Relevant Ventures

🌍 Calling All Impact Founders Worldwide! The "Status of the Impact Ventures Ecosystem" questionnaire is now live and waiting for your responses! 🖇️ Please visit this link to submit your questionnaire: https://lnkd.in/epEmZ6ev We want to understand what’s working, what’s missing, and what’s needed to empower impact ventures like yours to thrive. 💡 In just 5 minutes, you’ll help shape insights on: ✅ The biggest challenges holding impact ventures back from scaling ✅ The most critical gaps in funding, financial management & business growth ✅ The support that would make the biggest difference for founders like you As a thank you, you’ll receive an exclusive invite to our online event: ✨ "How to Get Investment Ready?" ✨ 📅 (RSVP link available after questionnaire submission) At this event, you’ll discover how our tailored approach, refined over a decade of successfully supporting hundreds of startups can make your fundraising journey easier. 💬 Know an impact founder? Tag them in the comments & let’s build a stronger impact ecosystem together! #ImpactInvesting #SocialEntrepreneurship #ScalingForImpact #InvestmentReadiness #ImpactEcosystem

Mastering Unit Level Economics is crucial to creating successful business models and transparent financial plans. 💡 Secure your spot for this open session - Register now on Luma: https://lu.ma/e5o4uie0 Whether you're building a product, a service, or a social venture - this session will help you make better pricing decisions, know your break-even point, and understand your financial story in a way that builds confidence with funders. Stay tuned! 🌳 Each spring, Relevant Ventures launches an open event series designed for founders, fixers, and funders to explore our ideas, tools, and perspectives on financing impact. #impact #finance #entrepreneurship #investment #event

🌍 The call is open for all impact founders worldwide on this link: https://lnkd.in/ese7ahpW By filling our “Status of the Impact Ventures Ecosystem” questionnaire, you are helping us on our journey to create more relevant opportunities for founders just like you. As a thank you, you’ll receive an exclusive invite to our online event: ✨ "How to Get Investment Ready?", happening on April 2, 2025 ✨ 📅 (RSVP link available after questionnaire submission) At this event, you’ll discover how our tailored approach, refined over a decade of successfully supporting hundreds of startups can make your fundraising journey easier. 💬 Know an impact founder? Tag them in the comments or forward them our questionnaire, as they might benefit from joining our online community. #impact #entrepreneurship #scalingImpact

Breaking the Impact Bubble – Reflections from Sankalp Africa Forum 2025💡 Last week, our colleagues Nikolaus Hutter and Niwamanya Edson attended the 12th Sankalp Africa Forum in Nairobi - the powerhouse gathering of 1,000+ ecosystem players, investors, entrepreneurs, and changemakers in the impact space. The energy of this event was unmatched, as the African impact ecosystem is vibrant, growing, and deeply interconnected. Every conversation was filled with purpose and innovation, making it an inspiring space to meet new partners and reconnect with familiar faces. Every single meeting we had was interesting, relevant, stimulating and enjoyable. Despite the high-quality delegates and deep discussions, one thing was hard to ignore: 👉 The logos told the same story - a lineup that, while crucial for incubating changemaking businesses, hints at an over-reliance on donor funding. Why does this matter? Because sustainability should not mean dependency. We’ve been talking about “catalyzing sustainable private sector engagement” for over a decade - yet, if we’re still having the same conversations, something isn’t quite working. While the impact world gathered, other key players - corporates, bankers, policymakers, tech leaders - were not in the room. Meanwhile, at the Africa Tech Summit just a week earlier, it was the opposite. The silos remain. The Way Forward? We must break out of our impact bubble and create deeper engagement across sectors. True change will come when the world of impact meets the broader business and innovation ecosystems - fast. This will expand the range of financial instruments available to impact entrepreneurs, foster cross-sector learning, and enhance alignment within African economies for more integrated growth. 💬 What are your thoughts? Have you experienced this impact bubble, and how can we burst it? A huge thank you to the Intellecap Team and everyone we connected with. Sankalp 2025 was an incredible space for learning, reflection, and action - and we’ll be back! 🌍 #ImpactInvesting #SankalpAfrica #BreakingTheBubble #BeyondDonorFunding #ImpactEcosystem #AfricaTech #CollaborationForChange

Blending strategic discussions with creativity and connection during the Relevant Ventures Retreat in Uganda. 🌞 As we approached the end of Q1, the Relevant Ventures team took a moment to step back, reflect, and align. A few of our European team members swapped winter coats for sunshine and joined our Ugandan team in Kampala for a dynamic team retreat - aligning, reflecting, and growing. 🌍 Over a series of collaborative sessions, we reflected on the impact of our work, paved strategies to streamline new operations, and strengthened our alignment for the months ahead. But strategy wasn’t our only focus - we also tapped into our creative side, engaging in a hands-on art workshop that sparked fresh perspectives (and some impressive masterpieces - proof attached 📸). We left with renewed energy, sharper focus, and deep gratitude for the journey so far. As we step into spring 2025, we’re gearing up to announce some exciting opportunities to engage with us. Impact entrepreneurs and partners, stay tuned! 🚀 #Team #ImpactDriven #Purpose #Innovation #Alignment #Growth

