Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg - Alte Schlosserei

What Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg - Alte Schlosserei does

Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg, operating under the brand "Alte Schlosserei," is a publicly-funded startup incubator and coworking hub located in a heritage-listed former locksmith workshop in Aschaffenburg, Bavaria, Germany. Founded in 2018 and operated by the municipal utility Stadtwerke Aschaffenburg, it serves early-stage founders and small teams in the Mainviereck region (Aschaffenburg and Miltenberg districts), with a community of 50+ active resident startups and access to a network of 200+ business angels and venture capitalists. The institution's mandate is regional economic development, not commercial coworking at scale.

DGZ's offer combines revenue-generating workspace products with non-revenue founder-support services. Workspace includes Hot Desks at €85/month, Fix Desks at €95/month, private offices from €240/month, day passes at €15, and conference rooms at €70/month. Free services include founding advisory, mentoring, coaching, workshops, and events. The platform is supported by a dense partner ecosystem — BayStartUp, Bayern Kapital, TH Aschaffenburg, IHK Aschaffenburg, HWK, ZENTEC, Medienhaus Main-Echo, Digital Aschaffenburg, and the parent Stadtwerke.

DGZ monetizes through a subscription-based workspace rental model layered on top of public-sector subsidies from the Bavarian State Ministry of Economic Affairs (StMWi). Most founder-support services are provided free of charge, which is core to the public-policy mission rather than a paid product. The customer base is fragmented across many small founder-tenants, but the financial base is materially dependent on continued public funding and the continued stewardship of Stadtwerke Aschaffenburg.

Name

Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg - Alte Schlosserei

Legal name

Stadtwerke Aschaffenburg

Website

https://dgz-ab.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg (Alte Schlosserei) is a publicly-funded startup incubator and coworking hub in Aschaffenburg, Bavaria, operated by Stadtwerke Aschaffenburg since 2018. It serves early-stage founders in the Mainviereck region with subsidized workspace, mentoring, and partner-network access.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Startup Incubation Services

NAICS

Facilities Support Services (5612), Office Administrative Services (5611), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Corporate Venture Studios & Incubators (Build/launch ventures) (FSANAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Corporate Accelerators & Startup Programs (FSANAHAD)

Keywords

• Startup incubation services
• Coworking space rental
• Founder mentoring programs
• Entrepreneurship community events
• Startup advisory services

Headquarters

HQ city

Aschaffenburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Coworking & Office Space Rental: Revenue generated from renting flexible workspaces including Hot Desks (€85/month), Fix Desks (€95/month), private Offices (from €240/month), Day Passes (€15/day), and Conference Rooms (€70/month). The majority of consulting and coaching services are offered free of charge, subsidized by public funding.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg - Alte Schlosserei operates a startup incubator providing flexible coworking spaces (Hot Desk €85/month, Fix Desk €95/month), private offices (from €240/month), conference rooms (€70/month) and day passes (€15/day), combined with largely free founding advisory, three-month mentoring programs, one-on-one coaching, workshops, and networking events for early-stage startups in the Mainviereck (Aschaffenburg and Miltenberg) region. Operations are subsidized by Bavarian state funding (StMWi), the City of Aschaffenburg, and partner companies, with revenue primarily from coworking and office rental fees.

Product overview

Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg - Alte Schlosserei operates as a startup incubator offering physical workspace solutions (Coworking Spaces, Office Spaces, Conference Rooms, Day Passes) combined with business development services (Founding Advisory, Mentoring Program, Coaching & Workshops, Events & Networking). The center connects startups with financing opportunities through partnerships with BayStartUp and Bayern Kapital, and organizes the annual Gründermesse founder fair. The facility is housed in a converted heritage building and serves the Mainviereck region (Aschaffenburg and Miltenberg).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Coworking Spaces (Hot Desk and Fix Desk)

