Start-ups benefit from this, just as they do from low rents and a low cost of living. However, they still don’t have it easy, as there are not many venture capital providers in those small Baltic countries. This means that the young companies have to grow organically – and earn money quickly. Unlike start-ups from Berlin or London, which are funded by investors, they can’t afford several years of warming up before they are finally in the black. Nonetheless, for a long time now, the Baltic has been known as Eastern Europe’s Silicon Valley.
The Gläserne Manufaktur invites start-ups to a pitch
The positive development of the start-up scene in the Baltic is now also attracting interest from abroad. “There is an optimistic mood in the region,” says Marco Weiß, Head of New Mobility & Innovations at Volkswagen Saxony. He was recently in Riga with colleagues for the incubator pitch, during which seven Baltic start-ups competed for the chance to be accepted into the Gläserne Manufaktur incubator. Each team had three minutes to introduce itself and its product, followed by a three-minute Q&A session.
But why Riga, and why the Baltic? “There are very good developers and highly motivated founders in the Baltic,” says Weiß. “The young entrepreneurs conceive their products and services for the international market from the start. That makes them interesting for us, too.”
Photo: Kaspars Garda
Marco Weiß explains to the founders in Riga how the pitch works, and what they can expect in the start-up incubator in the Gläserne Manufaktur.
