Back to Square One

Last year Johan Staël von Holstein was riding high. Two of the three companies he helped to start — Web consultancy Icon MediaLab and LetsBuyIt.com — were included among Time Europe's 50 Hottest Tech Firms. Since then Icon MediaLab's valuation has dropped 93%, dotcom LetsBuyIt.com — which Staël von Holstein founded and his brother helps manage — narrowly escaped death while Speed Ventures, the incubator he helped create, is downsizing and refocusing its business model. The 36-year-old Nordic Netrepreneur is no longer involved in the three companies. Having resigned in April from his position at Icon Media Labs Asia in Singapore,...