VentureLab International is a brainchild of NIKOS, the University of Twente’s Expertise Centre for Technology-based Entrepreneurship. We offer business development support for technology-based start-ups and we are a business growth accelerator for high-tech well-established companies. Since 2009, we supported 326 start-ups and other companies. In doing so we helped create more than 3000 new jobs.

Currently we operate on 2 locations: Groningen (VentureLab North) and Apeldoorn (VentureLab Apeldoorn).

The VentureLab concept is grounded on more than 25 years of practical and research experience in business development support, visualised in the value creation model. This model describes the critical factors required to do business successfully. It was developed by NIKOS, the University of Twente’s Expertise Centre for Technology-based Entrepreneurship.

The key to launching a company on the market as effectively as possible is not only the idea, but also all the entrepreneurial competences that form the basis of a successful business operation. It takes many steps to move from idea (opportunity recognition) to business model (opportunity preparation), to running a fast growing, technology-based business (opportunity exploitation). These steps are impossible for one person to envisage, coordinate and take. Building a business, let alone a fast growing company, is teamwork.

VentureLab International combines the business development support experience and networks of NIKOS, the University of Twente’s Expertise Centre for Technology-based Entrepreneurship, and SKIO, the Saxion Knowledge Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

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