Deutscher Gruenderverband

What Deutscher Gruenderverband does

Deutscher Gründerverband e.V. is a Munich-based, registered non-profit association (eingetragener Verein, founded 2008) that organizes events, seminars, and online programs aimed at founders, young entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals in Germany. Its operational core is community-led and event-driven: it facilitates networking, experience exchange, and educational workshops, primarily through a volunteer staff, and positions itself as a 'Heimat' (home) for the German founder ecosystem. The membership-oriented association derives any revenue from membership fees and partner-supported activities; pricing is not publicly disclosed and many offerings are free, with revenue figures unreported.

The organization's technical and product surface is anchored in two intertwined assets. First, the smartrating methodology — a business concept assessment framework developed by Scientific Advisory Board member Prof. Dr. Ottmar Schneck, reported across 3,000+ installations in Europe — provides an evaluation backbone used to inform financing decisions. Second, the smartaxxess digital platform integrates business planning, risk management, and financing flows for young Mittelstand companies without requiring traditional bank conversations; this platform is operated by smartaxxess Group, whose CEO (Dr. Kai Flehmig-Pichlmaier), CFO (Christian Seidl), and CMO/Chairwoman (Ruth Schöllhammer) overlap directly with the association's board, indicating structural entanglement rather than a vendor relationship. Additional products include the netzworx.org digital forum with self-assessment and training tools, an online information portal (deutscher-gruenderverband.de plus blog Gründen-mit-Freunden.de), and the 'Gründergrips' podcast.

Commercially the entity does not operate as a transactional venture but as an associative infrastructure layer. Its go-to-market is a hybrid of event-driven outreach (Learntec pitch events, HerCareer, Bits & Pretzls, Gründerwoche) and community-led engagement anchored by partnerships with ver.di München (~30,000 solo self-employed members), German Mittelstand, SRH Fernhochschule (4,300+ students; co-developed 'Certified Innovation & Development Consultant' certificate), and Deutsche Zukunftsanlage (a Social Banking fund channeling community-based loans to smartaxxess-rated companies). Customer segments are persona-based and horizontal: founders and pre-founders, young companies (Jungunternehmen), self-employed individuals (Selbstständige), with secondary support for startups. No enterprise-anchor revenue model exists, and individual consultation capacity is explicitly limited by the volunteer-based structure.

Name

Deutscher Gruenderverband

Legal name

Deutscher Gründerverband e.V.

Website

https://deutscher-gruenderverband.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Deutscher Gründerverband e.V. is a Munich-based, volunteer-driven non-profit association (founded 2008) that organizes events, networking, and educational programs for German founders, young entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals. It operates through a partner ecosystem including smartaxxess, ver.di, German Mittelstand, SRH Fernhochschule, and Deutsche Zukunftsanlage.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Entrepreneurship Support Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Microfinance, Financial Inclusion & Inclusive Markets (BPAGABAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Microenterprise Group Lending (Joint Liability) (FSAKAGAH)

Keywords

• Founder association
• Startup support
• Entrepreneurship networking
• Business incubation
• Self-employment services

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership and networking services: The association provides membership services and a network for founders, young entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals. As a non-profit association (gemeinnütziger Verein), revenue supports their mission to promote entrepreneurship.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Deutscher Gründerverband is a German non-profit association (gemeinnütziger eingetragener Verein) that organizes events, seminars, and online programs for founders, young entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals. It operates a partner-based community platform (netzworx.org) and an online information portal to support interaction, exchange of experience, and access to financing expertise. The association connects aspiring founders with established institutions, trade unions, and educational bodies, integrating the smartaxxess digital ecosystem for business concept evaluation and Social Banking-based financing rather than traditional bank interactions.

Product overview

Deutscher Gruenderverband is a non-profit association providing a suite of advisory, networking, and educational services for founders, young entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals. The organization operates primarily as a consultancy and community platform, offering event organization, networking facilitation through netzworx.org, and an online information portal covering topics such as financing, business concept development, and entrepreneurship support. The organization works primarily with volunteers and maintains partnerships with various stakeholders to deliver these services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Events and Seminars The Deutscher Gründerverband designs and delivers events, seminars, and online offerings to illuminate the opportunities, perspectives, and risks of self-employment for founders, young entrepreneurs, and the self-employed. Events include workshops, pitch contests such as the Learntec Start-up Pitch, and partnership-driven sessions on financing, work-life balance, and contract issues.
• netzworx.org Digital forum for founders, young entrepreneurs, and self-employed individuals to network and exchange experiences, featuring training tools and self-assessment capabilities for entrepreneurial readiness. Provides a digital platform for community engagement among members of the association's network.
• Online Information Portal (deutscher-gruenderverband.de) Main website providing news, events, and recommendations for founders and young businesses, including articles on financing options such as guarantees, building trust in B2B contexts with the Mittelstand, and business concept development. The site also lists upcoming events and partner references.

