A Trusted Partner For Startups

In 2016, ten of the most promising startups out of a total number of 230 applicants from around the world graduated from Fit 4 Start* , an acceleration programme that was initiated by Luxinnovation and the Ministry of the Economy. While these figures illustrate the attractiveness of Luxembourg as a startup hub, they do not convey the whole picture. In fact, if we take account of every entrepreneur who turned to Luxinnovation in 2016 to discuss their innovative plans and projects, we come closer to the 700-mark.

(Featured Image – Sitting: Valentin Rangoni (trainee), Claudine Bettendroffer (Startup Advisor), Jean-Michel Ludwig (Director Startup Support & SME Performance) – Standing: Stefan Berend (Startup Advisor), Laurence Hulin (Startup Advisor), Antoine Hron (Head of Startup Support) / Image Credit: Luxinnovation)

Attracting startups to Luxembourg

Luxinnovation has recently seen its mission enlarged by the Ministry of the Economy in order to promote Luxembourg as a European hub for high-performance businesses and economic activities. The country is stepping up its efforts to attract foreign direct investment in a variety of fields (ICT, Automotive, Space, Manufacturing, and Cleantech to name but a few). This sector-driven approach will be complemented with actions aiming to attract new disruptive businesses in numerous areas (Fintech Regtech, Data-analytics…). In this context, the “Fit 4 Start” programme could be considered as a “pilot initiative” to attract new ICT business. Launched by Luxinnovation in 2015, it successfully contributes to the visibility of Luxembourg on the international startup scene.

Ensuring the best possible offer for startups

The national startup ecosystem has undergone considerable change over the last few years thanks to a continuous stream of new and complementary initiatives as we evolve in terms of sophistication and responsiveness. What we see is an increasingly concrete and broad offering being extended to startups by our public and private partners and we also see this as a real positive because it allows us to further hone our skills and focus on what we do best. Achieving market validation through Luxinnovation sector developers and cluster managers** is a significant advantage. It allows entrepreneurs to become more comfortable with their projects and in turn enables them to approach banks and investors with greater confidence due to the verified scientific value and the technical readiness of their projects. Additionally, the long-standing expertise of Luxinnovation in accessing public grants constitutes another of Luxinnovation’s many strengths. By combining this expertise with deep knowledge on private equity and private loans, entrepreneurs can optimise their financial roadmap and avoid premature dilution.

Ambitions for the future

Luxinnovation already contributes to the vast majority of startup incorporation in Luxembourg. Nevertheless, no local startups should be off the agency’s radar so that they can benefit from this public service. Considering the growing number of projects, Luxinnovation won’t be able to absorb the total deal flow without closely working with the local players. This is precisely why, in 2017, we has started to formalise collaborations with all of the local private and public incubators and accelerators so as to optimise our combined efforts and offer the maximum added value to entrepreneurs because ultimately that is everyone’s shared goal.

*Fit 4 Start is a four-month acceleration programme based on the « Lean Start-up approach ». By allocating a € 50k public grant as well as free coaching the programme helps entrepreneurs create a “Minimum Viable Product” to test the market. An additional €100k is offered by the Ministry of the Economy to start-ups that have both successfully graduated from Fit 4 Start and managed to raise at least €50k of private equity.

**Luxinnovation manages eight clusters in the following areas: ICT, Materials & Manufacturing, Space, EcoInnovation, BioHealth, AutoMobility, Wood and Creative Industries. For all these sectors, we have built strong relationships with public research organisations and private companies that have resulted in a stronger visibility for the sectors and stimulated business and research collaboration.

Editor’s note: This is sponsored news, which means it has been written by one of our partners, which in this case is Luxinnovation. If you would like to learn more about advertorial posts on Silicon Luxembourg, contact us to learn more about our partnership opportunities.

This article was first published in the Summer 2017 issue of SILICON magazine. Be the first to read SILICON articles on paper before they’re posted online, plus read exclusive features and interviews that only appear in the print edition, by subscribing online.