Last Tuesday, September 11, the 3rd edition of the Startups Forum, promoted by the France-Brazil Chamber of Commerce, took place in São Paulo. Europartner was one of the companies attending the event, which brought together representatives of large companies, entrepreneurs and others involved in the universe of startups.
At the meeting – the first to include a Startups Award – executives from various sectors participated in a debate, and 10 startups had the opportunity to present a “pitch” to a specialized jury. The winner won a ticket to Paris and a one-week immersion in the French office of Crédit Agricole, one of Europe’s largest banks.
“We are very committed to approaching the startups. We will have a 4th and 5th edition of the Forum”, said the French Chamber’s vice-president Gilles Coccoli at the opening of the event, which took place in the InovaBra Habitat – a space for co-innovation that brings together companies, startups, investors, mentors and entrepreneurs to generate new business and seek innovative solutions, based on networking and collaboration.
“This articulation between today’s economy and tomorrow’s economy is a constant subject of reflection by the French authorities. Do we have the ability to emerge French giants on the internet? I think so”, predicted the French ambassador to Brazil, Michel Miraillet, during the opening of the meeting.
Startups x Large Companies
In the panel “How to get startups closer to the corporate world”, executives discussed the challenges and opportunities of collaboration between startups and corporations. Representatives of the mobile operator TIM, the supermarket chain Pão de Açúcar, the social benefits company Edenred, the French company operating with industrial gases Air Liquide, and the multinational manufacturer of building materials Saint Gobain participated in the debate.
“99% of startups do not seek to ‘disrupt’ but to collaborate with large companies as a partner. But often the big companies are inaccessible to it. We need to find ways to promote this connection”, said angel investor Marco Poli, who also participated in the panel.
“A startup co-creates with the company, you can not expect a miracle. It is necessary to change the consulting mindset, the startup collaborates but the big company also needs to participate. We are 17 companies in the group, so we need to organize ourselves, we appoint leaders so that the teams get involved with startups”, said Lucile Charpentier, of Saint Gobain, during the debate.
Pitch of 10 startups
Ten pre-selected startups presented a 5-minute “pitch” for a specialized jury, who chose the project that stood out the most. The participants of the pitch were: 8Blue (molecular solutions), BirminD (industrial optimization), Calhau Social (cultural sponsorships platform), MaturiJobs (employment platform for professionals over 50), NearBee (geossocial platform for personal safety), Psicologia Viva (online psychological counseling platform), Saffe (payment mode via facial recognition), Synappse Assist (mental health monitoring app), TechTalent (digital mindset community) and TotalCross (app creation platform).
The winner was TechTalent, selected by the jury as the best project, winning a ticket to France and a week of immersion in Crédit Agricole.
Europartner is close to startups
Europartner supports foreign companies operating in Brazil and is close to startups from abroad and from Brazil, in order to support entrepreneurship and innovation.
“We are getting closer to the startups ecosystem, and we should soon launch initiatives aimed at this segment. Initiatives such as the Forum and the Prize are fundamental to foster entrepreneurship”, says Rodrigo Zucchi, Commercial Project Manager at Europartner.
“The theme of the panel is another crucial point, as collaboration between large corporations and startups will be indispensable for economic growth in the coming years. All companies must update and find ways to support innovation and pave the way for this type of partnership”, he adds.
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