INNVEST is a unique platform that is supporting, investing, incubating, and helping the development of new technological ideas by improving their skills, industries, and enterprises through innovation, competitiveness, and internalization.
It was founded in February 2020 in Albania, as a private entity that combines innovative research while bringing investors and new business ideas together for pressing economic challenges not only across Albania but also the Western Balkans, with a long-term goal for sustainable growth in the local business community and forming the tech ecosystem.
More than 30-50 Balkan investors are engaged at the INNVEST Club members and network bringing a direct added value to the Albanian economy and more than 1500+ people attend the INNVEST activities during 2021.
What was the challenge?
INNVEST was created because it was a market need in acknowledgment and opportunities for the Albania tech ecosystem. Fabiola Duro, the founder, had the vision to support, incubate and develop the business matching opportunities to commit success stories in Albania and WB countries.
It delivers digital formats including engaging live webinars, forums, workshops, B2B, Live Virtual Webinar Sessions, surveys online-offline, etc.
INNVEST is led by an experienced team in the private and public sector, entrepreneurs, project managers, active actors of our ecosystem, on the local, national, and international levels.
INNVEST runs the following directions:
- Board Members: highly experienced professionals, recognized leaders across many areas of expertise, who hold senior positions or board members.
- Angel Investors Club: INNVEST success stories. Investors with high interest in one of the potential business ideas, who have agreed to invest in it through the platform of networking and matchmaking.
- Investors Club: INNVEST community of mature and well-known businesses, which are willing to further innovate their business from within and seek investment in any potential new business idea that is launching in the market.
- Prime Investor Club: Young entrepreneurs that have the potential to grow and need the support and seek collaboration with other investors to exchange experiences, grow and expand.
- Innovators and start-ups: This is a well-selected batch of innovative business ideas that need mentoring and support to achieve their full potential and get the investment necessary for growth and success.
What is the solution?
INNVEST has three main pillars for success:
1. Fostering Intrapreneurship; helping the businesses and corporations that become part of INNVEST network to innovate from within through dedicated programs, incubators, and accelerators.
2. Start-ups promotion: identity, mentor and integrate within INNVEST network, new and innovative business ideas at different levels of their development.
3. Find investment: Developing crosscutting prospects by bridging the gap between investment opportunities and start-ups. Through different forms, programs, and activities INNVEST enables mediation tools, within and outside of their network, for new business ideas to meet with angel investors.
Three potential sectors focused on:
1. ICT
2. Tourism
3. Agriculture
INNVEST brings a 360-degree process with the direct involvement of three important components; The cooperates, SMEs sector, startups, the youngest business ideas and women components, the formation of new labor markets, and the construction of capacity building programs & training.
More than 8 professional teams (directly/indirectly) are getting involved directly and working on INNVEST, meanwhile more than 180 applicants are taking the information.
INNVEST in its long term will lead to business growth and contribute to the creation of new business entities and new jobs through the intermediation process between business ideas to investors. They plan to focus on targeted activities, programs, and accelerators and shaping the mindset of the well-established business sector into more innovative practices to ensure particularly the inclusiveness of rural young and women in the Albanian Tech labor market. All previous alike experiences do not motivate the process as a full but fragmented, sporadic, and non-long cycle. That’s why INNVEST wants to change with concrete facts the ecosystem.
