The European Commission's Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG Grow) annually organises the European Enterprise Promotion Awards to reward those who promote entrepreneurship and small business at the national, regional and local level. A prestigious award for innovation and entrepreneurship in the EU arena. 

The digital transformation of Go Business promotes collaboration beyond geographical boundaries 

Go Business is an incubator for creative and innovative entrepreneurs in northern Sweden. The incubator is a part of Piteå Science Park which is a creative cross-disciplinary arena, where industry, academia, business and society collaborate to commercialise research, develop new ideas, build competence as well as create and innovate together. The philosophy of Go Business is based on helping the person behind the business idea to develop their entrepreneurial skills.

In 2019, Go Business launched the Go Cloud project with the aim of building a supportive digital ecosystem. A three-year project co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund.

Thanks to the project, the Go Business incubator now has fully digital format. It enables knowledge-sharing and collaboration for entrepreneurs from anywhere in the two northernmost counties of Sweden, providing a supportive community that transcends geographic boundaries.

Andreas Kanon, Project & Operations Manager at Go Business, emphasises the importance of digital platforms in large sparsely populated regions:   

– The fully digital format is particularly important in sparsely populated regions with long distances, where access to resources and networking opportunities is limited. By fostering collaboration beyond industry and geographical boundaries in a fully digital space, we empower people to gain confidence and courage in pursuing their dreams and developing their business ideas. 

Andreas Kanon was in Bilbao during the Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Assembly 2023 in November to receive the award in the digital category "Support for the digital transition" for their Go Cloud project. 

– Go Business and Piteå Science Park are thrilled to see our efforts acknowledged at the European level through the European Enterprise Promotion Award. This recognition opens doors for new partnerships and provides us with opportunities to collaborate with like-minded organisations and experts across Europe, says Andreas. 

What's next for Go Business?  

Go Business will continue to expand its digital methods to enable collaboration and knowledge sharing across both geographical borders and industries. One example is a new initiative will be introduced that will allow entrepreneurs in the cultural or creative sector to explore collaborations in fundamentally different industries, such as companies within the transition toward green steel.

Read more about the European Enterprise Promotion Awards here 

Read more about the European Enterprise Promotion Awards ceremony here

Read more about Go Cloud here 

Read about Go Business here