Venista Ventures and WeWork Labs recently announced its partnership, with the aim to support the local startup ecosystem in Cologne.
The global co-working provider WeWork, who opened its first space in Cologne in autumn 2019, closes ties with seed investor Venista Ventures. “Our shared ambition is to support the local startup ecosystem”, said both companies. WeWork runs a so called WeWork Labs in its space at Friesenplatz in Cologne, a program that’s directed at startups in their launch phase.
“We think, that WeWork Labs offers participating startups great opportunities to create and challenge their business model. As a seed investor we see ourselves as a sparring partner for founders when it comes to questions about business strategy, financial planning or marketing initiatives. Our efforts are accompanied by a whole bunch of additional activities WeWork Labs offers to ideally support these founders in their early days”, says Tobias Neveling from Venista. Nia Escobar, WeWork Labs manager in Cologne, adds that “together with Venista Ventures, WeWork Labs wants to do its bit to promote uprising German startup regions. Cologne already is a strong hub for innovation. As a renowned media city, Cologne stands out with its very creative startup community and has offers a strong advantage with its proximity to potential big industry clients.”
Portfolio startups of Venista Ventures might join the WeWork Labs program thanks to this partnership. Nonetheless, Venista offers mentorship to all founders in Labs, who might reach out to when it comes to questions about venture capital, meeting investors, pitching and legal issues.
Venista Ventures and WeWork Labs are looking forward to add value to the Cologne ecosystem.