Star­tup Express Pre-incu­ba­tor

Turn your idea into a star­tup in 100 days with help of a com­mu­ni­ty

Are you inte­res­ted in launc­hing your own star­tup in Oulu, but not sure how to get star­ted? Star­tup Express is a pre-incu­ba­tor pro­gram that pro­vi­des skills, con­fi­dence and con­tacts to empower you on your jour­ney.

What?

Our mis­sion is to help idea-sta­ge star­tup teams to rea­lize their dreams in Oulu in 100 days and build a kic­kass com­mu­ni­ty to sup­port them.

Never walk alo­ne. You get a com­mu­ni­ty of curious indi­vi­duals, coac­hes and men­tors to help you along the way.

When?

Applica­tion is always ongoing → click here to apply! 

You are free to join the Star­tup Express com­mu­ni­ty whe­ne­ver you want.

Howe­ver, to boost your process from idea to busi­ness, we orga­nize two 14-week pro­gram cohorts 10/2023 — 1/2024 and 2 — 4/2024, whe­re we offer step-by-step sup­port for you. This is when the magic hap­pens. 

Next cohort launc­hes in begin­ning of Februa­ry. The­re­fo­re, you should sign up latest by Janua­ry 28th, so that you can have maxi­mum bene­fit from all the works­hop ses­sions and sup­port.

Whe­re?

At Star­tup Sta­tion in the city cen­ter of Oulu.

For whom?

• Moti­va­ted idea-sta­ge teams with sca­lable busi­ness ideas. Pro­gram suits both first-time foun­ders and expe­rienced ent­repre­neurs. We are more inte­res­ted in com­mit­ment, ambi­tion and wil­ling­ness to learn, rat­her than the matu­ri­ty of the busi­ness idea or model.

• Also curious indi­vi­duals can apply to join our teams wit­hout their own idea.

Bene­fits?

Pro­gram is free-of-char­ge, offe­ring you:

• 14-week pre-incu­ba­tor pro­gram with works­hops and 1‑on‑1 spar­ring ses­sions to take you from idea-sta­ge to first cus­to­mers and establis­hing busi­ness

• Access to Star­tup Sta­tion cowor­king space and faci­li­ties for wor­king, mee­tings and Fablab

• Coac­hes, men­tors and experts sup­port you along the way

• Com­mu­ni­ty: Peer-sup­port and lear­ning with other par­tici­pants and experts

• Con­nect with other events and ser­vices offe­red by Oulu star­tup eco­sys­tem

• Com­mu­ni­ty mana­ger to sup­port your lear­ning and deve­lop­ment

Impor­tant dates

(Dates are sub­ject to chan­ge)

Janua­ry 28th, 2024: Applica­tion to Star­tup Express is ongoing and you can apply at any time, but we recom­mend sig­ning up latest by this date in the win­ter

Below you can find the Star­tup Express win­ter 2024 works­hops. All events @ Star­tup Sta­tion. Teams are not expec­ted to par­tici­pa­te in all the works­hops, but we recom­mend taking part into as many as pos­sible to boost your progress.

Kic­koff: 7.2.2024

Team: 13.2.2024

Cus­to­mer Problem: 22.2.2024

Busi­ness Model & Pricing: 1.3.2024

Vali­da­tion: 7.3.2024

Pitch-Buil­ding: 13.3.2024

Growth Fun­ding + Pitch Prac­tice: 21.3.2024

Due Dili­gence & IPR: 4.4.2024

Demo day: 24.4.202

Apply, if you are

• Star­tup team with an idea (pre-y-tun­nus) see­king con­fi­dence, skills, and men­to­ring: If you have a star­tup idea and need sup­port to build your con­fi­dence, skills, and access men­to­ring, we’­re here to help.

• Indi­vi­dual inte­res­ted in joi­ning a star­tup: If you want to be part of a star­tup team and have a can-do atti­tu­de, we can con­nect you with teams acti­ve­ly loo­king for ent­husias­tic indi­vi­duals like you.

For eco­sys­tem part­ners

We are are also inte­res­ted in wor­king with eco­sys­tem players if you are

• A busi­ness angel or a ven­tu­re capi­ta­list see­king the most pro­mi­sing ear­ly-sta­ge ven­tu­res in Oulu, we can pro­vi­de access to such oppor­tu­ni­ties.

• Men­tors, experts, and eco­sys­tem players, who want to bring idea-sta­ge teams to our pre-incu­ba­tor to acce­le­ra­te their growth. Alter­na­ti­ve­ly, you can offer your ser­vices to sup­port the incu­ba­tor teams.

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Con­tact our team

We are ent­repre­neurs and experts, who have wal­ked the path befo­re. Whe­ne­ver you have ques­tions, plea­se feel free to be in touch with us.