Sportymáček Online, hands down. It started as a weekend concept in my bedroom and grew into a complex enterprise involving tech stacks, medical partners, and investors. Navigating that learning curve has been massive.
Host 1
How do you unwind and recharge outside of work?
Štěpán
My girlfriend is my absolute anchor. We share the same core values and worldview, even though our backgrounds are different—my parents are 24/7 entrepreneurs, whereas she grew up in a traditional environment. Having her in my corner keeps me grounded and balanced.
Host 1
What parting advice or motto would you leave with our listeners?
Štěpán
Comparing yourself to others is a trap. You can look at someone online and get discouraged because they seem years ahead of you, or look down on someone working a standard job. But everyone is dealt a different hand of cards in life. Some people start with massive capital; others start by hauling gear through the mud. Put your blinders on, play the hand you’ve been dealt as best as you can, celebrate other people’s wins, and focus entirely on your own lane.
Host 1
Štěpán, our time is up. Thank you so much for joining us, keeping it real, and sharing your journey.
Štěpán
Thanks for having me, guys!
Host 1
Big thanks to Newton University and Newton TV for providing our recording space. Make sure to follow us on YouTube and Spotify, and we’ll catch you next time on Two on One. Bye!
