Looking on an international level, Sweden’s power to innovate is known to be very strong. Go Sweden! At Epicenter Stockholm, we’re very happy to be part of driving the innovation forward. You might also wonder what we do in connection to this? Well, we do a lot. And one part is running an accelerator program for startups. We have also just taken this program to the next level by initiating a collaboration with Microsoft for Startups.
Jack Melcher-Claësson, Head of Startups at Epicenter says:
“We are incredibly happy to start this collaboration. Microsoft for Startups shares our vision, love for startups and digital innovation. Together we will be able to offer something completely unique to the program’s participants.”
As you might know, Epicenter is primarily supporting and working with scaleups and large corporates. Startups however, are a very important component of a growing and vibrant ecosystem.
This collaboration with Microsoft for Startups means open lectures and seminars, as well as the ten-week accelerator program. Peggy Poon is responsible for running Microsoft for Startups and for developing Microsoft’s relationship with startup companies in Sweden. For more information about Microsoft for Startups, check out their website here.
A handpicked number of startups will get the unique opportunity and match with potential investors and mentors. And these investors and mentors will offer training in law and marketing as well as support. In addition, thanks to the partnership with Microsoft for Startups, the chosen startups will get opportunities that can not be bought for money. For example, major focus will be on helping companies grow through connections to paying customers. B2B startups will be extra interesting as Microsoft has an extremely powerful ecosystem in this area.
Andrew Macadam, Managing Director Microsoft for Startups Western Europe, says that “In February, we celebrated 2 years of Microsoft for Startups with almost $1bn of sale pipeline generated for startups that have been through our programme and a new Global Social Entrepreneur initiative. And we are excited to continue with the positive news with the announcement of the new partnership with Epicenter in Stockholm to run our first Microsoft for Startups Accelerator in the Nordics. In this amazing partnership, we will work with the Epicenter team to empower the top B2B startups access to the best technical, commercial and sales support, helping them to scale and grow on the Enterprise Cloud for Startups.
Epicenter Accelerate has been running for two years. It’s also completely free of charge for the participating startup companies. Jack Melcher-Claësson believes this is an important recipe for success behind Epicenter’s startup venture. He also says:
“It is basically unique in this industry to get involved in startups without demanding anything back in terms of payment or ownership. But we think it benefits everyone to offer what we choose to call “unconditional love”. For example, it allows companies to develop and flourish on their own terms. Now we team up with Microsoft, which makes the program even sharper”
To wrap up, if you want to participate – make sure to take this unique opportunity! Just go to this page to fill in the application form.
