etventure conquers Baden Württemberg: As the majority owner of Accelerate Stuttgart, etventure is accelerating digital growth at its location in Baden-Württemberg

Berlin / Stuttgart, June 10, 2016 – Digital consultancy and company builder etventure is up and running in Baden Württemberg. Back in February, etventure moved into its own office in Stuttgart, at the Accelerate Stuttgart premises. etventure is now growing the partnership relationship and is becoming the new majority owner of the accelerator for Baden-Württemberg.

Since 2012, Accelerate Stuttgart has been helping founders, startups, and companies in Baden-Württemberg to develop digital business models. Its activities in this field are varied, ranging from running an accelerator program to leasing innovative office spaces; from putting on events in the region to providing companies with services such as startup scouting and workshops about digitization. By moving into the Accelerate Spaces in 2015, Accelerate Stuttgart formed an innovation hub in central Stuttgart for all of these activities.

etventure and Accelerate Stuttgart join forces in the areas of startup growth and corporate innovation

This majority interest acquisition means that etventure and Accelerate Stuttgart are now joining forces, working together to press ahead with digital transformation in Baden-Württemberg. “As a location, Stuttgart has played a key role for etventure for some time now. This is due to its proximity to large clients such as Wüstenrot & Württembergische and Daimler Financial Services. It is more than just the presence of world-leading SMEs and large corporations that makes southwest Germany attractive. The region also has an exciting startup scene,” explains Philipp Depiereux, Founder and Managing Director of etventure. “In Accelerate Stuttgart, we have found a partner whose goals and approach are perfectly aligned with etventure’s philosophy. Together, we want to help young founders to link up their startups with established companies and we want to promote Stuttgart’s reputation as a digital location.”

Johannes Ellenberg, founder of Accelerate Stuttgart, moves to etventure

In the course of this majority interest acquisition, Johannes Ellenberg, Founder and Managing Director of Accelerate Stuttgart, will join etventure as a Principal. In this role, he will be responsible for the corporate innovation business in Baden- Württemberg. For the time being, he will remain the CEO of Accelerate Stuttgart and will continue to lead the existing team in its current form. Johannes Ellenberg has been active in the Stuttgart startup scene since 2011. He supports startups from the region and already has numerous projects under his belt, including collaborations with corporations and public sector partners within the Stuttgart region. “I am very much looking forward to my time at etventure and the new, exciting challenges it will bring,” says Ellenberg. “By forming this close partnership between etventure and Accelerate Stuttgart, etventure’s extensive experience in the area of developing digital business models for companies and startups is being combined with Accelerate Stuttgart’s well-established network, not only within the startup scene but also within business, politics, and associations in Baden-Württemberg.”

Startups as “live cell therapy” for companies

One of the first joint projects that is in the pipeline for etventure and Accelerate Stuttgart is the further development of the existing “Corporate Startup Meetup” event format. These events focus on discussion and networking opportunities for local intrapreneurs and pioneering thinkers, who take the spirit of a startup into their respective companies. The initiative will form part of the new “Corporate meets Startup” program, which is run by etventure subsidiary European Innovation Hub. Startup screening and startup pilot programs facilitate the targeted formation of links between companies and startups in order to inject innovations, trends and startup culture into companies and to generate new digital business for both parties.