Meet Michiel van Crombrugge

When I was younger, I dreamt of becoming a film director. Even when I left for university, I still held onto that ambition. However, I suppose the voice of reason eventually convinced me to pursue a more stable degree first, which for me was business engineering at KU Leuven (Belgium), where I also received my PhD in business economics. 

The joy of teaching 

Over time, I have come to appreciate the joy of teaching much more. It is an incredibly fulfilling job to be able to educate others and connect with students. While research remains my main passion, I truly value the fact that teaching is an integral part of my role. I teach two courses in our programmes: Empirical Marketing in the bachelor programme and Marketing Analytics and Data Visualisation in the master programme. Both courses demonstrate the benefits of using a systematic and analytical approach to decision-making in marketing. 

Multichannel retailing and platform markets  

My research lies at the intersection of marketing, innovation, and economics, and mostly focuses on multichannel retailing and platform markets.  

In my retailing research, I use econometric models to study the drivers and market impact of retailers’ and manufacturers’ channel innovations. I have researched, for instance, the phenomenon of direct channels, through which brands or manufacturers engage directly with their end consumers, bypassing traditional independent third-party retailers or platforms. This is a fascinating area of study because it creates a competitive environment in which retailers, who have historically supported these brands for years, now find themselves competing with their own partner suppliers.  

In my platform market research, I focus on managerial strategies and individual consumer behaviour within high-technology two-sided markets such as video game platforms, or streaming services. This involves, for instance, researching how subscription models or downloadable add-ons have changed how consumers engage with software and the platforms on which they are used.  

‘Failures are simply teachable moments that help us grow into better individuals’

A personal passion 

One of the exciting aspects of my work is that I have been able to apply my professional expertise in coding and programming to something more light-hearted. As you can tell from my hobbies and research, video games are often not far away, and I am an amateur video game developer myself—though, admittedly, not a very good one! Progress is slow, and my games are far from polished, but it is a fun way to merge my professional skills with a personal passion. My ultimate goal is to transform this self-deprecating hobby into a successful indie video game—perhaps even one that my students could play. But not during my class, of course! 

Life motto 

I was fortunate to grow up in a very encouraging environment, where as long as you gave it your best effort, it was okay to fail and learn from your mistakes. My life motto comes from the poem If by Rudyard Kipling. My favourite line is its advice to ‘meet with Triumph and Disaster, and treat those two impostors just the same.’ It highlights that while success should be celebrated, failure is also part of life. It is okay to feel disappointed when things do not go as planned, but ultimately, failures are simply teachable moments that help us grow into better individuals.