Quantifiable outcome

• 86% three-year survival rate for full-time founders (according to KfW Gründungsmonitor)

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

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

• Weifang (Shandong, China)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 July 2018Strategic cooperation signed in July 2018 for the promotion of entrepreneurship and mutual exchange. Weifang, known as the main location for dragon kites with nearly 10 million inhabitants, is also a model city for new entrepreneurship. Focus areas include connection of agriculture and industry, environmental technologies, and high-end manufacturing.
• smartaxxess GroupcoreTechnology or Integrationsmartaxxess is a digital platform for the evaluation and financing of business concepts for young Mittelstand companies and founders - without traditional bank conversations. The platform integrates all elements of planning, evaluation, financing, controlling, and protection for borrowers and investors. Ruth Schöllhammer, Chairwoman of the Board, is also founder and CMO of smartaxxess Operation AG.
• ver.di MünchencoreStrategic or Co-development Partnerver.di is a trade union representing around 30,000 solo self-employed members. Their consultation network (Selbststaendigen.info) provides comprehensive information and expert counseling. ver.di offers legal protection for members including contractual and social security questions, and representation in court.
• German MittelstandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman Mittelstand Association promotes networking among Mittelstand businesses and supports entrepreneurs and founders in developing and implementing business ideas. Through networks and personal exchange at their own events, they contribute to more knowledge, inspiration, and innovation in the Mittelstand sector.
• SRH Fernhochschule - The Mobile UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSRH Fernhochschule operates study and examination centers at 18 locations across Germany with over 4,300 students and 700+ certificate participants. Together with the Deutscher Gründerverband, SRH developed the university certificate 'Certified Innovation & Development Consultant' for future-oriented consultants.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• KfW Bankengruppe: Germany's state-owned development bank, the dominant federal funder of startup and Mittelstand financing. Comparable as the broad incumbent in the founder-financing space; KfW's Gründungsmonitor is even cited by the association, and a former KfW board member (Dr. Edeltraud Leibrock) sits on the association's scientific advisory board.
• Deutscher Industrie- und Handelskammertag (DIHK): Umbrella organization of the 79 German chambers of industry and commerce (IHKs), providing startup and founding advisory as part of a much broader mandate. Comparable as a federally embedded organization that supports founders among a much wider service portfolio.
• Bundesverband mittelständische Wirtschaft (BVMW): Germany's largest Mittelstand business association with several hundred thousand members. Direct listed partner of the Deutscher Gründerverband (major strategic tier); comparable as the broad-incumbent counterpart—larger scale, paid infrastructure, and federal reach that the association leverages rather than competes with.

Direct peers

• Startup Verband: Germany's largest startup association, representing founders, young companies, and investors at the federal level. Directly comparable as a membership-based association advocating for and serving the same German founder/early-stage ecosystem from Berlin, with paid staff and government-facing capabilities the Deutscher Gründerverband currently lacks.
• Impact Hub Germany: Network of physical and digital spaces supporting purpose-driven founders in Germany. Comparable as a community-led, mission-based platform serving early-stage entrepreneurs through events, networking, and education across multiple German cities.
• Bundesverband Deutscher Stiftungen: Germany's central association for foundations and grantmaking entities, organized as a gemeinnützige Verein. Comparable as a non-profit association model with event-driven, network-supported, and member-served governance structure analogous to the Deutscher Gründerverband.
• Verband der Gründer und Selbstständigen Deutschlands (VGSD): Trade association specifically representing founders and self-employed individuals in Germany. Closest functional analog to the Deutscher Gründerverband in terms of target constituency (Selbstständige und Gründer), with overlapping policy advocacy and consulting services.

Regional players

• Handwerkskammer München: Munich-based chamber of crafts/trades, providing Gründungsberatung to crafts and trade founders in the same Munich/Bavarian geography. Comparable as a regional incumbent offering founding advisory and continuing education to a founder subset in the same city.
• Munich Startup: Munich-based startup news, events, and community platform covering the same Bavarian founder ecosystem. Comparable as an emerging regional player building community and visibility for founders in the geography where the Deutscher Gründerverband is headquartered.

Peers

• Social Entrepreneurship Netzwerk Deutschland (SEND e.V.): Non-profit network association promoting and connecting social entrepreneurs in Germany. Comparable as a gemeinnützige Verein with similar volunteer-leveraged model, mission-driven governance, and member services spanning events, networking, and education across the German Mittelstand.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/gruenderverein
• Facebookfacebook.com/gruendenmitfreunden
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/deutscher-gruenderverband

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 Deutscher Gruenderverband