The projects chosen to pass to the second phase of the contest «Ideias em Caixa» by CRIA – Division of Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer of the University of Algarve (UAlg) will begin to “mature”.
The first actions of maturation and acceleration of the business projects of the promoters of the business ideas presented will start tomorrow, Saturday, in a session that will take place in the Red Auditorium of the UAlg Faculty of Economics, on the institution's Gambelas Campus, between 9 am and 17:45 pm
In the fourth edition of the competition, 161 applications were submitted, from which 50 business ideas were chosen, 20 more than the 30 initially planned, something that «attests to the quality of the projects presented». A reflection of the «success of the initiative», which, according to CRIA, «has already surpassed all expectations».
These 161 ideas involved a total of 314 promoters (50 percent female), with an average age of 31, who submitted applications, individually or in groups, mainly in the agri-food (16,1%), tourism (16,1) %), health and well-being (14,3%) and also Cultural and creative industries (13,7%). Applications were received from various parts of the country, but mainly from the municipalities of Faro, Loulé, Olhão and Portimão.
Once the ideas have been chosen, tools must be given to their promoters so that they can deepen them. This is where maturation actions come in, consisting of workshops, «which aim to support promoters in the maturation of the business idea, leading them to rethink their products/services, approach to the market, costs and necessary investment, for example ».
Over this Saturday, the competitors will have the support of specialized consultants and will be able to listen to entrepreneurs who launched with Ideias em Caixa and now have their own businesses.
«After the actions of maturation of ideas, promoters will have the opportunity to present the business projects to a jury panel, made up of representatives of some regional entities and companies. The jury will be responsible for evaluating and selecting the winning ideas», said the coordinator of CRIA Hugo Barros.
For him, the strong adhesion to the IV «Ideias em Caixa» is a reflection of the work that has been developed, within the scope of the promotion of entrepreneurship, by the University of Algarve, through the project «Algarve 2015 – Empreender e Inovar».
«This project, financed by PO Algarve 21, allowed us to invest more in the dissemination of this initiative and in the adoption of a more efficient model for monitoring business ideas. The set of partnerships associated with this initiative also contributed significantly to the results obtained, particularly with NERA, a partner in the Algarve 2015 project, but also in collaboration with the Municipal Councils of the Algarve, where we have been conducting a "roadshow" to promote the entrepreneurship”, illustrated Hugo Barros.
As for the ideas that were not selected in this first evaluation, CRIA will continue to support them, if the promoters decide to do so. «The University will continue to play its role in promoting entrepreneurship in the Algarve region and all those who need support, in order to move forward with their business projects, can count on us», assured the coordinator of CRIA.
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