Mission

“A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of human history.” - Gandhi

At Slush'D, we hold a firm belief that nurturing the Belgian startup ecosystem is the most efficient route to fostering national prosperity. Our mission is to cultivate a thriving environment where local founders are empowered to build transformative companies. Recognising the challenges of entrepreneurship, we commit to providing the support and resources necessary for Belgian innovators to change the world and drive progress.

Vision

To fulfil this mission we have three primary focus areas:

  1. UNITE: Slush’D aims to unite the fractured Belgian ecosystem. In this little country, too many resources are spent in parallel to solve the same problems. It’s time to break down the silos that are our cities, regions and governments. It’s time to unite Brussels, Wallonia and Flanders and see where our united strengths lie.
  2. LAUNCH: Slush'D aims to be an international launchpad for startups by connecting entrepreneurs with international investors, industry experts, and potential partners. It provides opportunities for startups to showcase their innovations, pitch their ideas, and facilitate collaborations and partnerships, accelerating their growth on a global scale.
  3. INSPIRE: Slush'D aims to bridge the talent gap in the startup ecosystem. To allow our startup ecosystem to thrive, more talent has to find their way into the startup ecosystem. Slush’D aims to lower the barrier to talent access and make talent more aware of the viable career path the startup ecosystem provides.

Connecting Founders and Investors across Ecosystems

Slush’D is the largest gathering of founders and investors in Belgium. With more than 700 founders and investors attending the first edition, we aim to grow this year-over-year into an international gathering spot, to the benefit of our Belgian ecosystem.

Our focus goes beyond the physical location where the event takes place. By fostering annual collaboration and connection among the Flemish, Walloon, and Brussels ecosystems, we pave the way for an empowered and united future.

International Launchpad

Leveraging a global brand to bring international attention to our Belgian startup ecosystem. Growing an impactful tech company means going cross-border, from day 1. That’s feedback gathering from customers, idea validation by investors and recruiting who’s “done it before”.

It starts with entry points and knowing where to go to. Our mission is to provide a platform for startups to foster (international) ecosystem collaborations and partnerships, propelling their growth on a global scale. For both attracting outside investment and scaling portfolio companies beyond Belgium, investors will be given this platform to invite their international network & showcase what our ecosystem has to offer.

Bridging The Talent Gap

Take a look at any successful startup ecosystem abroad: there is usually a top university fueling ecosystem growth. World-class universities are one of Belgium’s valuable assets. So what’s missing?

  1. Local, high-potential talent often pursues opportunities in more conventional sectors or rather goes abroad. Many simply don’t see working for a startup as a valid career path, don’t know it exists or associate it with high risk. Slush’D extends the visibility of the Belgian startup ecosystem to students and the youngest generation. The key is exposing them to the ecosystem for multiple years, leading to more interest and a higher inflow of young talent. In turn, they become ambassadors for the next generation, starting a flywheel effect.
  2. We must acknowledge our ecosystem is still rather young, looking at only a handful of large tech successes. As usual, this process accelerates with time, or talent? Hiring skilled people is one thing, but essential to a startups’ growth and the speed thereof are people “who’ve done it before”. And that takes time, or requires recruiting talent where it’s found.

Looking Ahead

A large, yearly event is needed that brings all stakeholders together under one roof and creates momentum to break barriers and start conversations. Surfing on the high created by this event, we aim to make use of the renowned brand. Slush’D is supporting the following goals: