When Oktoberfest is just around the corner, the Bits & Pretzels is not far behind. And again this year, from September 24-26, 5,000 founders, investors, and decision-makers will gather in Bavaria’s state capital to be inspired by Munich’s founder festival. After two content-rich days at Messe München, during which among others the former First Lady Michelle Obama is expected, Bits will culminate on the third day as usual at Wiesn. The focus here is entirely on networking, briefly interrupted by the presentation of the Munich Startup Special Prize, endowed with 2,500 euros, which will be awarded to the best Munich startup at the Bits & Pretzels.
Even before the presentation of the Munich Startup Special Prize, Munich Startup will present itself with its own lounge at the founder festival. In the startup area of the trade fair, hall B0, visitors can meet various experts from the startup ecosystem on the first two days of the fair and learn more about topics such as startup financing, impact startups and social entrepreneurship, or startup founding and support.
Munich Startup Lounge – the program:
Day 1 – September 24
- 10:30 AM | Alexander Schmidbauer from Munich Economic Development
Alexander Schmidbauer is a founding and startup consultant at the business development department of the city of Munich. In his expert slot, he focuses on offerings in business and startup development and presents the program Spaces4Scaleups in detail. - 12:30 PM | Birgit Siepmann from the Landeshauptstadt München
Birgit Siepmann is Impact Entrepreneurship & Social Innovation Manager at the Landeshauptstadt München. As an expert, she speaks about impact startups, B2G, govtech, and innovation-friendly procurement, among other topics. - 2:30 PM | Kathi Bolten and Stephan Zentsch from Keoz
The Keoz agency specializes in business processes and technology around marketing automation and data-driven marketing. At the Bits & Pretzels, experts Kathi Bolten and Stephan Zentsch will analyze visitors’ needs free of charge and without obligation, and provide tips and tricks.
Day 2 – September 25
- 10:30 AM | Patrick Nathen from Lilium
Patrick Nathen is co-founder of Lilium and currently works as chief engineer for flight mechanics. During his expert slot, he is open to all questions about Lilium itself and shares tips he has gained from his own founding experience. - 12:30 PM | Adrian Altomari from Baystartup
Adrian Altomari heads the coaching department in the Digital Founder Centers at Baystartup. At Bits, he will share his knowledge about finding founding and growth capital. - 2:30 PM | Laura Steinke from Ananda Impact Ventures
As an analyst, Laura Steinke is part of the investment team at Ananda Impact Venture, a European impact investor based in Munich. At the Munich Startup Lounge, she will answer questions about impact investing as an expert. - 2:30 PM | Tim Bäulke and Rainer Knapek from CBRE
Tim Bäulke and Rainer Knapek from CBRE, a commercial real estate service provider, are experts on commercial space. Visitors to the Munich Startup Lounge who are currently looking for commercial space can get firsthand tips from the two experts.
Free ice cream from the crazy ice cream maker
A visit to our lounge in hall B0 is definitely worthwhile. In addition to the expert talks, there is another treat waiting for visitors: Munich Startup is providing free ice cream from the crazy ice cream maker. Come by on September 24 and 25, get valuable tips and a delicious scoop of ice cream.
