This first week of February 2016 has been special. For the first time the Startup Europe Week (SEW) took place.

What is the Startup Europe Week?

“The Startup Europe week (SEW) aims to enable local governments to get more involved with their local startup ecosystem, giving access and information to regional and european wide initiatives helping people to build their own startup. The aim of the initiative is to help local entrepreneurs to have a greater impact in their region with help from their local government. This week takes place across 350 different regions within Europe at the same time.
During the SEW, your local government will support you with a number of activities: Incorporation process, licenses, bureaucracy, local taxes, grants, subsidies and funding, office space & infrastructure, educational resources and employment initiatives.” It’s an event in partnership with the European Commission and the Committee of the Regions.

What did we do at Betacowork?

In collaboration with Startups.beCooperation Bancaire pour l’Europe and Réseau Entreprendre we organized an interesting event that took place Wednesday 3rd of February at Betacowork, on the third day of the SEW.  With 8 speakers, 67 attendees and Ramon Suarez in great shape as host, we can say that it was a success! For those who missed the event, here is what happened.
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After projecting the video of presentation of the Startup Europe,

  • Marnix Housen took the stage to talk about ICAB Business & Technology Incubator (where Betacowork and other 45 startups have their office). If you are a tech startup working in a garage, you need to know that the world has changed compared to 20 years ago, you need to go out and join an ecosystem that helps you to boost your business. So, if you are looking for an office in Brussels, you should definitely check out their website, ask for an appointment and visit the building. You’ll be impressed!
  • Then Maité Grisad inspired the audience by telling her story and how Andaman7 is scaling up and raising money to go global. Their story is really touching, take a look at their project, download the app and stay healthy! (They are also nominated as Startup of the Year at the Tech Startup Day).
  • Ingrid Willems continued inspiring people, sharing with the audience her experience on the project DataScouts. If you are interested to learn how they can help you explore, visualize and engage with the market you are operating in, explore their website.
  • After inspiring the attendees thanks to interesting stories of startup made in Belgium, we invited Paul Bosmans from Pulse Foundation to talk about how he helps associations that invest in entrepreneurship. Here is the link to discover more.
  • Lorraine de Fierlant presented Réseau Entreprendre, it’s a network of entrepreneurs that helps new entrepreneurs by offering peer coaching and contacts. Here all the info.
  • Talking about possibilities for starters in Brussels, we couldn’t not invite Impulse Brussels, Juan Bossicard took the stage and spoke about 1819.be, the phone number that will answer to all your doubts about launching a business in Brussels. Give them a call and get help!
  • Young people are the future, that’s why the wanted to present the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs program (btw, it’s not only for young people! Everyone can apply). Diana Pati from Startups.be and Valeria Muggianu from CBE presented this interesting program. If you are thinking of starting your own business, or have recently done, or perhaps you are already running a successful business and would like to expand it to new markets, Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs could be for you! It’s a European business network and financial support that can help you exchange knowledge and expand your business. Here all the info on how to apply, or how to become a host entrepreneur.

An event is not successful without some networking, in fact, after the presentation we gathered in the cafeteria area and met interesting people, exchanged ideas and advice.
Are you inspired and motivated to launch your business? Take a look to all the possibilities that Brussels offers you and GO!
Looking forward to Startup Europe Week 2017 and a big thank you to all the co-organizers for making it happen. The event was co-organized by Sara from Betacowork (me!), Diana Pati from Startups.be, Valeria Muggianu from CBE and Lorraine de Fierlant from Réseau Entreprendre. The event room has been sponsored by Betacowork Coworking Brussels and the networking drink by Startups.be and CBE.