Florin Cașotă
Oana CoșmanWatch the Documentary
Watch the full documentary movie and discover Romanian startups and investors changing the world.
Lectură de 3 min
- 6 Februarie 2025
Impact Hub Bucharest: “Community is more than just a gathering; it’s a movement”
Nowadays, it’s enough to say that you’re going to work or to an event at Impact in Bucharest and everybody knows what you’re talking about. And that’s one of the reasons why Vlad and Oana Craioveanu, the founders of Impact Hub Bucharest, opened a coworking space back in 2013. “Community is more than just a gathering; it’s a movement”, they told us, emphasizing the fact that a successful coworking space is about creating a vibrant ecosystem.
The documentary "Romanian Startups: Roaring Tigers of Europe", made by the start-up.ro team, spans across 33 years of history, from the first entrepreneurs in the transitional years to the initial technology company transactions that brought Romania into the international spotlight.
Romanian Startups: Roaring Tigers of Europe - The Extended Series will present the people who built the Romanian ecosystem and who discussed with the VideoCorp and start-up.ro team for this documentary. In this series you will find the extensive interviews and find out the stories of those who built entrepreneurship in Romania.
And this ecosystem nurtures relationships, fosters collaboration, and drives social impact, ultimately contributing to a larger movement of innovation and shared purpose, all of which are synonymous with Impact Hub Bucharest’s mission nowadays, a coworking space that grew beyond the physical space and is bringing entrepreneurs together in a variety of programs with resources at their disposal, for their development.
In the interview for the Romanian Startups. Roaring Tigers of Europe documentary, Oana Craioveanu and Vlad Craioveanu, cofounders of Impact Hub Bucharest, shared their entrepreneurial journey, detailing the inception and evolution of their co-working space in Romania, known initially as “The Hub.”
They initially aimed to create a community for social businesses in Romania, which was a concept just starting to get known here at the time. Their journey began with small events designed to gather professionals and entrepreneurs, eventually leading to the realization that a physical space was necessary to foster collaboration.
Transitioning to a physical co-working space, Oana and Vlad reflected on the challenges and successes of early operations, including rapid growth that necessitated expansion. They faced numerous logistical difficulties, illustrating the learning curve of starting a business in an evolving ecosystem with little precedent.
But during this entire journey, they learned the importance of community and trust, concepts at the core of their business model.
As they scaled their operations to different cities, they encountered unexpected challenges, such as market misalignments and cultural differences, particularly when expanding to Cluj-Napoca. Throughout their journey, they learned valuable lessons about finance, customer service, and the significance of nurturing relationships within their community.
“Embrace failure as a stepping stone to growth”, they told us referring to their setback when expanding to other cities.
Acknowledging that failure is not the end, but rather a valuable learning experience, can empower entrepreneurs to adapt and to understand that each misstep provides insights that can lead to future successes.
We also talked to the cofounders of Impact Hub Bucharest about the evolution of the startup ecosystem in Romania, the changing landscape of funding, and the necessity of collaboration between startups and public institutions.
We’ve discussed at length with Oana and Vlad Craioveanu for the Romanian Startups: Roaring Tigers of Europe documentary.
- Community-centric approach: The founders of Impact Hub Bucharest emphasize that their model is more about building a community than merely providing office space. This perspective has allowed them to foster a supportive environment where members trust each other, leading to higher engagement and loyalty. Their approach counters the traditional real estate business model, prioritizing interpersonal relationships over transactional interactions.
- Learning curve and adaptation: Their experience underscores the steep learning curve involved in entrepreneurship, particularly in a nascent market with limited support structures. They faced various challenges, from understanding customer needs to managing financial operations, which informed their future strategies. This adaptability is crucial for any entrepreneur operating in an unpredictable landscape.
- Rapid growth and its challenges: The rapid expansion from a small space to a larger facility highlights the unpredictable nature of demand in the co-working sector. Their initial success led to increased expectations, which they struggled to meet, illustrating the importance of market research and scalability considerations when launching a business.
- Failure as a teachable moment: The closure of their Cluj-Napoca location served as a critical learning experience, emphasizing the need for thorough market understanding before expansion. This experience taught them that not all markets are alike, and cultural differences can significantly impact business operations, making it essential to tailor approaches to local contexts.
- Shifts in the Romanian startup ecosystem: Oana and Vlad reflect on the fact that iInitially, there was a lack of funding and support, but over time, the landscape has improved, with more banks and investors recognizing the potential of startups. This shift highlights the importance of patience and resilience in building an entrepreneurial ecosystem.
- The importance of trust: Trust emerged as a central theme throughout their journey. They created an environment where community members felt comfortable sharing resources and collaborating. This trust was put to the test during the pandemic, where members demonstrated their loyalty by continuing to pay their subscriptions, showcasing the strength of community bonds.
- The importance of public-private collaboration: The founders advocate for stronger collaboration between startups and public institutions. They recognize that while startups can innovate and drive change, public institutions hold the keys to significant funding and policy-making. Bridging this gap is essential for creating a supportive ecosystem that benefits both entities.
Roaring Tigers of Europe is a production by start-up.ro and Videocorp, part of the Romanian publishing company InternetCorp, active for almost 20 years on the market. The documentary was made with the support of partners BCR, Orange, and 2Performant. Community partners included Guran Consulting Global, How to Web, Launch, Impact Hub Bucharest, Flaviu Simihaian, Rubik Hub, SoftServe, and the Romanian-American University.
Watch the entire documentary in the video below:
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Florin Cașotă
Jurnalist cu peste 10 ani de experiență în print, online și video. Florin este pasionat de tehnologie, startup-uri și de industria de jocuri video. Vrea să spună povești, în scris, dar și pe video, într-un mod cât mai atrăgător posibil și vrea să prindă ziua în care va putea cumpăra un robot-majordom. Deocamdată are doar robot-aspirator.
Oana Coșman
Editor start-up.ro & redactor-șef Green Start-Up, jurnalist cu o experiență de 17 ani în presa de business (Forbes România, Ziarul Financiar, Business Standard), călător avid și cu o pasiune pentru unicorni și fonduri de investiții, Oana urmărește îndeaproape antreprenorii din întreaga lume și descoperă poveștile lor.
