RIZ

What RIZ does

RIZ UP (legal name: riz up Niederösterreichs Gründeragentur GmbH) is the official founder agency of the Austrian state of Lower Austria, headquartered in Wiener Neustadt. Founded in 2001 and operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of ecoplus, Lower Austria's state economic development agency, RIZ UP delivers free business consulting, seminars, video tutorials, and co-working space to founders, sole proprietors, students, and SMEs across all 24 administrative districts of Lower Austria. The agency is publicly funded by the State of Lower Austria (Land Niederösterreich) and operates without charging end users, with revenue derived from public budget allocations channeled through its parent ecoplus Gruppe.

The organization runs a multi-channel service portfolio including individualized business consulting, more than 35 seminar topics (e.g., business plan development, financing, marketing, target group identification), the Digithek video tutorial library, annual competitions such as the RIZ UP GENIUS founder prize (now in its 25th edition), the Gründerland NÖ Preis, and the 120 Sekunden pitch competition. Additional programs include the Gründen macht Schule school entrepreneurship curriculum and the Wir sind 1 platform for sole proprietors. Service delivery is anchored in a physical network of 8 Gründerzentren and multiple district consulting offices (including co-locations at the Haus der Digitalisierung in Tulln and ecocenter Wolkersdorf), supplemented by online seminars and a partner ecosystem of more than 40 institutions spanning universities (FH St. Pölten, FH Wiener Neustadt, IMC Krems, WU Vienna), banks (Raiffeisenlandesbank NÖ-Wien, Erste Bank), national agencies (aws, FFG, tecnet, noebeg), chambers (WKNÖ, AMS NÖ), and regional media.

In 2025, RIZ UP reported delivering over 15,000 consultations and engaging 3,000+ seminar participants. Leadership is led by Managing Director Petra Patzelt, with department heads including Michael Drochter (Controlling) and Manuela Hofer, and a total staff of approximately 35 across the state. The agency has no subsidiaries, no external shareholders, and no venture capital investors; ownership and funding are fully public through the ecoplus Gruppe.

Name

RIZ

Legal name

riz up Niederösterreichs Gründeragentur GmbH

Website

https://riz-up.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

RIZ UP is the state-owned founder agency of Lower Austria, providing free business consulting, seminars, video tutorials, and co-working space to founders and SMEs across all 24 districts, funded by the State of Lower Austria through ecoplus.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Entrepreneurship Support Services

NAICS

Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services (541611), Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC)

Keywords

• Startup consulting services
• Entrepreneurship advisory
• Business development support
• Founder education programs
• Small business mentoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Neustadt

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices16 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Free Business Consulting & Advisory: RIZ UP provides free-of-charge business consulting services to founders and existing small/medium businesses in Lower Austria. As a government-funded initiative under the State of Lower Austria (Land Niederösterreich) and part of the ecoplus group, services are publicly funded and free for end users. Revenue is derived from government budget allocations rather than customer payments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

RIZ UP provides free, personalized business consulting, founder seminars, and entrepreneurship education services to pre-founders, founders, and small business owners in Lower Austria. Services span all phases of business development — from business plan creation, financing, and legal setup through marketing, growth, digitalization, and business succession — and are delivered through a network of consulting offices and Gründerzentren (founder centers) covering all 24 districts of the state.

Product overview

RIZ UP is a comprehensive business startup support agency for the state of Lower Austria (Niederösterreich), operating as a single unified service portfolio rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The agency provides integrated consulting, educational seminars, video-based learning (Digithek), physical workspace rental (coworking and office spaces), business competitions (GENIUS prize, Gründerland NÖ, 120 Sekunden), the 'Gründen macht Schule' school program, and the 'Wir sind 1' platform for single-person enterprises. These services are delivered through regional offices across 24 districts and Gründerzentren (founder centers) throughout the state.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RIZ UP GENIUS Ideen- und Gründerpreis: Annual business idea and founder prize competition organized by RIZ UP
• RIZ Gründerzentren
• Gründerland Niederösterreich
• Gründen macht Schule
• Wir sind 1

Products and services

• RIZ UP Beratung (Business Consulting)

Quantifiable outcome

• 15,000+ consultations delivered in 2025 alone
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

33 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.

