The European Startup Prize for Mobility has recently launched its podcast series, inviting listeners to discover the fascinating and unique world of successful cleantech start-up entrepreneurs.
Each episode brings the personal story behind the successful start-up; the woman or man who decided to jump out of their comfort zone and disrupt mobility in way that would make it smarter, more sustainable and inclusive.
The objectives are noble but startups don’t always have a happy end. “You hear a lot about all the exits and all the successes, all the companies raising money, but you hear less about the the companies that didn't make it, the companies that closed” says Dvir Reznik, from Israeli startup C2A Security in an episode that will be released next week.
Thriving against the odds
They jump into the water, knowing that the odds of success are against them. Most of the entrepreneurs on the podcast had held leadership roles in major corporations before they embarked on the start-up adventure. They often have spouses and children to support. Yet, as it turns out, it is exactly those family members who are often the reason behind their bold decision.
“The moment my daughter was born was a pivotal moment” says Mikko Ampuja, from Finland. “I knew my daughter was going to ask me some day: Dad, what did you do during the climate crisis? I really wanted to have a good answer for that.”
Mikko’s ‘answer’ was leaving his CEO position in a consultancy and starting Vapaus, a startup which aims at putting one million new cyclists on the road by providing them attractive employee lease agreements.
Every episode brings the listener to another country to discover the story of another clean mobility startup. They discuss their dreams, their fears and also their values of bringing more diversity and inclusion to their sector, gender-balance, and a work-life balance. Co-founders of Luxembourger startup, Stellar, found that pillow fights was their way of bonding and decompressing under stress, whereas
The interviewees are the winners of the 5th edition of the European Startup Prize for Mobility, a private-public organization bringing together all major EU institutions, national authorities, philanthropies and multi-national organisations to scout, evaluate and boost Europe’s most promising clean mobility startups. This year’s winners were selected among over 700 applications from across Europe.
“One of my perks as the Managing Director of the European Startup Prize for Mobility is listening to the incredible stories of our winning startups” says Dan Sobovitz who moderates and produces the podcast. “So I invited them to join me in a studio in snowy Helsinki to tell me about their journey, hoping it would inspire others. If not, at least we had a good laugh in the studio...”
The Brussels Times is the official media partner of the European Startup Prize for Mobility. Find out more about the Prize, its winners, and the podcast on www.startupprize.eu and www.startupprize.eu/podcasts/
