wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung GmbH

What wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung GmbH does

wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung GmbH is a German interkommunale (inter-municipal) economic development agency, jointly operated by the cities of Moers, Kamp-Lintfort, Neukirchen-Vluyn, and Rheinberg in the Kreis Wesel district of North Rhine-Westphalia. Founded in 2003 and headquartered at Genender Platz 1, 47445 Moers, the agency serves as the single point of contact for regional economic development across the four member municipalities, working with local businesses, founders, and educational and civic institutions to address structural-economic challenges including post-mining transformation, skilled-worker shortages, and digitalization.

The agency's service portfolio is organized around four core program areas: wir4 Fachkräfte (skilled-workforce development), wir4 Innovation (innovation support and networks), wir4 Kommunikation (regional communications and location marketing), and Fördermittelberatung (public funding advisory). Complementing these are recurring event formats — the wir4JOBLOUNGE recruiting event, the wir4HR-Zirkel HR-professional roundtable (~50 participants), and the wir4connectMe career fair (~50 exhibitors, 1,000+ visitors) — plus project initiatives such as the federal-funded STAY2GROW international-talent retention project (2025-2026), the wir4-Gütesiegel regional quality seal, and coordinated support for the Deutschlandstipendium at Hochschule Rhein-Waal. The agency's underlying technology stack is minimal: standard Microsoft Teams for digital consulting days, Brevo for newsletter distribution, and a WordPress-based website; there are no proprietary software products or commercial technology offerings.

The business model is non-commercial: all advisory services are provided free of charge to businesses, founders, and other target groups. Revenue is derived from municipal contributions by the four partner cities and from project-based public funding programs, including federal competitions such as 'Zukunft Region.' The organization operates with approximately five employees and no external shareholders, venture capital, or private equity ownership. Distribution is primarily direct, via in-person office consultations, digital Fördersprechtag sessions, and on-site events, supported by organic social-media presence on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.

Name

wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung GmbH

Legal name

wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung Moers, Kamp-Lintfort, Neukirchen-Vluyn und Rheinberg GmbH

Website

https://wir4.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung GmbH is an inter-municipal economic development agency jointly operated by the German cities of Moers, Kamp-Lintfort, Neukirchen-Vluyn, and Rheinberg, providing free advisory services in skilled-workforce, innovation, communications, and public-funding access for regional businesses and founders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Economic Development Services

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920), Other Support Services (5619)

SIC

Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Digital Development & ICT4D / GovTech Technical Assistance (BPADAEAL)

Keywords

• Economic development services
• Public funding advisory
• Regional location marketing
• Skilled workforce programs
• Innovation consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Moers

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Funding / Municipal Contributions: As an inter-municipal economic development agency, wir4 is funded through contributions from its four member cities (Moers, Kamp-Lintfort, Neukirchen-Vluyn, Rheinberg) and public funding programs. The agency provides services free of charge to businesses and founders, including funding advisory, skilled worker programs, innovation support, and networking services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung GmbH is an inter-municipal economic development agency that provides free advisory, project development, and networking services to businesses and founders in the four-city wir4 region (Moers, Kamp-Lintfort, Neukirchen-Vluyn, Rheinberg). The agency runs programs across skilled workforce development, innovation support, communication/marketing, and public funding advisory, and organizes recurring event formats such as the wir4JOBLOUNGE job fair, wir4connectMe career fair, and wir4HR-Zirkel networking circle.

Product overview

wir4-Agentur offers a comprehensive portfolio of economic development services organized into four main program areas: wir4 Fachkräfte (skilled workforce development), wir4 Innovation (innovation support), wir4 Kommunikation (communication and marketing), and Fördermittelberatung (funding advisory). Complementing these core programs are event formats including wir4JOBLOUNGE (job fair), wir4HR-Zirkel (HR networking), and wir4connectMe (career fair). The agency also administers special initiatives like the wir4-Gütesiegel quality seal, the STAY2GROW international talent integration project, and supports the Deutschlandstipendium scholarship program. Regional project websites include stay2grow.de for talent integration, wir4joblounge.de for recruiting events, talentregion.wir4.net for education promotion, and campus-camp-lintfort.de for higher education cooperation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fördermittelberatung
• wir4JOBLOUNGE
• wir4HR-Zirkel
• wir4connectMe
• wir4-Gütesiegel
• STAY2GROW
• Deutschlandstipendium Program Support

