On Wednesday, November 27, following the success of three previous editions, WIDE in partnership with Silicon Luxembourg and BIL organized its fourth evening dedicated to Women Founders. The sold-out event brought together 7 talented women who accepted an invitation to share their stories and their determination in the realization of their project and the development of their entrepreneurial careers.
The evening has started with a Welcome speech by Marie-Adélaïde Leclercq-Olhagaray, WIDE’s Chairwoman who mentioned the beginnings of WIDE and the first two editions of Women Founders. She also welcomed on stage Karin Scholtes, Global Head of People, Culture, and Communication at BIL.
There were two panel discussions, moderated by Charles-Louis Machuron (Founder, Silicon Luxembourg) and Marina Andrieu (Co-founder and Director, WIDE) and held by a number of outstanding businesswomen and experts in different fields. They have shared their stories and have included the ups and downs that come with starting a company and gave useful insights into the field.
The first panel focused on “Financing and Scaling up” and was supported by Eva Sadoun (CEO/Co-Founder of LITA.co), Mélanie Gagnon (CEO and Founder of MGSI), Ghela Boskovich (Founder of FemTechGlobal) and Shiva Dustdar (Head of Division, Innovation Finance Advisory European Investment Bank). The session included expert advice from the field of finance and answered questions about raising money.
The second one focused on “Getting ideas off the ground”, including Gaëlle Haag (Co-Founder & CEO of StarTalers), Bénédicte Keith (CFO Freelance) and Gosia Kramer (Co-founder & CEO of The Office Coworking). The discussing focused on the struggles of starting a company and gave valuable advice for soon-to-be entrepreneurs.
To round up the program Astrid Wagner (IP, Communication & Technology Partner at Arendt) presented insights on WIDEs Startup Mission in Tel Aviv, giving a personal impression about the trip and drawing parallels between the Israeli and Luxembourgish startup environment. The team reflected on various differences and advanced business practices that might be beneficial to establish in the local scene. Find her presentation here.
The event was ended by a networking session which was a great opportunity for women to connect and get inspired by female founders.
We want to thank all our participants for attending this event, our support Ministre de l’Égalité entre les femmes et les hommes and also the BIL for hosting the event and offering the networking cocktail. Finally, a big thanks to Silicon Luxembourg who partnered with us for this great evening.
