Innovation Village: a Spotlight for Startups at Trade Shows

Innovation Village is a format designed and created by Blum for trade show events. Its value proposition is to bring mature market players into dialogue with startups and innovators capable of offering new solutions, under the banner of Open Innovation.

The Village is a physical space that hosts startup desks during the exhibition event, but is also much more: a prize is awarded by a jury of experts on the basis of pitches, in which each startup presents itself to the jurors, exhibitors and the fair audience; a schedule of talks with key players in the innovation community; and a stream of communication that reinforces the appeal of the fair.

Among the 20+ Villages organized by Blum between 2017 and 2023 are:

Klimahouse Future Hub (with Fiera Bolzano), Give Me Fire! Project Fire Startup Award, Oil&nonOil Innovation Village (with Veronafiere), BarNext, Flormart, City Vision (with Fiera di Padova), Innovation Village Retail – Expo Riva Schuh & Gardabags (with Riva del Garda Fieracongressi and Retail Hub).

our work

Event Design

Exhibition space curation, curation of talks and panels and setlist definition, speaker and jury members scouting, moderation.

Startup Scouting

Scouting and selection of the best suited startups for each fair, via public calls and targeted invitaitons.

Media relations

Drafting and dissemination of press releases, organization of media tours and interviews, press review analysis.

results

700+

articles published covering 20+ Villages throughout the years

200+

startups selected