Market & funding readiness program in Leiden
The Venture Academy is a free program for motivated early-stage entrepreneurs with a scalable business concept based on a technological or scientific innovation. What makes this program different? This startup program is focused on soft skills and team development as well as hard skills such as sales and fundraising.
For 3 months, you’ll attend weekly trainings and build a community with the other participants. Bring your startup to market under the guidance of Charlie and the other specialized VA trainers!
Launch your startup
With the help of experts, mentors and fellow entrepreneurs, you will:
- Become investor-ready
- Refine and start executing your go-to-market plan
- Build a winning team
At the end of the program you will have:
- A validated, scalable value proposition & business model
- A realistic go-to-market & funding plan
- An improved pitch & pitch deck
Specialized support for Life Sciences & Health startups
Research and deep-tech startups, such as academic spinouts, face different challenges than, say, direct-to-consumer tech propositions. That’s why we offer specialized coaching and networking opportunities for research-based startups.
Through the unlock_ incubation program, we have specialized knowledge and a broad network in the Life Sciences & Health sector. In the past, we have helped startups in the biotech, e-health, medtech, pharmaceutical and diagnostic sectors make significant strides in their development.
Selection criteria
This program is suitable for early-stage entrepreneurs that fit the following criteria:
- You have a scalable* business idea based on a scientific or technological innovation**
- You determined who exactly your potential customers and users are and what problem they are struggling with
- You have validated that customers are willing to pay for your solution, through structured interviews and by creating some traction if possible (test users, newsletter signups, first sales, etc.)
- For deep tech concepts: you have proven technical feasibility
For non-deep tech concepts: you have created an MVP/prototype and tested it with users - You have determined how you will make money
- You have a founder team that can continue testing and improving the product without reliance on external technical development parties (single founders also welcome)
- You have a pitch deck describing your business case (we’ll help you with this)
*Potential for rapid revenue growth without an equal increase in costs – so no consultancy-type services
**Solves a problem in a new & unique way
If you’re not sure if you meet these criteria, fill out the intake form and we’ll help you figure it out.
FAQ
See the most frequently asked questions.
Nope, our partners pay for your participation. This comes to about €5,000 per person.
Therefore, we expect you to be respectful of our trainers’ time, and to give 100% effort when you are admitted.
Fill out this form as soon as possible. We will then schedule an intake interview with you. Check out the brochure for the rest of the process.
We are looking for early-stage entrepreneurs with the following criteria:
- You have a scalable* business idea based on a scientific or technological innovation**
- You determined who exactly your potential customers and users are and what problem they are struggling with
- You have validated that customers are willing to pay for your solution, through structured interviews and by creating some traction if possible (test users, newsletter signups, first sales, etc.)
- For deep tech concepts: you have proven technical feasibility
For non-deep tech concepts: you have created an MVP/prototype and tested it with users - You have determined how you will make money
- You have a founder team that can continue testing and improving the product without reliance on external technical development parties (single founders also welcome)
- You have a pitch deck describing your business case (we’ll help you with this)
*Potential for rapid revenue growth without an equal increase in costs – so no consultancy-type services
**Solves a problem in a new & unique way
If you’re not sure if you meet these criteria, fill out the intake form and we’ll help you figure it out.
No, but you should plan to do so no later than the end of the program.
The Venture Academy consists of a kickoff, 7 full-day sessions, a closing pitch event, Special Track Sessions on “free” Fridays (for Life Sciences & Health startups) and a coaching session every two weeks.
To get the most out of the program, we also ask you to work on your startup between sessions. Overall, expect to spend about 16 hours per week on your startup for the duration of the program, but more = better.
No, all sessions are physical. We believe that physical meetings benefit your participation. This way you can grow more and connect better with the other participants/PLNT Community.
Yes, you certainly can! You can work Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Sandbox. The coffee and tea is free, there are flex spaces, you can brainstorm with other participants from programs, and it is PLNT Students’ primary location.
