Start with a Friend e.V.

Social Integration Servicesstart-with-a-friend.de

Start with a Friend e.V. is a Berlin-based nonprofit founded in 2014 that runs a 1:1 tandem matching programme connecting newcomers with local residents across 26 Standorte in Germany and Austria, supported by federal grants, foundation funding, and 450+ trained volunteers.

Company typePrivate
Founded2014
HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
Headcount11–50
GTM typeB2C
OfferingServices

What Start with a Friend e.V. does

Start with a Friend e.V. (SwaF) is a Berlin-based nonprofit association (eingetragener Verein) founded in late 2014 that operates a 1:1 tandem matching programme connecting newcomers to Germany with local residents for personal encounters, language exchange, and community building. The organization delivers its programme through 26 local Standorte across Germany plus one partner Standort in Austria, supported by approximately 25-30 paid coordination staff (Bundesteam) at the Berlin headquarters and a network of 450+ trained volunteers (Ehrenamtliche). Its core products are the SwaF Tandem (1:1 matching via db.startwithafriend.de), SwaF Community (local co-designed community spaces), and SwaF Ehrenamt (qualified volunteer engagement), supplemented by time-boxed programmes including SwaF People (2023-2024, empowerment programme), SwaF Women (2021-2022), SwaF Verein(t) (2019-2022), and the Dialogprojekt, with the SwaF Home community-space project in development.

Underlying technology consists of a web-based tandem database, an event/login portal, an E-Learning platform for quality assurance, plus standard third-party tools (CleverReach, Stripe, Google Analytics). SwaF does not charge participants; revenue is assembled from federal programme grants (BMFSFJ's 'Menschen stärken Menschen', BAMF, BMI, Integrationsbeauftragte), foundation grants (Deutsche Postcode Lotterie, Schöpflin Stiftung, Deutsche Bank Stiftung, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung), corporate sponsorships (BASF, Fritz Kola, Boston Consulting Group pro-bono), individual donations, and recurring supporting memberships. The organization operates a community-led go-to-market model relying on word-of-mouth, social media, a monthly newsletter, and a calendar of public events including the annual Bundestreffen national conference and the newly launched Regiotreffen regional meetings.

Start with a Friend e.V. firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Start with a Friend e.V.
Legal name: Start with a Friend e.V.
Website: https://start-with-a-friend.de
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2014
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 11–50 employees
Short description: Start with a Friend e.V. is a Berlin-based nonprofit founded in 2014 that runs a 1:1 tandem matching programme connecting newcomers with local residents across 26 Standorte in Germany and Austria, supported by federal grants, foundation funding, and 450+ trained volunteers.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Start with a Friend e.V. industry classification

Industry

Product category: Social Integration Services
NAICS: Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)
SIC: Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
akta.pro primary industry: Peer Mentorship, Buddy & Host-Family Matching Programs (EDAIAKAD)
akta.pro secondary industries: Refugee & Humanitarian Newcomer Orientation (Resettlement Support) (EDAAADAI), Newcomer & Refugee Student Support Programs (EDAJAGAH)

Keywords

Refugee integration services
Tandem mentoring programs
Community integration support
Volunteer-based social programs
Nonprofit integration association

Where Start with a Friend e.V. is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Berlin
HQ country: Germany
HQ region: Europe

Offices25 records

Markets served

Start with a Friend e.V. business model

Business model

GTM type: B2C
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

Individual Donations: Direct donations via bank transfer (IBAN: DE26 4306 0967 1183 1627 00, GLS Gemeinschaftsbank) and through betterplace.org online platform. Donors can request donation receipts by including their address in the payment reference.
Supporting Membership (Fördermitgliedschaft): Recurring supporting memberships with annual fee, providing ongoing financial support to the organization's operations.
Government Programme Funding: Primary funding from government programmes including Bundesministerium für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend (BMFSFJ), Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF), Bundesministerium des Innern (BMI), and the programme 'Menschen stärken Menschen'. Also funded by the Integrationsbeauftragte der Bundesregierung.
Foundation and Corporate Grants: Funding and support from foundations including Deutsche Postcode Lotterie, Schoepflin Stiftung, Deutsche Bank Stiftung, and Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, as well as corporate sponsors such as BASF, Fritz Kola, and Boston Consulting Group (pro-bono).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels10 records

Start with a Friend e.V. product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Start with a Friend e.V. runs a free 1:1 tandem matching program that pairs newcomers to Germany with local residents for personal encounters, language practice, and community building, supported by local community spaces and qualified volunteer engagement across 26 locations. The offering is delivered through trained volunteer coordinators at each Standort and reinforced by community events, multiplier training, and specialized sub-programs (SwaF People, SwaF Women, Dialogprojekt, SwaF Home).

