What is he doing right? Eric Weber, 36, founded Spinlab – one of Europe’s best startup incubators. Getty Images/Spinlab
“We don’t want to go to Berlin,” says the Chemnitz band Kraftklub in a song. If Eric Weber has his way, they don’t have to do that at all – but can stay in Saxony with peace of mind. Here the entrepreneur has set up a startup hub that currently outshines everything that the Berlin competition has to offer in terms of hubs – one believes a ranking by the “Financial Times”.
The financial magazine from London, together with the statistics portal Statista, has created a ranking of the best startup hubs in Europe for the first time. The HUB of the TU Munich tops the list. Spinlab from Leipzig ranks 12th in Europe and 2nd in Germany. For comparison: the best-ranked Berlin hub only made it to 77th place.
Eric Weber founded Spinlab at the end of 2014, and the first startup “class” started in 2015. At that time, Spinlab was one of the first accelerators in Germany – and consciously chose “the province,” as Weber says.
The people of Leipzig did something else different: From the beginning, the hub decided to support startups with amounts between 6,000 and 50,000 euros – without taking shares. “We used to be the only ones with this,” explains Weber, but it is now “an increasingly popular model.” He explains why in the interview. Eric Weber also talks about what his team does better than many others, which business ideas work in smaller cities (and which don’t) and how startups that want to apply to the incubator should proceed.
Incidentally, one of the most prominent projects of the Leipzig accelerator is Mementor. In 2019, Helth-Tech and its sleep app were part of the six-month Spinlab program – “DIGAs”. Digital health applications are one of the hub’s passions. Mementor, a spin-off from the University of Zurich, has remained in Leipzig ever since: “Today they have 90 employees here and are continuing to grow,” says Weber proudly. In 2023, the company was sold for a double-digit million sum to the billion-dollar Californian medical technology group Resmed – which will receive the Leipzig location. Weber thinks: “It doesn’t really get any better than this.” We spoke to him:
Founder scene: Hey Eric! Explain briefly: What role do hubs like Spinlab play in the startup scene?
Eric Weber: Accelerators are essential for first-time founders. They open the network and provide know-how. You learn from mistakes that others have already made. This is valuable in order to avoid your own mistakes. But hubs are also great for serial entrepreneurs, i.e. repeat offenders in the scene; You actually always benefit from the network of investors and customers.
What are these mistakes that you can help to avoid?
Often there are errors in the company structure. Many startups we see have problems in the cap table, for example co-founders who have left hold too many shares. There are also often errors in contracts, especially when licensing technologies. This quickly makes these candidates unattractive for investors.
At what level do you support startups?
As an accelerator, we get in very early. There has to be a team and an idea and in the six months of our program there should be something presentable for our Partner company arise [Anm. d. Red.: unter anderem AOK Plus, Porsche, KPMG]. Ultimately, it’s always about connecting our partners with the startups and creating market access. In terms of content, our focus is on eHealth, energy and smart cities.
As an accelerator, you don’t invest in startups yourself. How come?
We call this adverse selection: If we as a hub set a fixed valuation, we only attract startups that see themselves below this value. But we only want the best with us. With our venture arm, SI Ventures, we invest in the normal way; but not in all startups at Spinlab.
Leipzig is not the first hotspot that comes to mind when you think of a bubbling startup scene. How do you attract the best startups to you?
I believe transparency and fairness are two things that set us apart: Because we are not directly involved in the startups, we have complete alignment of interests with the founders. We want to make them successful, not just close good deals. Another point is our team. These are experienced entrepreneurs who pass on their knowledge. Many founded their own businesses, others worked on the investor side. There is no one who has only two years of professional experience and now wants to tell the founders how the world works.
Keyword transparency: The Spinlab is the accelerator of HHL Leipzig – which is partly located in a glass church. Getti Images / Jorg Greuel
What difference does that make?
You can’t be half-paid by the state or work in a large corporation and then say to a founder who’s running out of money: “Now grit your teeth.” That’s just not credible. I know the situations myself when, as a founder, you run out of money, you call your customers and ask for quick payment. And sometimes you have to make tough decisions like terminating people. Such real experiences are really valuable for founders.
