Project description
Connecting innovative SMEs with buyers
One of the biggest hurdles for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and EIC awardees is finding their first customers, especially when their target market includes public administration or large private corporations. With this in mind, the EIC-funded InnoMatch project aims to co-create and demonstrate proofs of concept for EIC innovations to address the unmet needs of selected buyers. It will invest EUR 2.28 million in grants to support 38 pilots through two open calls. The project focuses on ensuring the adoption of successful solutions by buyers following the pilot phase. This includes identifying needs, facilitating connections, and developing strategies to enhance the likelihood of adoption by buyers.
Objective
"Overcoming the challenge of finding initial customers is a significant obstacle for the commercialization of innovative solutions developed by SMEs, particularly EIC awardees (EICs). This challenge is especially pronounced when the target market involves public administration or large private corporations (Buyers).
To mitigate these challenges and broaden the scope of innovation procurement in Europe, InnoMatch will facilitate the co-creation and proof-of-concept demonstration of EIC innovations, focusing on addressing the unmet needs of selected buyers. InnoMatch will achieve this by fostering collaboration between EICs and buyers, with a specific focus on ensuring successful solutions are adopted by the buyer following the pilot phase, which may not always be the case. The offered support includes not just the identification of needs and the facilitation of connections between EICs and buyers for pilot deployment, but also strategies to enhance the likelihood of adoption by buyers and accelerate the commercial advancement of EICs.
To fulfil this vision, InnoMatch will invest €2.28M in grants to EICs (76% of project budget), supporting 38 pilots which will be distributed through two types of open calls: OC#1: Call for EIC+Buyer: EICs apply together with pre-identified buyer; OC#2 EICs: EICs apply with a solution to a pre-defined challenge, which has been identified by at least 4 separate and independent buyers. The identification of the Buyers challenges will follow a specific methodology which includes a OC#2 Buyers, capacity building, workshops that aim to aggregate individual needs & expectations into a common challenge definition and, ends up with the signature of a sub-grant agreement.
The team -F6S, ICLEI, TBM and CIV- 1) has wide network of buyers; 2) worked with EIC community & corporates; 3) experience in FSTP (+€80m, +180 calls & +7k awardees), 4) Innovation Procurement with +10 EU projects in the domain; 5) delivered business & mentorship programmes."
Fields of science
Keywords
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.3.1 - The European Innovation Council (EIC) Main Programme
Topic(s)
Funding Scheme
HORIZON-CSA - HORIZON Coordination and Support ActionsCoordinator
D02 XE80 LOWER DUBLIN
Ireland
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.