At the end of October, DeFINE joined forces with CAST project in Rome and delivered training sessions focused on strategies aimed at connecting fashion tech and sustainable tourism entrepreneurs and startups to funding and investment. The event also represented the opportunity for the entrepreneurs to directly network with investors and incubators.

On one hand, the challenges related to the access to finances for entrepreneurs and startups are widely known. On the other hand, businesses at early stages of their development are not always ready to receive investment; that’s why the support provided by incubators is a valuable resource.

DeFINE gathers incubators from all over Europe in a network, and provides a programme of mentoring and coaching to entrepreneurs and startups that are not ready to access finance yet.

What are the most important elements to take into consideration before pitching to an investor, business angel and fund? How to pitch to those investors? What are the specifics of each type of investment? Finding answer to those questions was the key challenge for the 30 entrepreneurs attending the workshop at La Nuvola on the 23rd of November 2019.

Incubators are the first step for entrepreneurs and startups to get advice and guidance on how to develop their business. From ideation to business development, incubators offer different services to support entrepreneurs.

Among DeFINE project partners we count with; CEEI Burgos, from Spain and CyRIC from Cyprus, well known incubators in their regions, with extended experience in supporting entrepreneurs in their business creation and development. They offer training support, mentoring and coaching, and can support the business and entrepreneurs in establishing relevant connections at key stages of their development. Both, CEEI Burgos and CyRIC, are certified EU|BICs (European Business and Innovation Centres) by the European Business and Innovation Centre Network (EBN), partner as well in DeFINE. This certification places the EU|BICs within the recognised network of high-level professionals committed in delivering the highest quality support services for entrepreneurs.

Joining the DeFINE network leads to benefiting from the excellence of incubators such as CEEI Burgos and CyRIC, as well other members of EBN and incubators from all over Europe. The DeFINE Annual Networking Event at the EBN Congress was the opportunity to bring together contributions from the different actors involved in the project and expose entrepreneurs and startups from the fashion tech industry to sector-specific and cross-sector knowledge and expertise.

If you want to get involved in the activities of the DeFINE project, do not hesitate to subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, FaceBook, LinkedIn and Instagram. The DeFINE network is expanding every day to offer the best support services to entrepreneurs and startups.