Bielefeld instead of Berlin: How East Westphalia-Lippe wants to become a hip start-up location

I don't want to go to Berlin, says a Kraftklub song. And recently also in parts of the start-up scene, which is looking for a home in regions such as East Westphalia-Lippe.

Jürgen Hase has seen a lot of the world. The graduate communications engineer first went to Qatar, then to the 32-million-metropolis of Mumbai, and finally founded his own company builder P-ton - in Bielefeld.

From the metropolis to the countryside: What at first sounds like a big step backwards is set to become the entrepreneur's next big thing. Because if Hase has his way, Bielefeld, with its population of just over 330,000, will become a "beacon project when it comes to regional start-up hubs in Germany", as the Hanover native himself puts it. But not everyone in NRW is as euphoric as he is.

If it's up to the people from East Westphalia, the matter should be clear: Bielefeld is at least as cool as Berlin. At least for companies, the conditions are good. The region in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia is one of the five strongest economic areas in the country - not least because of its various medium-sized companies. Regional business development programs are also an attraction.

This is also attracting more and more start-ups to the region: their number in East Westphalia-Lippe is growing by 34 percent every year, according to an analysis by the Founders Foundation. As a result, a network of founders is growing in the region, including entrepreneur Jürgen Hase - from Bielefeld, he promotes and finances start-ups "that shape digitalization socially". A digitalized restaurant experience, hybrid board games, a blockchain ticket platform - these are just three of P-ton's projects.

Hase takes a critical view of traditional start-up hubs such as Berlin and Munich. "The motto there is often: higher, faster, further. Sometimes far removed from reality," he says. "Unfortunately, it's often about preparing the exit and making a quick buck right from the start." In East Westphalia-Lippe, on the other hand, the mentality is different - here it's all about building companies sustainably. "The region is positively down-to-earth. There's not a lot of talking, people just do things," says Hase.

If the region succeeds in creating a symbiosis of start-ups and the numerous successful SMEs, but also large corporations, it could well become an attractive location. The capital and entrepreneurial know-how are there: Miele, Oetker and Bertelsmann are just three of the big names alongside all the hidden champions from the SME sector.

According to Hase, this is a valuable treasure from which founders can draw. "In a city like Bielefeld, I can make contact with potential business partners or experts much more quickly," he says. In cities like Berlin, it's often different: "I have to go through the receptionist first and, if I'm lucky, I'll get an appointment in six weeks." It is therefore hardly surprising that 83% of start-ups in East Westphalia-Lippe work in the business-to-business segment - a nationwide record.

There is no shortage of creative minds in the region; more and more start-ups are being founded from the many strong universities in North Rhine-Westphalia, in Bielefeld directly, but the universities in Cologne, Münster and Aachen are also not far away. "It is important to connect with this start-up potential at the universities and promote it," says Hase.

Timo Marks, state spokesman for North Rhine-Westphalia for the German Start-ups Association (BVDS), is less euphoric when it comes to the opportunity for regional start-up hubs. In his opinion, big cities retain a few advantages compared to more rural regions: "Let's stick with Berlin: the city is incredibly international, with highly qualified people from all over the world," he says. "There are also constant start-up events such as rooftop parties hosted by venture capitalists or other organizations where founders can network."

Qualified personnel and access to investors: these are precisely the biggest concerns of founders in the East Westphalia-Lippe region. Almost two thirds of regional start-ups stated in the Start-up Monitor that they are dissatisfied with their access to qualified specialists and capital. In contrast, only a third of founders in Berlin share these concerns.

According to Marks, who has founded two start-ups himself, proximity to SMEs is not necessarily only an advantage. "The bigger the companies you deal with, the more time they have," says Marks. "And there's a golden rule for start-ups: time always plays against you." The danger for founders is therefore to invest time in a potential business partnership that is ultimately wasted. "Really successful start-ups replace existing business areas. This is not necessarily the mindset of the typical small and medium-sized enterprise," says Marks. In addition, strong SMEs and large corporations further exacerbate the problem of skilled workers for start-ups, as they too are always on the lookout for qualified personnel.

Timo Marks is nevertheless looking forward to the East Westphalia-Lippe region, where he himself once worked for Bertelsmann. The state thrives on its many small and medium-sized companies, "and I think it would be great if the two cultures of start-ups and SMEs could continue to come together," says the BVDS state spokesperson for NRW. Perhaps the lighthouse project in Bielefeld will succeed and show how it can work regionally.