Host program for Ukrainian startups in Greece

The program to support Ukrainian start-ups through the temporary relocation of their founders and executives to Greece, their multifaceted support, as well as their interconnection with Greek businesses, is now a fact.

As reported by Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (SEV), the “Greek-Ukrainian StartUp Gateway” program was initiated by Guy Krief, co-founder of Bryq & Persado, and the Association of Businesses and Industries, in collaboration with the non-profit organizations HIGGS and SolidarityNOW.

Strong tech sector in Ukraine

“Ukraine’s technology sector is the third largest in terms of exports, and major companies such as Apple, Microsoft and many others employ staff in Ukraine. It is estimated that 20% of Fortune 500 companies have remote development teams in Ukraine, leveraging the country’s rich pool of engineers and programmers,” the statement said, while noting that “following the Russian invasion, more than 3.6 million refugees have crossed the border of Ukraine, according to the official data of the High Commission. Many Ukrainians are looking for temporary housing for themselves and their businesses.”

Giraffe

“On November 20, 2022, we welcomed in Athens the first arrival, namely the team of “Giraffe”, a platform/software that facilitates other companies in managing their subscriptions. By using this platform, companies can significantly reduce their fixed costs. The team consists of 5 young people who until a few months ago lived in Ukraine where their promising company was headquartered.”

“We are grateful for the opportunity to participate in the Greek – Ukrainian Startup Gateway program,” said the company’s CEO, Andrii Aleksieienko. “The relocation process went very well and the team in Athens was very helpful! We are happy to be here,” he added.

IBeauty

Almost a month later, the second company arrived, “IBeauty”, an interactive platform that guides us in the field of beauty and care with advanced technological tools. Through the platform users among others have the opportunity to connect with services and beauty professionals based on their personalized requirements.

“The war in Ukraine changed a lot, it changed our lives and everyday life. The recent missile attacks have completely destroyed the country’s energy system and this makes it impossible to carry out our work,” said Teresa Popil, CEO of IBeauty. “Thanks to the program, we had the opportunity to work and develop our startup – iBeauty. It is an invaluable help to us, your support makes us believe in the future again.”

“Happy and grateful”

Guy Krief, co-founder of Bryq & Persado, said of the initiative:

“Since the beginning of the war, I have been in contact with various startup founders from Ukraine and after hearing their stories, I thought that we should somehow help them. Thanks to the support of many organizations and private sector companies, we managed to relocate the first company and its employees to Athens. From now on I hope we can soon welcome many more.”

“We are very happy that the ecosystem of innovation and startups in our country is opening its arms to Ukrainian startups. At the same time, we are grateful to all the businesses that contributed to this initiative”, said Maggie Athanasiadis on behalf of SEV. “We welcome Giraffe & iBeauty startups and join forces with all the actors of the Greek – Ukrainian Startups Gateway, so that innovation becomes a bridge of cooperation, peaceful coexistence and development.”

“HIGGS, faithful to the values of solidarity and empowerment, could not help but respond to the call to co-create the “StartUpGateway”, this important project to support the Ukrainian ecosystem of start ups”, Sotiris Petropoulos emphasized. “Through our expertise and with the help of our partners, we undertook to coordinate and implement the relocation of Ukrainian start-ups to Greece, thus enriching the Greek ecosystem, while offering the help these groups need to flourish away from the war .”

The goal of the program

The goal of the Greek-Ukrainian StartUp Gateway program is to offer temporary relocation to Ukrainian start-ups and their employees (as well as their families), thus allowing them to continue operating safely and network with the Greek startup ecosystem. The program provides:

• Free transfer of the founders / employees and their families to Greece
• Free accommodation (for up to 15 days) for the beneficiaries and their families
• One-off equipment / office supplies allowance
• Free office space (for up to 6 months)
• Special Visa facilitation
• Free provision of business development services

Networking with Greek Startups and Greek investors

The initiative is exclusively funded by the private sector from companies that either through sponsorships or donations actually support the cause by giving Ukrainian citizens the opportunity to develop their startups in a safe environment.

The sponsors of the initiative
The program of hosting Ukrainian startups in Greece “Greek – Ukrainian Startups Gateway” could not be realized without the sponsors of the initiative.

AEGEAN AIRLINES S.A.

BLUEGROUND MON. IKE

CONVERT GROUP A.E.

EUROBANK Egg – enter•grow•go

ELPEN SA PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY

OCM Digital Media

OTE GLOBE SA

PERSADO SA

PUBLIC RETAIL A.E.

SKROUTZ SA

UPSTREAM M.A.E.

ViOS Workspace Redefined