Eastern Poland startups, expect a boost!
Black Pearls VC is going to assist 60 startups on their way to the MVP phase. In collaboration with our partners, we will be the launch-pad for the emerging ideas. Innovative startups from Eastern Poland can expect mentoring services, startup consulting and capital entries.
The Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) has finished a selection process, in which three platforms were chosen to help innovators develop their ideas in Eastern Poland. PARP has dedicated almost 20 million PLN for this project. Our platform – established by the cities of Białystok, Ełk, Olsztyn, Elbląg. Suwałki and Łomża with the support of Black Pearls VC – was one of only three consortia singled out to do the job.
Hub of Talents, which is how our platform was named, will assist up to 60 startups while they make their debut in the MVP world. Our offer was rated best in the PARP competition, which brought our platform almost 7.3 million PLN.
The role of Black Pearls VC will be to make way for capital entries, and to render mentoring and consulting services to startups. The goal is to carry the startups into the MVP (Minimum Viable Product) stage – as this is when innovators present the first version of their product to would-be investors. The product may still be imperfect or flawed, but that is the point: to show its potential.
“The recruitment of contending projects starts on the beginning of March, 2016. The offer is addressed to people aged under 35. The submitted ideas cannot be involved in any business activity. The ideas must be completely new, and innovation will be the main criterium for selection”, commented Alexander Lubański, co-founder and Managing Partner in Black Pearls VC.
In its “Starting platforms for new ideas” scheme PARP aims to create a startup-friendly ecosystem in Eastern Poland, linking innovators with local governments, experienced entrepreneurs, NGOs and all kinds of business-related institutions. We are proud to be part of the team who will perform this mission.
