Focus

One-to-one business meetings: a fantastic tool for entrepreneurs

Interview with Céline Escoffier, project manager CRCI Bourgogne / Enterprise Europe Network

Why does the EEN organize these business meetings?

The Enterprise Europe Network is the largest European network dedicated to Innovation and entrepreneurship for companies and SMEs, set up by the European Commission. It gathers together more than 600 organizations, including the Regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Burgundy (CRCI). One of its objectives is to help the companies to identify technical, R&D or business partners throughout Europe. Keeping this in mind, the CRCI of Burgundy organizes, as a member of the Enterprise Europe Network, the one-to-one business meetings during the 4th Taste-Nutrition-Health International Congress, in order to foster technical cooperation, commercial agreements or even R&D partnerships between industrials and researchers of the various European countries participating to the congress.

Who can take part in the meetings?

The one-to-one business meetings are aimed at companies, small or large, research laboratories and technical centres. These confidential and individual appointments offer the advantage of a single place for facilitating contacts and more formal exchanges with other participants as well as the possibility of assessing a potential collaboration with a partner from Burgundy, France or another country. Since the participants choose their own interlocutors (froma catalogue of technological offers and requests), they benefit from targeted and efficient appointments, which helps to improve the quality and concretisation of partnerships.

How can one participate?

To take part to the business meetings, congress participants only need to indicate their interest this while registering for the congress. They will then receive an access which will enable them to submit their profile (technology, know-how offer or request or R&D partner search) on the online catalogue and to choose their appointments there among the other participants' profiles. They will receive before the beginning of the Congress their appointment schedule tailored upon their availabilities.

This is the 3rd year that you have organized business meetings in Burgundy. What feedback have you had from the previous editions' participants?

More than 80% of the preceding editions' participants expressed their satisfaction and 90% of them stated that they had met their expectations and achieved their objectives. The business meetings represent more than 300 appointments, of which 1/3 are transnational.

For more information please contact Céline ESCOFFIER:
CRCI Bourgogne / Enterprise Europe Network Grand Est
Email : c.escoffier@bourgogne.cci.fr
Tél. : +33 (0)3 80 60 40 69