Start it @KBC – Building Business as unusual Together
Start it @KBC is a unique start-up accelerator because it is 100%-no-strings-attached-founder-centric. The team is mission-driven and supports courageous entrepreneurs in their passion, goals and business.
Biggest Added Value
“Our biggest added value is our community – over 1,000 start-ups, more than 160 mentors, and 40+ partners – are all there to support each other and share their experience,” says Aurélien Troonbeeckx, Business Coach – Wellbeing & Academy Manager Owner at Start it @KBC.
In addition to its large network, the accelerator also offers 1-to-1 coaching, free office space, workshop and training sessions on sales, marketing, finance, leadership and customer discovery. All its start-ups are innovative, ambitious and scalable. Soda, Turbulent, and Wheel the World are part of their start-up community.
Team Values
Show up, speak up, look up, team up, never give up and have lots of fun. These are Start it @KBC’s team values. On a personal note, building a start-up, expanding it to 7 countries and having an exit before it had the impact the team hoped for, made the team focus even more on data and customer discovery.
Biggest Achievements to Date
Start it @KBC was founded in 2014 and is the largest accelerator in Belgium. The international Start it @KBC community consists of a network of more than 1,000 start-ups and scale-ups that reinforce each other through their experiences and expertise.
“My biggest personal achievement was to create a start-up from scratch, bring it to market in 7 countries, and then exit the start-up to join the biggest acceleration program in Belgium where I have since coached 40+ start-ups,” proudly says Aurélien Troonbeeckx.
2021 Achievements
For the sixth year in a row, Start it @KBC broke its own record on March 29, 2021 in Antwerp: 323 start-ups registered for the first pitch wave of 2021 to accelerate their business at Start it @KBC.
The 10 jury teams selected 64 companies after two intensive, digital pitch days. They will be coached in the coming months to scale up their business. More than 1 in 3 founders (35%) has left their previous employer to start their own start-up.
What’s even more striking is that 4 out of 10 consciously do this in order to have a real impact on the world within a young, agile start-up.
Connection with InvestHorizon
“InvestHorizon is important as it allows us to get in touch with innovative entrepreneurs and help them to get to the next level, close a Series A funding round and have the impact they want to have on the world. It also helps European companies to stay at the forefront of innovation and get the help they deserve to become the leaders in their respective markets,” concludes Mr. Aurélien Troonbeeckx