Product overview

Start with a Friend e.V. operates a platform of interconnected programs centered on 1:1 tandem matching and community building. The core offering is SwaF Tandem, a personalized matching service that connects people with and without immigration/flucht experience for mutual support and friendship. This core is supported by SwaF Community spaces at 26 locations where members meet, exchange, and learn together, and SwaF Ehrenamt for qualified volunteer engagement. Additional programs include SwaF People (a qualification and empowerment program, 2023-2024), SwaF Women (women-focused communities, 2021-2022), SwaF Verein(t) (club connections, 2019-2022), the Dialogprojekt (dialogue facilitation, 2021-2022), SwaF Home (community space project), and MURAL (European project, 2019). The organization operates digital portals including a login portal, tandem database, and event calendar.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

SwaF Tandem
SwaF Community
SwaF Ehrenamt (Volunteering)
SwaF Veranstaltungen (Events)

Quantifiable outcome

Approximately 9,000 tandems formed since founding (late 2014) across 20+ Standorte
+5 more outcomes

Companies that use Start with a Friend e.V.

Customer profile

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Start with a Friend e.V. technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Start with a Friend e.V. partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered major and minor.

Boston Consulting Group (BCG)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPro-bono consulting support for SwaF Home project concept development. Strategic partner providing expertise in organizational development and programme design.
Über den TellerrandmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization sharing similar mission of cross-cultural encounters through shared meals and community events. SwaF and Über den Tellerrand organized joint events including dinner with Bundesfamilienministerin Lisa Paus. Über den Tellerrand operates in 43 cities.
UNHCRminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUN Refugee Agency as part of the broader network and community collaboration for refugee support and integration.
AshokaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal fellowship of social entrepreneurs; Ashoka represents innovation in social impact in SwaF's network.
Start with a Friend AustriamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister organization in Austria operating SwaF's model at an Austrian Standort. Colleagues from Austria participated in Bundestreffen 2026 in Wolfsburg.
Akademie für EhrenamtlichkeitmajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDelivered workshops at Multiplikator*innenschulung Sommer 2026 in Wolfsburg, including sessions on 'Discrimination-sensitive Digitalization & AI at SwaF Tandem' and 'Healthy and Sustainable Engagement'. Andrea Joveski and Magdalena Patalong served as workshop facilitators.
KOSMOS Kulturfestival ChemnitzmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor cultural festival in Chemnitz (100,000+ visitors) at which SwaF hosted 'SwaF meets KOSMOS' - a two-day programme with panel discussions, culture, and Speedfriending XXL. First time SwaF had a dedicated programme point at a large public festival.
KRAFTVERKEHR ChemnitzmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerCultural venue in Chemnitz serving as SwaF's local Standort space and venue for 'SwaF meets KOSMOS' and anniversary celebrations.
Berliner IdeenlabormajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartnered with SwaF Home project to conduct community co-creation workshops for designing the community space concept. Facilitated digital creative sessions with 22 community members.
ElimumajorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerOrganization supporting SwaF in designing community working processes in a discrimination-sensitive and inclusive manner for the SwaF Home project.
SINGAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of SwaF's network and community of organizations working on integration and social cohesion.
Project TogetherminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCrowdfunding platform and initiative in SwaF's network supporting civic tech and social innovation.
Social Impact MünchenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial innovation ecosystem partner in SwaF's network.
Villa Gründergeist FrankfurtminorGTM or Marketing PartnerVenue for Multiplikator*innenschulung February 2026 in Frankfurt am Main.
Bridges KammerorchesterminorGTM or Marketing PartnerChamber orchestra providing musical performance at Bundestreffen 2025 celebration evening in Mannheim.
Neue Deutsche Medienmacher*innenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExpert organization providing professional support in developing the SwaF Glossary - a collection of discrimination-sensitive and racism-critical language terms for internal and public communication.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Start with a Friend e.V. competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Broad incumbents

