In the spring of 2015, as I was completing my Master's thesis, I was fortunate enough to be selected for Chalmers Ventures Startup Camp in Gothenburg. This business incubator is one of the most renowned in the Nordics, and I knew it was an opportunity not to be missed.
Launching my first company in Gothenburg
Throughout the program, I received intensive training from some of Sweden's highly successful entrepreneurs and angel investors, covering everything from lean startup principles to early-stage fundraising. The guest speakers were truly inspiring - I had the chance to learn from the likes of Erik Byrenius, the founder of Onlinepizza.se, who sold his company for more than a billion SEK, and Hampus Jakobsson, a well-known Swedish investor who has invested in over 80 companies. Learning from these successful entrepreneurs and other startup camp founders has been a rewarding experience. I learned to be proactive, and agile, and to think outside the box when it comes to problem-solving.
Our team at Chalmers and I was pitching at different events 2015
In just a few months, my team and I successfully prototyped, tested, and launched a marketplace that connected international students with mentors.
Our business idea of Mentoris Education 2015
As an inexperienced 24 years old foreign student in Sweden, I was honoured to participate in my first demo day in Gothenburg, where I pitched to a room full of entrepreneurs and investors, my heart racing with excitement. Our hard work paid off:
- We received a pre-seed investment opportunity, making us one of only three teams to receive this coveted opportunity.
- We were awarded the Best Business Idea award in West Sweden in Venture Cup, a reputable business idea competition.
- And we were one of the four SKAPA innovation prize winners among all students from VÀstra Götaland.
As a first-time founder, I made my fair share of mistakes, such as building too many features without fully understanding our customersâ needs. But all these experience fueled my creativity and sparked a passion for solving real problems with a global market. đ
