Austurbrú

What Austurbrú does

Austurbrú ses is a non-profit regional development organization headquartered in Egilsstaðir, Iceland, founded in 2012 to serve East Iceland (Austurland). It operates as the designated public-mandate development agency for a region that accounts for approximately 2.9% of Iceland's population but generates roughly 25% of the country's goods exports, primarily from fisheries and aluminum. The organization delivers a diversified portfolio of services including educational courses, business advisory, tourism support, career counseling, regional development planning, and innovation programs, supported by 28 employees across 7 office locations.

Its core offerings include vocational and continuing education courses (with newer inclusions in data privacy and Icelandic as a second language), business advisory (markaðsráðgjöf), tourism-related programs (including tourism readiness assessments), career counseling and the annual Starfamessa career fair, regional development planning, and the Startup Landið entrepreneurship accelerator run jointly with a national network. Austurbrú also manages the Uppbyggingarsjóður Austurlands (Development Fund) and convenes events such as Matarmót (food festival) and Haustþing SSA, producing regional development content via the Austurland hlaðvarp podcast. Leadership is headed by CEO Bryndís Fiona Ford (Framkvæmdastjórí).

The business model is non-commercial: Austurbrú is funded through government allocations and municipal contributions, with no disclosed pricing, fee structure, or commercial revenue stream. Its customers and beneficiaries are the residents, businesses, and municipalities of East Iceland, with the public sector as the de facto anchor funder. The operating model is therefore closer to a public agency than a market-driven enterprise, with growth measured in programmatic reach rather than revenue.

Name

Austurbrú

Legal name

Austurbrú ses

Website

https://austurbru.is

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Austurbrú is a publicly funded non-profit regional development agency for East Iceland, delivering education, business advisory, tourism support, career counseling, and innovation programs across 7 offices to residents, businesses, and municipalities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Development Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development (925120)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)

akta.pro primary industry

Technical Cooperation, Capacity Building & Policy Advisory Programs (BPADABAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Systems & Skills Technical Assistance (BPADAEAI), Regional Education Service Agencies (ESAs/BOCES/Intermediate Units) (EDADABAC), Economic Research, Statistics & Policy Advisory (BPADAMAJ)

Keywords

• Regional development services
• Adult education courses
• Business advisory services
• Tourism industry support
• Career counseling

Headquarters

HQ city

Egilsstaðir

HQ country

Iceland

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Public Funding: Austurbrú operates as a publicly funded regional development organization (stoðstofnun) for Austurland. Revenue comes from government funding and municipal contributions to support regional development activities.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Austurbrú is a publicly funded regional development organization for East Iceland that delivers adult education courses (Icelandic language, customer service, data privacy, motivational interviewing, tourism-worker training), business advisory and tourism network support, educational and career counseling, competence assessment (Raunfærnimat), and regional development planning. It also administers the Uppbyggingarsjóður Austurlands development fund and runs the Startup Landið innovation accelerator in partnership with national regional development bodies.

Product overview

Austurbrú is a regional development and support institution for East Iceland (Austurland) that provides educational courses and professional services rather than a unified software product. Its educational offerings include Icelandic language courses at various proficiency levels (A1-B1), electronic courses for tourism workers, customer service training, and data privacy education. The organization also offers business advisory services, competence assessment, and runs the Startup Landið innovation accelerator. Additionally, it provides media content through the Austurland podcast, administers the Uppbyggingarsjóður Austurlands development fund, and organizes events such as the annual Starfamessa Austurlands career fair.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Austurland hlaðvarp: Podcast series by Austurbrú covering topics related to East Iceland community and projects