Caritas Deutschland: Germany's largest Catholic welfare organization, running nationwide refugee integration, migration advice, and newcomer support services. Overlaps with SwaF in mission and target population but operates as a much larger, multi-service welfare provider.
Internationaler Bund (IB): One of Germany's largest social-service organizations, providing integration, education, and refugee support programmes nationwide through paid programmes. Less volunteer-driven than SwaF, but operates as a large-scale incumbent in the same integration space.
Bundesfachverband unbegleitete minderjährige Flüchtlinge: National umbrella association coordinating refugee and unaccompanied-minor support services across Germany. Comparable in serving the same populations and participating in BMFSFJ funding structures, but acting as a federated body rather than a direct service provider.

Direct peers

AFS Interkulturelle Begegnungen e.V. German chapter of global AFS, running intercultural exchange and integration programmes for young people, including in refugee/migration contexts. Operates a similar 1:1 host-family and cross-cultural encounter model across Germany.
Mentor – Die Leselernpaten: Germany's leading 1:1 mentoring nonprofit, focused on reading and learning support for children and youth with migration backgrounds. Uses the same 1:1 volunteer-mentor model as SwaF and is part of the 'Menschen stärken Menschen' ecosystem.
Tür an Tür – Augsburg / Munich: Bavarian integration nonprofit active in Augsburg and Munich with mentoring, language, and community-based programmes for newcomers — direct overlap in geography and programme design with SwaF's tandem offering.
Über den Tellerrand: A German nonprofit that, like SwaF, creates 1:1 cross-cultural encounters between newcomers and locals through shared meals, community events, and matching. Explicitly co-organized joint events with SwaF and is named as a strategic partner in the data.
Mission Lifeline: Germany-based refugee support organization that combines sea rescue, accommodation, and integration services including mentoring and contact programmes for newcomers — comparable mission and beneficiary population.
SINGA Deutschland: France-origin refugee and migrant integration organization with German operations running community-based programmes and matching between newcomers and locals — directly comparable to SwaF's tandem model and named in SwaF's network.

Others

startsocial e.V. Social entrepreneurship and NGO capacity-building organization; their CEO sits on SwaF's Beirat and SwaF has won the startsocial award. Not a direct service peer, but a comparable-capacity social-sector ecosystem player and partner.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Start with a Friend e.V. financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Start with a Friend e.V. leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Start with a Friend e.V. funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

Start with a Friend e.V. M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Start with a Friend e.V.

What does Start with a Friend e.V. do?

Is Start with a Friend e.V. a public or private company?

Start with a Friend e.V. is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.

When was Start with a Friend e.V. founded?

Start with a Friend e.V. was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.

Where is Start with a Friend e.V. based?

Start with a Friend e.V. is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.

How does Start with a Friend e.V. make money?

Four revenue lines are on record. Individual Donations are the primary driver. The others are supporting Membership (Fördermitgliedschaft), government Programme Funding and foundation and Corporate Grants.

Who are Start with a Friend e.V.'s main competitors?

Broad incumbents on record are Caritas Deutschland, Internationaler Bund (IB) and Bundesfachverband unbegleitete minderjährige Flüchtlinge. Direct peers are AFS Interkulturelle Begegnungen e.V., Mentor – Die Leselernpaten, Tür an Tür – Augsburg / Munich, Über den Tellerrand, Mission Lifeline and SINGA Deutschland. startsocial e.V. is listed as an others.

Does Start with a Friend e.V. have an API?

No public API is recorded for Start with a Friend e.V..

What industry is Start with a Friend e.V. in?

Start with a Friend e.V.'s product category is Social Integration Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAIAKAD, Peer Mentorship, Buddy & Host-Family Matching Programs, with a secondary code of EDAAADAI, Refugee & Humanitarian Newcomer Orientation (Resettlement Support). Its NAICS code is 624190 and its SIC code is 8300.