---
title: "telling the after5 story at ie business school"
url: "https://merterbil.com/talks/ie-business-school-after5/"
author: "Mert Erbil"
type: "lecture"
date: "2025-10-23"
place: "IE Business School, Madrid (online)"
---

# telling the after5 story at ie business school

A virtual guest session with After5's cofounders in a Fundamentals of Marketing course at IE Business School in Madrid, on how After5 grew and its marketing.

- linkedin post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/merterbil_it-is-always-a-great-pleasure-to-connect-share-7387468713458905089-B-xp/

It's always a pleasure to connect with university students, and in October 2025 I got to do it again, this time virtually. Together with After5's cofounders Sila and Nina, I told the story of <a href="/startups/after5/">After5</a> and our marketing approach to a great group of students at IE Business School in Madrid.

Our dear friend Prof. Begum Celiktutan invited us to her Fundamentals of Marketing course. So we walked through the last two years, how After5 grew, the marketing principles behind it, and the key decisions (and lessons) along the way.

Then the fun part came. The students took on an assignment to design a loyalty and referral structure for After5, and their ideas were fresh and bold. Hopefully next time we can continue the conversation in Madrid, over some sangria and tapas after class.