What is The Startup Factory? I The Startup Factory

WHY

We exist to encourage more companies to be established in Jyväskylä, to introduce a more entrepreneurial attitude to workplaces and attract many enthusiastic students to the entrepreneurship courses of educational institutes.

WHAT

We coach business ideas into successful companies and create the prerequisites for entrepreneurs. Our number one duty is to coach individual people, teams and startups alike to make their dreams into reality.

HOW

High-quality, customised training for startup entrepreneurs at their initial stages through the incubator and through educational institute coaching intended for business ideas and companies of educational institutes.

FOR WHOM?

For people with the ideas and will to become growth entrepreneurs, i.e. owners of ideas and entrepreneurs in Jyväskylä and the people of Jyväskylä’s educational institutes*.

WHERE?

In Jyväskylä, in Finland, globally online everywhere in the world.

The Startup Factory’s philosophy

Our most important duty is to coach you on how to make your dreams come true. We coach hundreds of ideas from all kinds of people into successful companies.

Our team will ensure as smooth journey for you as possible and the process works, which means that you can focus on refining your own product or service idea with the help of experts. We do everything we can to help companies be born and grow towards international markets. We are breaking boundaries by bringing together professional and academic experts.

We inspire people to take up entrepreneurship so that more and more people can find their inner entrepreneur. The Startup Factory offers strong entrepreneurship skills and access to a network of solid professionals. We believe that ‘things just won’t work without entrepreneurship’. We create new opportunities for entrepreneurs because society is built on entrepreneurship. We encourage people to try things and learn from their mistakes.

The Startup Factory is a meeting place for entrepreneurs. Anyone interested in entrepreneurship is always welcome at the joint facilities of the Startup Factory. We are building the startup community and creating the spirit of entrepreneurship around us.

What sets us apart from our competitors?

1. The Performance Program & method

At the Startup Factory, we promote both business and the entrepreneurs’ well-being.

The Startup Factory’s entrepreneur-led, multidisciplinary and experienced team creates high-performing startup companies for global markets through a new method.

2. The core of the entrepreneurship ecosystem

We are an important hub in the entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem of Jyväskylä; an active advocate and a platform for developing new business.

Jyväskylä is the sports capital of Finland with affordable housing and business premises costs. The local large institutes of higher education and other educational institutes provide the companies with skilled staff.

3. One step ahead

The Startup Factory is one step ahead in the world of entrepreneurship, on top of trends, together with its clients. The Startup Factory is a venue for events where entrepreneurs can develop themselves and their business.

The ‘Factory crew’ is filled with entrepreneurs and experienced business professionals who have personal expertise in entrepreneurship, international startup business and strong stakeholder operations. Some of the team members work for both the Startup Factory and outside it, in the business world. Thanks to this, we are able to provide you with experienced coaches of the business field who are also familiar with the everyday challenges entrepreneurs and businesses face.

4. Open culture

The Startup Factory has open doors and facilities. Anyone interested in entrepreneurship is welcome to the Startup Factory’s facilities. Our facilities are used by the multidisciplinary client teams, our partners and the entire network. The Startup Factory is building a startup community and creating an entrepreneurial spirit around itself.

5. Great contacts

The Startup Factory has great contactst with Finnish financers and investors. Together with Venture Development Finland, we bring the financers together in a financing panel, which means that our incubator companies do not need to spend time touring the different investors.

6. The first in Finland

Unique cooperation across different educational levels: The Startup Factory is a unique limited liability company in Finland, and the first of its kind: its owners are the University of Jyväskylä, Gradia, JAMK and the City of Jyväskylä. Together, we want to break the stereotypes attached to public organisations.

7. You will gain experience

We offer you solid experience of entrepreneurship and access to a network of top professionals. The Startup Factory’s dream is a future where everyone is free the create their own working life. The students will receive real experience of entrepreneurship and get a view of the world of entrepreneurs.

Our values

Equality

Our motto is: ‘make your neighbour shine’. We trust in the professional skills of our team and we are sincere. We help each other succeed. #professionality

Innovativeness

We are creating a bold, relaxed culture of experimentation for the working life of the future. We create something new every week and develop our concepts. #experimentalculture

Profitability

We work to promote profitable growth. We create new opportunities for entrepreneurs because society is built on entrepreneurship. #profitablegrowth

For the best of the client

In our client relationships, we always meet with the people, regardless of the type of the company. People always come first in our work.
#trust

Network

We have strong networks. We cherish the strongest expertise, invest in cooperation, make sure we really know each other and learn together.
#networks

Incubator operations have been implemented in Jyväskylä for years now by several different organisations.

Incubator operations and related services have been implemented in Jyväskylä for years now by several different organisations: Jyväskylän Teknologiakeskus, Technopolis Ventures, JYKES, JAMK Generator.
The backgrounds of these organisations and the financing structures guiding their operations have created the framework for the incubator operators. They have resulted in some fantastic growth stories over the years, such as Firstbeat, Naava, Idean Research and Paytrail.

At the moment, Jyväskylän Yritystehdas Oy is utilising these tried and tested models and has instructed services that follow the new strategy.

The beginning of the Startup Factory

2002

The story begins

2011

Historic years

The history of the Startup Factory dates back to 2002–2011, and the incubator operations by Teknopolis, Protomo, Jykes, CoCampus and others.

2017

Jyväskylän Yritystehdas Oy

After several different stages, Jyväskylän Yritystehdas Oy was established in 2017.

2018

Challenging times

The years 2017 and 2018 were challenging.

This period was preceded by a business transfer from JAMK, and we were building the first Finnish limited liability company owned by four different public bodies as well as a new strategy.

2019

New beginnings

January 2019

New beginning and new strategy, while honouring the old. New concepts were being built, new teams recruited and more than a hundred change projects were launched.

April 2019

Opening of the new Startup Factory while continuing building new operations and even changing the board!

September 2019

All eight service units in operation, eleven new people in the team and a whole crowd of new customers.

December 2019

Clarifying the strategy of the company One more time and making corresponding changes to services. More than 50 experts building content for new concepts while serving more than a thousand business idea owners. The pace was fast, but the vision was clear.

2020

Today

Startup incubator & educational institute coaching in operation. The Startup Factory is 90% different from what it was in 2018. The development of a lean organisation will continue. The thanks for the work this far go to the owners, the board, our work teams and our great customers!