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 active startups in the community, plus multiple successful alumni companies
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Stadtwerke AschaffenburgflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerStadtwerke Aschaffenburg is the parent organization operating the DGZ. Werkleiter (Works Manager) Stefan Maunz and Reiner Reisnecker are listed as responsible parties in the imprint. The DGZ is operated as an initiative of Stadtwerke Aschaffenburg.
• Stadt AschaffenburgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMunicipal government of Aschaffenburg co-supports the DGZ initiative, with Mayor/ Bürgermeister Eric Leiderer actively participating in founding events and opening ceremonies.
• Medienhaus Main-EchocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional newspaper and publishing house (Verlag und Druckerei Main-Echo) co-organizes the annual Gründermesse and provides media coverage and venue (Alte Fabrikhalle) for the event.
• Digital AschaffenburgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDigital Aschaffenburg is a municipal digitalization initiative that co-organizes the Gründermesse and supports the digital ecosystem in Aschaffenburg.
• TH Aschaffenburg (Technische Hochschule)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTH Aschaffenburg (University of Applied Sciences) is a founding network partner providing academic connections, student talent, and co-hosting events. Also home to the VentureLab startup center and KI-Regionalzentrum Unterfranken.
• IHK Aschaffenburg (Industrie- und Handelskammer)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChamber of Commerce and Industry Aschaffenburg co-organizes the GründerinnenTalk initiative and provides business support, networking, and regulatory guidance for startups in the region.
• Handwerkskammer für UnterfrankencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerChamber of Trades for Lower Franconia co-supports the GründerinnenTalk initiative and provides startup support services for crafts and trade-related businesses.
• ZENTEC – Zentrum für Technologie, Existenzgründung und Cooperation GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerZENTEC is a technology and startup center in the region providing additional startup support, hosting the GründerinnenTalk program, and contributing to the regional Gründerakademie ecosystem.
• WIKA (Wika Alexander Wiegand SE & Co. KG)minorOthersGlobal family-owned company and regional employer (world leader in pressure and temperature measurement technology). Partner company of the DGZ, exhibitor at Gründermesse, and mentor provider.
• Sparkasse Aschaffenburg-MiltenbergminorOthersRegional savings bank and partner company of the DGZ ecosystem, providing financial services connections and banking support for startups.
• Raiffeisen-Volksbank AschaffenburgminorOthersRegional cooperative bank and partner company supporting the DGZ startup ecosystem with financial services connections.
• Volksbank Raiffeisenbank Odenwald-MiltenbergminorOthersRegional cooperative bank and partner company in the broader DGZ ecosystem.
• PSI Software SEminorOthersSoftware company and partner company of the DGZ, providing technology sector connections and expertise for the startup community.
• Die TechnikerminorOthersGerman health insurance provider (Die Techniker) and partner company of the DGZ, providing startup support and health insurance connections.
• Creditreform AschaffenburgminorOthersCredit agency and partner company providing business credit information and business support services for startups.
• ASC – Audiological Science CompanyminorOthersRegional company and partner company of the DGZ, participating in career panels and startup ecosystem events.
• Juwelier VOGL GmbHminorOthersRegional jewelry company whose Managing Director Marius Schafelner serves as a mentor in the DGZ community.
• StMWi (Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Landesentwicklung und Energie)flagshipOthersBavarian State Ministry for Economic Affairs provides primary funding and institutional support that enables the DGZ to offer largely free services (coaching, workshops, events) to qualifying startups.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Gründerzentrum Nürnberg (GN e.V.): Gründerzentrum Nürnberg is a Bavarian startup incubator and coworking network offering comparable founding advisory, mentoring, and workspace services. Direct peer in product offering and public-sector-backed model.
• Werk1 (Munich): Werk1 is a Munich-based startup incubator and coworking hub, directly comparable to DGZ as a Bavarian publicly-supported startup center offering coworking, mentoring, and investor access. Comparable footprint and mission, but operates at a larger scale in Munich.
• VentureLab TH Aschaffenburg: VentureLab is TH Aschaffenburg's university startup center and a founding network partner of DGZ. Directly comparable as a Bavarian startup incubator targeting similar regional founders, with some overlap and partnership.
• SpinLab – The HHL Accelerator (Leipzig): SpinLab is a German university-linked startup incubator offering coworking, mentoring, and accelerator programs. Comparable product structure to DGZ but operating at a larger scale and connected to a business school.
• ZENTEC (Großwallstadt): ZENTEC is a regional technology and startup center in Lower Franconia, directly comparable to DGZ — both serve the same Mainviereck/Untermain region, co-host GründerinnenTalk, and provide startup support and coaching. They are arguably the closest functional peer.

Others

• BayStartUp: BayStartUp is Bavaria's startup network offering financing coaching, investor connections, and coaching days — directly comparable to DGZ's financing-related services. It is a partner rather than a competitor, but offers the same investor-network function.
• Bayern Kapital (Venture Capital): Bayern Kapital is a partner (not competitor) of DGZ, providing VC funding access to Bavarian startups. Relevant as an ecosystem enabler rather than a direct operating peer.

Broad incumbents

• Impact Hub Germany: Impact Hub is a global coworking and social-impact startup community with German locations offering comparable workspace and community programming. Broader footprint and impact-focused positioning than DGZ.
• Factory Berlin: Factory Berlin is a large private coworking and innovation campus serving startups and corporates. Comparable product (coworking + events + community) but operates at much larger scale and via private funding model.
• Wayra (Telefónica Germany): Wayra is a corporate-backed startup accelerator operating in Germany under Telefónica. While it offers comparable founder accelerator services, it is part of a much larger telecom group and competes for a different startup segment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCNZ1jwXG_pGuP-EiSyj-IvQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/digitalesgruenderzentrum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dgz-ab
• Instagraminstagram.com/digitalesgruenderzentrum/?hl=de

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Digitales Gründerzentrum Aschaffenburg - Alte Schlosserei