EU-REKA: Times of Crisis as a Boost for Startups

COVID-19 has completely turned the world of work and business upside down. A willingness to adapt and flexibility have become an absolute necessity. Many people found themselves facing entirely new professional circumstances.

In Styria, up to 37,000 residents were unemployed in 2020—an increase of nearly 40 percent compared to 2019. By May 2022, that number had dropped to around 25,800. In contrast, over 6,100 new businesses were founded in Styria in 2021—the highest number in five years.

While the unemployment rate in Styria has thus fallen significantly, new business start-ups are reaching record highs. Clearly, many people have chosen to take the leap into self-employment: Starting their own business and bringing a business idea (which may have been in the works for some time) to life has thus become a constructive response to the COVID-19 crisis.

Through the EU-REKA initiative, startup communities and other stakeholders from Austria, Italy, Greece, Spain, and the Czech Republic are learning from one another. Together, they are turning international best practices into resources to support regional founders. The project is being implemented with financial support from the European Union totaling approximately 60,000 euros. Specifically—in keeping with the Styrian Startup Mark—individuals are supported on their path to founding a business through guidelines and events. These resources are developed on the European stage by the project consortium.

Objectives

• Enhancing entrepreneurial skills
• Promoting self-employment as an alternative to unemployment
• Creating a network of European entrepreneurs who support one another
• Disseminating information about regional, national, and European funding opportunities for entrepreneurs
• Improving service quality through international exchange