Five Social Enterprises Selected for the Final Phase of the Social Entrepreneurs Accelerator

Five of the best social enterprises in Croatia have been selected to enter the third phase of the Social Entrepreneurs Accelerator, a new support program launched in October by ACT Group from Čakovec. These are: Brlog Cooperative Brewery from Zadar, Marunuša j.d.o.o. from Knin, ProPuh j.d.o.o. from Zagreb, Social Cooperative Humana Nova from Čakovec, and Green Energy Cooperative from Zagreb.

All the mentioned teams have been provided with three months of business support that includes business development and scaling, market development, marketing, and business management, as well as small financial support for the further development of their projects. This will culminate in July when these five social entrepreneurs will have the opportunity to present their business ventures to investors and creditors.

The Social Entrepreneurs Accelerator is a support program for entrepreneurs of ACT Group from Čakovec, launched in collaboration with the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) and the Technical Assistance Fund (EFSE DF), as well as Erste Bank and the Erste Stiftung Foundation.

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The program provides business support to social entrepreneurs with stable operations for the development and realization of new projects and prepares them for further growth and future investments.

An expert jury selected five companies with the best business models that have secured continued participation in the program, an additional three months of business support, and small financial support for the further development of their projects.

Teo Petričević from ACT Group, Jasmina Petrović, advisor for EFSE DF, and Tina Sirotić from Erste Bank addressed the attendees.

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– This program, like other initiatives we are launching within ACT Group, directly contributes to strengthening the capacity and visibility of social economy actors in Croatia and their social impact. We are extremely satisfied with the collaboration with the partners with whom we launched the Accelerator, and we are particularly pleased with the high level of commitment and motivation of the involved teams for learning and developing their entrepreneurial initiatives, stated Teo Petričević.

– This project shows that we are doing the right thing, that we support entrepreneurs, and what is important for their further development is that they better understand business models. I am pleased that after just a few months I can see the positive impact of the acceleration program on the development of the social entrepreneurs participating in it. Their motivation and perseverance in creating a positive impact on society are of utmost importance, and therefore it is essential that we support their business development and self-sustainability, emphasized Jasmina Petrović, advisor for EFSE DF.

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– All the entrepreneurs selected today are ready for the next phase, and I personally look forward to their further development. There is great potential for the growth and development of social enterprises in Croatia, and to create a strong and sustainable sector in the long term, they need our support at this moment. Such programs are extremely important for the development of social entrepreneurship in Croatia, and as representatives of the business sector, we are glad to have contributed to creating a support system and promoting this segment. Now everyone faces a challenging task – namely, being an entrepreneur is demanding, and being a social entrepreneur is even more challenging, concluded Tina Sirotić from Erste Bank.

Briefly about the projects:

Brlog – Cooperative Brewery Growth and development of the Zadar craft brewery. Increasing quality, expanding the market, introducing new beer styles, increasing production capacity.

Marunuša j.d.o.o. Launching a travel agency to promote the natural and cultural heritage of Knin and its surroundings.

ProPuh j.d.o.o. Launching an online platform that connects buyers and artists who create new items with functional or aesthetic value from discarded items.

Social Cooperative Humana Nova Čakovec Launching online sales of supplies for companies (office materials, work uniforms…) with an emphasis on goods produced according to fair-trade and ethical/ecological principles.

Green Energy Cooperative Launching a platform for collective investment in renewable energy sources. The platform connects initiators of mini power plants using renewable energy sources and investors in such power plants.