Products and services

• Icelandic as a Second Language Courses (A1, A2, B1 levels) Multi-level Icelandic language courses for non-native speakers, delivered at multiple East Iceland locations and online, targeting immigrants and foreign residents.
• Rafræn námskeið (Electronic Courses for Tourism Workers) Online professional development courses designed specifically for tourism industry employees in East Iceland.
• Customer Service Training Professional development course focused on customer service skills for the hospitality and tourism sectors in East Iceland.
• Motivational Interviewing (Áhugahvetjandi samtal) Communication skills training using motivational interviewing techniques, for professionals across regional services.
• Persónuverndarfræðsla (Data Privacy Education) Data protection and privacy compliance training delivered via Teams/Zoom for regional businesses and professionals.
• Business Services (Þjónusta við atvinnulíf) Comprehensive advisory and support services for businesses in East Iceland, including visibility enhancement, tourism network access, and development marketing support.
• Raunfærnimat (Competence Assessment) Formal skills and competence assessment services for individuals and organizations in East Iceland.
• Educational and Career Counseling (Náms- og starfsráðgjöf) Guidance and counseling services for education and career planning decisions for East Iceland residents.
• Startup Landið Innovation accelerator program for entrepreneurs and innovation teams in rural areas, run in collaboration with regional development organizations across Iceland.
• Uppbyggingarsjóður Austurlands (Development Fund of East Iceland) Development fund administered by Austurbrú providing financial support for projects and initiatives in the East Iceland region.
• Starfamessa Austurlands (Career Fair of East Iceland) Annual career fair event held in collaboration with businesses, municipalities, and Austurbrú to help young people envision their future in East Iceland.
• Austurland hlaðvarp (East Iceland Podcast) Podcast series by Austurbrú covering topics and stories related to the East Iceland community and the organization's projects, distributed via Spotify.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• SSA (Samband sveitarfélaga á Austurlandi)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSSA is the Association of Municipalities in East Iceland. Austurbrú works closely with SSA on regional development, economic planning, and shared initiatives for the East Iceland region. SSA has its own governance structure, staff, and board separate from Austurbrú.
• Tourism Industry in East IcelandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAusturbrú collaborates with tourism businesses to provide visibility, networking opportunities, and support for tourism development and marketing across East Iceland. The organization offers increased visibility, access to the tourism network, and support for business development and marketing.
• Landshlutasamtök og atvinnuþróunarfélögcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAusturbrú participates in the national network of regional development organizations and collaborates on initiatives like Startup Landið (Startup Land) accelerator program, which is a joint project across all regional development associations in Iceland.
• Regional MunicipalitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with municipalities across East Iceland for regional planning, development initiatives, and community projects. Includes municipalities in Fjarðabyggð, Djúpavogshreppur, Fljótsdalshérað, and other East Iceland municipalities.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Atvinnuþróunarfélag Vestfjarða: Business development association for the Westfjords region of Iceland, operating under the same national regional development umbrella. Comparable role in delivering business advisory, education, and entrepreneurship support to a sparsely populated Icelandic region.
• Norðurbrú: Regional development organization for North Iceland (Norðurland), part of the same Landshlutasamtök og atvinnuþróunarfélög network as Austurbrú. Provides education, business advisory, and regional planning in its territory using a similar institutional model and participates in joint programs such as Startup Landið.
• SASS (Samband sveitarfélaga á Suðurlandi): Association of municipalities and regional development body for South Iceland, structurally similar to SSA in East Iceland. Comparable in coordinating municipal funding, regional planning, and joint development programs with a public-funded development entity.
• Vesturbrú: Regional development organization for West Iceland, sister organization to Austurbrú within Iceland's national regional development network. Offers directly comparable services including education, business support, tourism development, and career guidance to a different Icelandic region.
• SSV (Samtök sveitarfélaga á Vesturlandi): Regional development and municipal association for West Iceland. Comparable in mandate to coordinate regional development, distribute public funding, and deliver shared services across member municipalities in a rural Icelandic region.
• Byggðastofnun: National Icelandic settlement fund that supports regional development and rural community viability through grants, loans, and development programs. Directly comparable to Austurbrú because it operates in the same regional development space and channels public funding toward Icelandic rural economies, including East Iceland initiatives.
• Eyþing: Regional development association for Northeast Iceland, another peer institution operating the same multi-service regional development model and co-delivering Startup Landið. Comparable mandate, funding structure, and service mix to Austurbrú.

Broad incumbents

• Stafkirkjan / Icelandic Tourism Board (Ferðamálastofa): National tourism authority for Iceland, broader incumbent in the tourism support space. Comparable insofar as Austurbrú delivers tourism network support, marketing visibility, and operator training in East Iceland, partially overlapping with national-level tourism policy and destination development work.
• Samband íslenskra sveitarfélaga (SNS): National Association of Icelandic Municipalities, the umbrella body representing Icelandic local governments. Relevant as a broader incumbent that interfaces with regional development organizations like Austurbrú and SSA on policy and funding matters.

Others

• HA (Háskóli Íslands / University of Iceland): National university that collaborates with Austurbrú on higher education services in East Iceland (Austurbrú explicitly lists university student support under its service menu). Relevant ecosystem participant but not a direct competitor; adjacent as an enabler of regional education pathways.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Austurbru
• Instagraminstagram.com/Austurbru
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/austurbr%C3%BA

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Austurbrú