This February was marked by the culmination of the REDpreneur Training Academy, the program we have been delivering alongside our partners since November 2024. 🌟 Social businesses are the vector of change, driving a fundamental shift in how we operate, create value, and measure success—one that prioritizes not just profit, but the well-being of people and the environment. On a macro level, we can contribute to this shift by repurposing business and building real-world cases of better ventures—both morally and commercially. In that regard, REDpreneur serves as a true lab, and the 12 ventures that pitched during the culmination session are a testament to that. Alongside Program Content Lead, our very own Nikolaus Hutter, and Program Cohort Manager, Diego Heatherman, the expert panel evaluated each pitch, offering valuable guidance to help these social entrepreneurs refine their ideas and take them to the next level! We are grateful to the expert panel (in alphabetical order) for their valuable insights and feedback to the pitching ventures: Apolot Mary – Acceleration Program Lead, Social Innovation Academy (SINA) Hayfa Khalidy-Beyhum – National Society Financial Sustainability Senior Officer, IFRC Margit Mayr – Impact Investment Manager, Erste Social Finance Holding REDpreneur is a program facilitated by the Austrian Red Cross, carried out by New Paradigm Ventures, Relevant Ventures, and Impact Hub Vienna, with funding from the Austrian Development Agency, ERSTE Foundation, and Erste Social Finance Holding, supported by Vienna Insurance Group, Canadian Red Cross, Netherlands Red Cross, and more.

This is where impact meets opportunity – and we’re going to be right in the heart of it! Sankalp Africa Summit has been a driving force in accelerating impact entrepreneurship across the Global South for over 15 years. Our colleagues Niwamanya Edson and Nikolaus Hutter will be on the ground at the Sankalp Forum in Nairobi, connecting with changemakers, impact investors, and entrepreneurs. If you're attending Sankalp, feel free to connect, share ideas, and explore potential collaborations. We’re looking forward to insightful discussions, new partnerships, and exploring solutions addressing pressing global challenges. 🌍 #ImpactInvesting #Impact #Entrepreneurship #Collaboration

✨ Discover our academy programs for impact founders in the first quarter of 2025! January kicked off with incredible momentum as we delivered three amazing programs: 🌍 SINA Purpose Pool Investment Readiness Program – Empowering ventures in Uganda 🏙 Re:Wien in Vienna – Supporting urban innovators in Austria 💻 REDpreneur Training Academy – Equipping changemakers worldwide through an online experience We enjoyed working with every single transformative venture during these programs, and we are very grateful to our partners for these opportunities.  🙌 REDpreneur Impact Hub Vienna SINA (Social Innovation Academy) And now, we’re looking forward to our online Q1 Academy starting February 18th! 🎉 A hands-on, two-month program will empower founders to: 📌 Build polished financial and business plans 📌 Refine investor pitch decks 📌 Navigate fundraising with confidence 💬 Ready to be part of this? Secure your spot by messaging our page! #ImpactEntrepreneurship #InvestmentReadiness #FinancialPlanning #RelevantAcademy #ScalingForImpact #SocialInnovation

This week, we had the opportunity to participate in Africa Day, hosted by WKO (Austria Economic Chamber), that was focused on the potential of innovation and collaboration between Austria and Africa. Our very own Gregor Riss was invited to speak on a panel about building a sustainable innovation network - a crucial topic when navigating Africa’s 54 diverse markets. 👏 Kudos to the amazing panelists for their meaningful contributions to the topics Isaac Newton Acquah, Juliet Ehimuan, Victoria Gathogo and Renate Schnutt. Why does this matter? Africa is home to a young, entrepreneurial population, rapidly growing economies, and immense untapped opportunities. To truly engage, we need more than just market interest—we need genuine collaboration, open innovation, and long-term commitments. 🌱 The Takeaway? There’s room for many more entrepreneurs and investors in Africa. If you're considering exploring this dynamic continent, events like Africa Day are a great first step toward meaningful engagement.

We're thrilled to see new applications rolling in every day - only 5 days left to join this growing community of changemakers! 🖇️ Apply today via this form: https://lnkd.in/evb7jeP3 🌍 Are you running or planning to launch a plastic recycling business in underserved markets? If you're passionate about tackling plastic waste, bringing your vision to life, and creating a bigger impact in the recycling space, this program is for you! Our online free program will help you take your hard plastic recycling venture or idea to the next level. Here's what you'll gain: ✅ A tailored, comprehensive business plan ✅ A financial strategy to grow sustainably ✅ Practical skills and insights to scale your business ✅ Expert guidance from top industry leaders ✅ Access to a global network of like-minded entrepreneurs Have questions? We're here to help—reach out anytime!