OWL Startup Monitor 2024 (Startup-Verband)

Summary

• There are currently 320 active startups in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe (OWL) region, concentrated in Bielefeld and Paderborn.p.7
• 79% of founders in OWL hold an academic degree, and 61% of the graduate founders earned it in the OWL region.p.12
• Venture capital is used by 9% of OWL startups versus 19% nationwide, and strategic investors by 5% versus 14%.p.21
• Almost half of OWL startups (48%) want angel investments, but only 28% have received them.p.21
• The share of female founders in OWL is 15%, below the German average of 19%.p.14

Key insights

1. 74% of OWL founders were interested in founding before starting their careers, well above the national figure of 60%.p.11
2. 76% of OWL startups have received university support in the past (Germany: 55%), and 83% of those rate it positively (Germany: 64%).p.12
3. 61% of founders in OWL are under 35 years old (Germany: 44%).p.13
4. 64% of OWL startups cooperate with established companies (Germany: 62%).p.9
5. Only a quarter of OWL startups name raising capital as a current challenge (Germany: 41%).p.17
6. In OWL, 14% of startups employ ten or more people, versus 25% nationwide.p.25
7. Of the employees in OWL startups, 28% come from abroad (Germany: 31%), yet only 8% of companies use English as working language (Germany: 36%).p.25
8. 95% of founders attended startup events in the region last year, but only 22% of the events were in English (38% nationwide).p.26