After gaining success with innovation houses in Silicon Valley and New York, Nordic Innovation has decided to fund the establishing of an innovation house in Singapore.
The house will be a “soft landing incubator” meant to give Nordic companies seeking fortune in Singapore an easier lift-off. It’s meant for small and medium sized companies who are new to the Singapore market or companies who see the benefits of a being part of a Nordic community.
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Through the innovation house, “Nordic companies can get access to a Nordic community in important international hubs and the services offered will be complementary to what already exists through the different national trade organizations in the Nordic countries,” according to Nordic Innovation.
Svein Berg, Managing Director of Nordic Innovation, naturally has great faith in the project: “The incubators are meant to be a service for new and established Nordic companies with the high potential for international growth and success. They need to see the Asian markets as a good target market for their products and services and as a place to find important partners, they need to be ready to go global, tackle international markets and competition”, says Svein Berg in a press release.
But even though the news of financial support is generally met with a positive attitude, the funds needed to complete the innovation hub haven’t been met yet.
Nordic Innovation’s contribution only covers about 50 percent of the funding needed, meaning that the founders will have to look elsewhere for the remaining funds.
“The ambition is that each of the Nordic Innovation Hubs shall be economically self-sustained after the project period. The total grant is for 3 years”, says Svein Berg.
The contribution from Nordic Innovation was US$1,3 million. Part of the agreement goes towards establishing a smiliar innovation center in Hong Kong.
