The eDelivery Accelerator programme, run by La Salle Technova and the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona, has this week brought its second edition to a close. Eight start-ups have taken part in this new business development experience, which has taken place over the last few months at the La Salle Technova facilities on the La Salle-URL university campus. The closing ceremony of the programme was held on 14 January at the Consorci and was attended by the Director of Internationalisation and Innovation from La Salle-URL, Josep Miquel Piqué, and the special state delegate for the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona, Pere Navarro.
The first part of the session was dedicated to the final Corporate workshop of the programme, starring Vienna, one of the main restaurant groups in Catalonia. Then, at midday, Pere Navarro welcomed the closing ceremony, emphasising that the objective of the programme is “to help the participating start-ups to improve their business skills”. Josep Miquel Piqué then pointed out the main achievements of the programme: “The eDelivery Accelerator Programme not only supports the digital transformation of the sector, but also contributes to the growth of innovative companies. The Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona and La Salle Technova Barcelona have already accelerated 15 start-ups throughout the two editions, businesses that now employ a total of 151 workers with a turnover of more than three million euros”.
Since September, the programme has supported the eight registered start-ups in a process of growth, both locally and internationally, in terms of logistics, storage, delivery, return and distribution at the point of sale. The initiative is aimed exclusively at innovative start-ups in the logistics market taking part in the Start-up Innovation Hub, developed as part of the eDelivery Barcelona Expo & Congress which will hold its next edition between 9 and 11 June 2020. The acceleration programme includes training sessions, workspaces, investment readiness lessons, Agile sales sessions and workshops. In doing so, it provides participating start-ups with the tools they need to identify, develop and create market opportunities.
Bringing together start-ups and consolidated corporations
Through the eDelivery Accelerator Programme, the start-ups registered with the initiative enjoy the chance to explore first-hand the procedures used at top-level companies. In this edition, the participants in the acceleration programme organised by La Salle Technova and the Consortium have shared disruptive experiences with members of Ametller Origen Group, Bricomart, Consum Cooperativa, Desigual, Freshperts, Go Popup, Ikea, Mango, Trison, Ulabox and Vienna. These sessions serve to build bridges between two business spheres that, while vastly different in terms of numbers, run parallel paths. This combination benefits both parties, with start-ups validating and scaling their business models through the experience and knowledge of the large companies.
Similarly, the eDelivery Accelerator Programme’s start-ups help corporations better understand digital consumer habits and offer them ways to interpret the most innovative trends. The start-ups taking part in this second edition of the programme included CargoBici, who advocate for cycling as a solution to urban pollution; Flexsim, a software package for event simulation; Internet of Things S.L, which makes the assets and inventory of companies visible in real time; Pay Mark Fast, which enhances the experience of shopping without waiting; Agile Stock, an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, which controls and optimizes retail; Vonzu, which integrates and digtises last-mile processes; Way Director and Mayordomo.
The closing ceremony also marked the starting gun for the third edition of the eDelivery Accelerator Programme. The call for applications to take part was announced for start-ups interested in the programme. The initiative is aimed at start-up companies —less than three years old— that propose innovative solutions that can impact the logistics, delivery and last-mile sector. Projects can be submitted through the eDelivery website until next 3 April. The collaboration between La Salle-URL, through La Salle Technova, and the Consorci de la Zona Franca de Barcelona also continues through the acceleration programme focused on the real-estate sector, which was inaugurated on 20th January.
