Prize winners of the Start-up Cup look back from the future at their business

Looking back from the future

Prize winners of the Start-up Cup fictitiously report back

Start-ups are a promise to the future. Which ideas will expand their potential? Which business models are sustainable in the long term? And who will hold their own in the market? These questions are on the minds of all company founders. They can only be answered in retrospect. H-BRS offers extensive support on the path to the future: at the Centre for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and SMEs (CENTIM), at the Centre for Science and Technology Transfer (ZWT), at the BusinessCampus (BC), at the Institute for Social Innovations (ISI) and at the Start-up Manufaktur. The latter organised the Start-up Cup in 2021, in which 24 start-up teams of H-BRS students, employees and alumni participated. The two top-placed teams are reporting back from the future. In 2042, they will look back on 20 years of successful entrepreneurship.

Paul Anduschus, founder of Dressive, reports:

“We struck a chord 20 years ago with our concept for a new shopping format. We combine the best of online and offline shopping in our local stores. Instead of searching for suitable sizes in the shop or having to queue at changing rooms and checkouts, at Dressive you scan showroom items on site with your mobile phone. The items you select end up in your size in a changing room assigned to you. We also have self-checkout. That means no waiting, no returns. Dressive stands for sustainable, fair fashion for all. We offer small, sustainable fashion brands a brick-and-mortar presence – that‘s how we brought the diversity of the fashion world from the online realm back to the high street. Other shops have followed our approach, and life has returned to the city centres.”

Prof. Dr Paul R. Melcher and Adina Gorun, founders of Joe cold brew, recount:

“Joe is made by coffee fans for coffee fans – to start the day, for events, in the kitchen – Joe is a lifestyle beverage that can be found everywhere. Our cold-brew coffee concentrate is not only particularly digestible, gentle on the stomach and aromatic, but also extremely versatile. Sure, we have flagship stores in Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam and Vienna, but we’re especially strong in online retail. That‘s why Joe in our trendy, recyclable glass bottles is a household name throughout Europe. Our personalised Joe is also cool – choose your coffee bean mix, we prepare and deliver your special Joe.”