Following his dentistry studies at the University of Amsterdam, Jacob Gelt Dekker obtained his license in 1973 and practiced in Amsterdam from 1976 until 1989, during which time he also participated in several successful business ventures which whet his appetite for more. From 1971 through 1976, Jacob did his post doctorate studies at several prestigious universities including the Polyclinic Medical School and Health Center Department of Dentistry in New York, the University of Southern California and UCLA, also in California. In 1989, he left dentistry and obtained his MBA from the University of Rotterdam (Gelt Dekker also holds an MBA from the University of Rochester in upstate New York) and then became a full-time entrepreneur.

                   

Jacob Gelt Dekker's entrepreneurial flare led him to open 120 one-hour photo shops in Europe, which he later sold to Kodak for an undisclosed sum. His other entrepreneurial successes include Budget Rent A Car, Splash Fitness Clubs, Impact Dental Video, Splash Kattegat BV (Sonesta Hotel Amsterdam), Splash Pullman Hotel Den Haag, Barbizon Palace Hotel, Irene Cosmetics BV, Van Gogh International and Symphony Music BV.

Jacob officially retired in the late 1990s and wanderlust took hold. He traveled the world extensively for a combination of business and research. Jacob has circumnavigated the world more than 50 times and spends a minimum of six months in each area in order to absorb the culture and "get to know the people."