Quantifiable outcome

• 75 students supported through Deutschlandstipendium in 2026/2027 funding period
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Hochschule Rhein-Waal (HSRW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Hochschule Rhein-Waal, with campuses in Kleve and Kamp-Lintfort, is a key strategic partner for wir4. With over 7,000 students and strong international orientation, the university provides a pipeline of future skilled workers for the region. wir4 supports the Deutschlandstipendium program and various cooperation projects between businesses and students.
• Förderverein Campus Camp-Lintfort e.V. (CCL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe support association for Hochschule Rhein-Waal's Campus Camp-Lintfort was founded in the university's founding year with wir4 managing the association. CCL facilitates cooperation between businesses and students, supports thesis topics, internships, and dual study programs, and funds the Deutschlandstipendium.
• Mobile Communication Cluster e.V. (MCC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounded in 2003 to develop the wir4 region into a leading competence center for mobile communication technologies. MCC serves as an innovation space and digital brain hub, offering realization concepts for digitalization and digital transformation for SMEs. MCC is headquartered at the wir4 office.
• ZENIT GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerZENIT is a network of entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, founded in 1984, representing nearly 200 primarily technology-oriented companies. ZENIT provides expertise for the Digitaler Fördersprechtag (Digital Funding Consultation Day) events organized by wir4.
• EntwicklungsAgentur Wirtschaft Kreis Wesel (EAW)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEAW consolidates the economic development activities of Kreis Wesel, including regional development, employment promotion, location marketing, startup and SME services, and tourism promotion. Ulrich Rose from EAW provides funding advisory services under the wir4 umbrella.
• Regionalagentur NiederRheinminorOthersOne of 16 regional agencies in North Rhine-Westphalia, connecting federal funding measures with the needs of the Lower Rhine region (Kreis Kleve, Kreis Wesel, Duisburg). Develops strategies with regional stakeholders for job preservation and new employment potential.
• Metropole RuhrminorOthersThe Metropolitan Region Ruhr is home to over 5.1 million people across 53 cities, making it Germany's largest metropolitan area. wir4 region participates in this larger regional network.
• Regionalverband Ruhr (RVR)minorOthersRVR is a public law corporation based in Essen, covering the Ruhr metropolitan area including Kreis Wesel. Acts as networker, coordinator, impulse generator, service provider, or project manager for the Ruhr region.
• Niederrheinische IHKminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Niederrheinische Chamber of Commerce represents around 70,000 member companies from industry, trade, and services in Duisburg and the Kreise Wesel and Kleve. Offers numerous consulting services and events on business-relevant topics.
• Zukunftszentrum KI NRWminorOthersAI competence center for SMEs in NRW, providing practical and free consulting to help businesses navigate digital change. wir4 refers companies to this resource for AI and digitalization support.
• Effizienz-Agentur NRW (EFA)minorOthersProvides stimuli for resource-efficient operations for SMEs in NRW, aiming to increase competitiveness, secure jobs, and protect the environment through events and consulting.
• Digital.Sicher.NRWminorOthersCompetence center for cybersecurity in the economy, showing SMEs how digital self-defense works. All offerings are free for NRW companies.
• Kreishandwerkerschaft des Kreises WeselminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChamber of Crafts for Kreis Wesel, a partner in the STAY2GROW project for integrating international talents into the regional economy, including skilled trades.
• Kulturprojekte Niederrhein e.V.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCultural projects association for the Lower Rhine region, a partner in the STAY2GROW project contributing to the integration of international talents through cultural engagement.
• Agentur für Arbeit WeselcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Federal Employment Agency's local office in Wesel co-organizes the wir4JOBLOUNGE career event, helping connect job seekers with regional employers.
• Jobcenter Kreis WeselcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Jobcenter for Kreis Wesel co-organizes the wir4JOBLOUNGE event, bringing together employers and job seekers in a relaxed after-work atmosphere.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• NRW.BANK: State development bank of North Rhine-Westphalia offering public funding programs, innovation financing and structural-change capital. Operates at a much larger scale than wir4 but in overlapping domains (Fördermittelberatung, Innovation, regional structural change).
• Bundesagentur für Arbeit: Germany's federal employment agency providing labor market services, employer-jobseeker matching and skilled workforce programs. Overlaps with wir4's Fachkräfte pillar and is an explicit co-organizer of the wir4JOBLOUNGE recruiting format.

Direct peers

• Hessen Trade & Invest GmbH (HTAI): State-level economic development agency for Hessen offering innovation funding advisory, internationalization services, and skilled workforce programs. Comparable to wir4 across the same functional pillars (Fachkräfte, Innovation, Fördermittelberatung) at a larger geographic scale.
• Zenit GmbH: Network of ~200 technology-oriented companies providing innovation, funding and internationalization advisory in NRW. A direct functional peer to wir4's Fördermittelberatung and innovation support, and an existing wir4 partner for the Digitaler Fördersprechtag format.
• Wirtschaftsförderung Bremen GmbH (WFB): Bremen's municipal economic development agency providing location marketing, business settlement, funding advisory, and innovation services to regional companies. Directly comparable to wir4 as a city-owned GmbH delivering the same core portfolio of free business advisory services.
• Berlin Partner für Wirtschaft und Technologie GmbH: Publicly owned city-level economic development and innovation agency for Berlin, providing funding advisory, location marketing, talent services and innovation support to regional businesses. Directly comparable to wir4 as a municipal economic development agency offering free advisory plus employer/HR networking and event formats.
• Hamburg Invest Wirtschaftsförderungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH: Hamburg's municipal investment and economic development agency, focused on attracting and retaining businesses, providing funding/incentive advisory, and running talent attraction initiatives. Closely matches wir4's municipal GmbH structure, location-marketing role, and free advisory model.
• Wirtschaftsförderung Sachsen GmbH (WFS): Saxony's state-level economic development agency with a strong structural-change mission, providing funding advisory, skilled workforce support, and innovation programs in a post-industrial region. Highly comparable to wir4's structural-change mandate in the post-mining Lower Rhine.
• Niederrheinische Industrie- und Handelskammer: Regional chamber of commerce covering Duisburg, Kreis Wesel and Kreis Kleve with ~70,000 member companies. Overlaps directly with wir4 on funding advisory, business consulting and regional economic policy advocacy in the same geography (an explicit wir4 partner).

Regional players

• Regionalverband Ruhr (RVR): Public-law regional planning and development corporation for the Ruhr metropolitan region (5.1M+ residents), coordinating regional development, location marketing and project management. Operates at a larger regional scale but with a structurally similar mandate to wir4 within Kreis Wesel.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/wir4wirtschaftsfoerderung
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wir4-agentur
• Instagraminstagram.com/wir4wifoe

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 wir4-Agentur für Wirtschafts- und Strukturförderung GmbH