Sep 17, 2020

The Faktory, The Place To Be For Startups In Liège / We invite you to discover one of the most active incubators and investors in the Greater Region. The Faktory is one of our long-standing partners and many Luxembourg-based startups have already been able to get to know them over the last few years or even to be accompanied there, as is the case of the startup Foobot. A few days before a big matchmaking event between our tech communities, Managing Director Simon Alexandre took the time to present The Faktory. Photo: Simon Alexandre, Managing Director of The Faktory, and Pierre L’Hoest, Founder of The Faktory / Credits © The Faktory Tell us more about The Faktory. The Faktory was launched in 2013 by Pierre L’Hoest, successful Belgian entrepreneur, founder, and ex-CEO of EVS Broadcast world leader in replay & slowmotion technologies. Pierre L’Hoest and Simon Alexandre decided to launch a private incubator and seed investment fund for tech startups (B2B IoT & SaaS). Until 2018, they supported 12 startups like ePeas, Kensu, and Riiotlabs (acquired by Fluidra/Zodiac). In December 2019, they launched a new early stage fund The Faktory Fund to continue investing in B2B IoT and SaaS startups mainly in Belgium, Luxembourg, France, and Netherlands. How do you support SMEs/startups? We only invest in startups where the teams develop disruptive technologies to target international B2B markets. Our goal is to support the founders in their journey by helping them with key areas (strategy, sales, HR, product). We work with an international network of industrial experts that can be mobilized on specific topics needed from startups. How can an entrepreneur or company get in touch with you and vice versa? Any startup may apply by sending a presentation deck so we’ll check if there’s a match with the topic and the startup’s stage of development. The next step would be a videoconference to pitch the project. What are the common points and differences between the tech ecosystems of Liège and Luxembourg? Both Liege and Luxembourg have a strong and dynamic economic network. It’s very straightforward to obtain support and introduction to boost your projects. For entrepreneurs, it’s a really good place to start, challenge and develop projects. The main difference is mainly cultural, as often, with Liege representing a more Latin culture than Germanic. Join our event “Luxembourg Meets Liège” Mandatory registration is required via our online ticketing system as follows. The event is free for members of the Silicon Luxembourg Business Club.