Fifteen participants from all over the Czech Republic have been taking part in the pilot run since mid-October of the OVACE program. It is intended for budding entrepreneurs in the cultural and creative industries, and this concept was brought to the Czech Republic by the Innovation Center INION from Karlovy Vary. We participate in this new program through sponsorship, and our startup expert Jan Wedlich is one of the mentors of the program.
During twelve online meetings, the participants will learn basic business concepts, and in the framework of group mentoring, they will focus on motivation, financing and work on their business plan together. "We brought the program to the Czech Republic from Norway, where hundreds of budding entrepreneurs have already gone through it successfully. Since INION is intensively dedicated to supporting cultural and creative industries, we decided to dedicate it to creatives. It is therefore ideal for, for example, art students, photographers, designers or graphic artists. The participants are people who want to start their own business, build a new service or product, or perhaps start a new cultural project," explains Radka Murasová from the INION Innovation Center in Karlovy Vary.
We are pleased to partner with this innovative program. Working with creatives is very important to us and we are happy that our mentor Honza Wedlich will deepen his experience working with this specifically focused group in this pilot run." says Lucie Podrápská, who deals with cultural and creative industries at the Innovation Center of the Ústí Region.
The program is unique both in its focus on creatives and in its intensity. In addition to individual group lessons, participants also have the option of individual mentoring. To work on the business plan, the participants have at their disposal the digital tool EMS (Entrepreneurship Management System), which guides them step by step through its preparation. Thanks to grant support from the Norwegian Funds and the EEA, participation is free for participants.
It organizes the development program for the cultural and creative sector (OVACE Program). Innovation center INION in cooperation with a Norwegian partner Entrepreneurs. This project is financed by a grant from EEA and Norwegian funds, Culture program.
