Within the scope of supporting new startup ideas, UA was present on the fair “Gruenderzeit” in Karlsruhe, Germany, on July 3rd, 2014.
Gruenderzeit provided a great overview about the main steps that are important when founding a startup. 1500 interested visitors took the chance to collect information, were advised by experts and networked with other startups as well as established companies. Furthermore, they had the possibility to build corporations or find investors. Another component of the fair was the final round of 14 of the Elevator Pitch Baden-Wuerttemberg competition, in which young startups had to introduce their ideas in an informative way in a limited amount of time. The winner was e-buddy :: Smart Mobility with the idea of an electric variant of a wheeled walker. We congratulate!
Together with Hans-Heinrich Siemers and Andreas Wüst from innoWerft, SAP University Alliances was on-site to inform about the Student Entrepreneurship Program and the Startup Focus Days at SAP. With the young entrepreneurs, we talked about our offers for founders, such as openSAP and trial software licenses on SCN, and engaged in interesting conversations about innovative ideas. Our colleagues from innoWerft took the chance to refresh old contacts and to promote their program and events for entrepreneurs. If you are interested in innoWerft have a look at their program and events online: http://www.innowerft.com/
Apart from the actual fair, 80 startups also had the opportunity to give a three-minute presentation on stage to introduce their idea or product. Amongst them was Artur Oswald, an SAP employee and founder of REVOprint. His startup, which is supported by innoWerft, is a printing service that allows submitting one’s documents online and picking them up in a cooperating copy shop nearby. Moreover, it allows free printing of documents if companies are willing to sponsor the print. If this great concept interests you, visit the German website of REVOprint: http://www.revoprint.de
Another startup that is supported by innoWerft is HealthCoCon. They presented their latest “medis app” in Karlsruhe which allows people to carry their health record with them at all times. However, the program is still in a very early phase of development, but we hope to see it on the market soon.
Key facts about Gruenderzeit:
- Over 190 exhibitors
- About 130 innovative startups
- 60 selected companies
- About 1500 visitors
All in all, it was an interesting day which hopefully helped young founders collect vital information and build relationships that will encourage them to take the risk of founding a startup and be successful with their innovative ideas.
We really enjoyed being part of Gruenderzeit, to present UA with its program for fresh ideas and are looking forward to take part in the next Gruenderzeit.