And why have you? her you decided on Leipzig?
When we founded Spinlab, there were maybe 15 or 20 programs in Germany, concentrated in Berlin and Munich – we saw a gap in Leipzig. At first this was viewed with suspicion. An investor with whom I am still in good contact today said at the time: “Man, you don’t do that in Leipzig. That never works properly. You won’t get startups to Leipzig, nor will you get investors in Leipzig. That’s nonsense, do that in Berlin.”
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What did you object to?
Our strategy is to focus on cities like Leipzig, which are not quite as big as Berlin or Munich, but still offer a lot. Leipzig has a strong college and university landscape, thanks to the structural policy from the 1990s. This brings a lot of ideas and skilled workers.
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Sure, there may be a lack of capital and customers compared to Munich or Berlin, but that’s exactly where an accelerator comes into play. We create networks and connect startups with what is available locally. This is also recognized by the local economy and politics. I wouldn’t have made a difference in Berlin in 2015, but in Leipzig we were really able to make a difference.
You have opened a second hub, the Root Camp in Hanover.
The ranking also shows this: you can compete internationally, even if you are not in a metropolis like London, Paris or Berlin. Hanover is home to the German food and agricultural industry, which is not concentrated in Berlin but in Lower Saxony. They also like it when a startup or hub is located closer to them and is therefore more accessible. The proximity to these industries is an advantage that we take advantage of.
Let’s look at the downsides: What works in Berlin but doesn’t work in cities like Leipzig?
I can’t say in Leipzig that I’m now doing FinTech and insurance technologies like in Berlin. What works here is to look at what I have on site. In Leipzig that is the energy sector and everything related to health, in Hanover it is definitely agriculture. Anchoring in local ecosystems is extremely important. This doesn’t work across the board. For us: don’t be a general merchandiser, specialize. This means you can also be internationally competitive in Leipzig.
All startups, like Mementor from Zurich, come physically to you in Leipzig?
The program lasts six months, part of which is block weeks during which the startups have to be here in Leipzig, yes. We do a lot of interactive stuff there: role plays, sharing experiences with other entrepreneurs, one-on-one meetings with mentors. That’s five to six weeks in total. There is digital support between these phases.
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What is the process for a startup to be accepted into Spinlab?
We have application deadlines and hundreds of startups apply. We first sort out digitally, always together with our partners. We also provide feedback to every serious applicant because contributing to the community is important to us. We then invite the finalists and work with our partners to see where there is potential for cooperation. Whoever makes this last round is in.
What advice do you give to founders who apply to you?
It is important that you know what you expect from our network – formulate this clearly. Whether it’s closing a round of financing, hiring three new employees, or submitting a DIGA application. You have to be able to clearly communicate what you want. But also look at what you bring into the network and which partners you might be interesting for. So: What do I bring in? This is a mutual thing. The startups should also check for themselves whether Spinlab is a good fit for them. And of course we prefer to work with people who aren’t assholes. Like everyone else.
Spinlab also coaches “its” founders psychologically.
Yes, we take that very seriously. It is important to us that our founders learn to deal with stress and reflect on themselves. As a founder, you have to be responsible for keeping the store running. That brings pressure. Every founder is different, every person reacts differently to stress. Sometimes you have to ask yourself whether the role of founder is right for you – or whether you fit better in the second row.
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Who fits better in the first row and who in the second?
This cannot be said across the board. It is important that the founders continue to develop their company. At the beginning you often need a good developer, later you need someone to coordinate and motivate the team. These are not always the same people.
You have set up one of the best startup hubs in Germany. What’s next?
We are currently planning a third hub, again not in a metropolis. But I won’t reveal where today. There are still many locations across Europe that VCs don’t really pay attention to. Everyone looks to London or Paris. For example, I find Eastern Europe more exciting.
Why? Simply out of the spirit of discovery?
If we were to go to London, we would just be in London. The mayor doesn’t come and be happy that you’re there. I think it’s incredibly cool to make a difference in these locations. This also makes business sense. It’s just our USP.