• Land Niederösterreich (State of Lower Austria)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe State of Lower Austria is RIZ UP's primary funder and political sponsor. RIZ UP is the official Gründeragentur (founder agency) of the state, operating under its mandate to support entrepreneurship and business development across all 24 districts.
• ecoplus. Niederösterreichs WirtschaftsagenturcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRIZ UP is a subsidiary of the ecoplus group, Lower Austria's official economic development and business agency. Ecoplus provides institutional support, funding, and integration into the broader state economic development ecosystem.
• Gründerland NiederösterreichcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerGründerland NÖ is a joint initiative for entrepreneurship promotion in Lower Austria, with RIZ UP as a key delivery partner. They share a co-branded presence and cross-refer entrepreneurs.
• Wirtschaftskammer NÖ (WKNÖ)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerThe Chamber of Commerce for Lower Austria is a key referral partner, directing founders to RIZ UP services and collaborating on events such as the annual Gründerzahlen (founder statistics) press conferences.
• AMS NÖ (Arbeitsmarktservice Niederösterreich)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerThe Lower Austrian Public Employment Service refers unemployed individuals seeking to start businesses to RIZ UP for advisory support. Collaborates on programs such as 'EPU-AssistentInnen'.
• austria wirtschaftsservice (aws)majorGTM or Marketing PartnerAustria's national business development and financing agency is a key referral and support partner, directing founders to RIZ UP for pre-financing advisory and providing funding instruments (guarantees, loans, grants) to RIZ UP clients.
• Österreichische Forschungsförderungsgesellschaft (FFG)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerAustria's research promotion agency is a referral partner for RIZ UP clients seeking R&D funding and innovation grants.
• CreditreformminorOthersCredit information and business information services provider listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Fachhochschule St. PöltenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Applied Sciences in St. Pölten collaborates with RIZ UP on entrepreneurship education, including FabLab workshops and the Gründen macht Schule program.
• Fachhochschule Wiener NeustadtminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Applied Sciences in Wiener Neustadt listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• IMC Fachhochschule KremsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Applied Sciences in Krems listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien (WU Vienna)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVienna University of Economics and Business listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Universität für Weiterbildung Krems (Danube University Krems)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDanube University Krems listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• New Design University St. PöltenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign-oriented private university in St. Pölten listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Haus der Digitalisierung (House of Digitalisation)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLower Austria's House of Digitalisation is both a co-location partner (RIZ UP has an office in Tulln at the Haus der Digitalisierung) and a collaborative partner on digital skills and FabLab programs.
• accent InkubatorminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLower Austrian business incubator listed as a network partner. Has physical presence in RIZ Wiener Neustadt (accent(e) space) and supports early-stage startups.
• i2b Businessplan InitiativeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAustria-wide business plan initiative that supports founders in developing business plans. Listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Kreativwirtschaft AustriaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAustrian creative industries association listed as a network partner. RIZ UP collaborates on creative economy entrepreneurship support programs.
• C hoch 3 (C³)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerCreative industries coaching service in Lower Austria, listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• WIFI NÖminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWIFI Lower Austria (economic institute of the WKNÖ) provides vocational training and is a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Industriellenvereinigung NÖ (IVNÖ)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation of Industrialists of Lower Austria. Collaborates with RIZ UP on the IVNÖ-RIZ Mentoring-Program, launched in 2016 for growth-stage startups.
• Austrian StartupsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNational Austrian startup association listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• KMU Forschung AustriaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSME Research Austria listed as a network partner for RIZ UP, providing research and market intelligence support.
• Österreichischer Franchise-VerbandminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAustrian Franchise Association listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• EVNminorOthersEnergy company of Lower Austria listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• NovomaticminorOthersGaming technology company headquartered in Lower Austria, listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Flughafen Wien (Vienna Airport)minorOthersVienna International Airport listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Vienna RegionminorOthersVienna Region economic development body listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Bildungsdirektion NiederösterreichminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLower Austrian education authority collaborates with RIZ UP on the Gründen macht Schule (entrepreneurship in schools) program.
• Gesellschaft für Forschungsförderung Niederösterreich (GFF NÖ)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerLower Austrian Society for Research Promotion listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Kammer der Steuerberater und Wirtschaftsprüfer (KSW) - Landesstelle NÖminorGTM or Marketing PartnerChamber of Tax Advisors and Auditors for Lower Austria listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Rechtsanwaltskammer NiederösterreichminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBar Association of Lower Austria listed as a network partner for RIZ UP.
• Bezirksblätter, NÖN (NÖ Nachrichten), P3tv, WNTVminorGTM or Marketing PartnerRegional Lower Austrian media outlets listed as network partners, providing press coverage and media exposure for RIZ UP events and client stories.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Strengths4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@rizpw
• Facebookfacebook.com/riz-nieder
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/riz-up

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RIZ