MIMA MUSEUM

What MIMA MUSEUM does

MIMA (Millennium Iconoclast Museum of Art) was a private, non-profit contemporary art museum that operated from April 15, 2016 to January 5, 2025 in a converted Belle-Vue brewery at 39-41 Quai du Hainaut in the Molenbeek-Saint-Jean district of Brussels, Belgium. The museum focused on "Culture 2.0" — showcasing boundary-pushing, multidisciplinary artists working at the intersection of street art, urban culture, and digital-age creative movements — and curated rotating exhibitions alongside a permanent collection of works by over 50 international artists including Barry McGee, Felipe Pantone, FAILE, Swoon, and Todd James. Operations were managed by a lean team of 9 people, including co-founders Alice van den Abeele (Art Director), Florence de Launoit (Head of VIP Relations), and Michel de Launoit (Financial Director).

The business model combined several revenue streams: ticket-based admissions to exhibitions, an on-site restaurant, a physical and online (Shopify-based) museum shop selling artist merchandise and catalogs, and event revenue from workshops, guided tours, nocturne evenings, and private hire. The museum was supported institutionally by core partners including Loterie Nationale, Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, and Visit Brussels, plus a broader ecosystem of media partners (La Libre, Le Monde, RTBF, Euronews), corporate sponsors (Stella Artois, Red Bull, Clear Channel), and the Museum Pass Musées network. Distribution was anchored by a single physical destination in Brussels with international visitor draw, supplemented by third-party ticketing (ticketing.byemisys.com) and direct-to-consumer e-commerce. The museum permanently ceased operations in January 2025 after nine years of activity.

Name

MIMA MUSEUM

Legal name

MIMA (Millennium Iconoclast Museum of Art)

Website

https://mimamuseum.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

MIMA Museum was a Brussels-based contemporary art institution (2016-2025) showcasing street art and "Culture 2.0" exhibitions in a converted brewery, serving art enthusiasts, local Molenbeek residents, and school groups through ticketed admissions, events, and an on-site shop and restaurant.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contemporary Art Museum

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (71211)

akta.pro primary industry

Art Museums (THAJADAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)

Keywords

• Contemporary art exhibitions
• Street art museum
• Urban culture programming
• Cultural institution services
• Art education workshops

Headquarters

HQ city

Molenbeek-saint-jean

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Museum Admission: Ticket sales for museum entry and special exhibitions
2. Museum Shop: Online merchandise store selling exhibition catalogs, artist merchandise, and branded items through Shopify store
3. Restaurant: On-site restaurant and event catering services
4. Events and Private Hire: Special events, private hire, workshops, and guided tours

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

MIMA Museum operated a contemporary art museum in Brussels that showcased rotating exhibitions, a permanent collection, and educational programs focused on street art, urban culture, and the digital-age communication revolution. It also hosted events, workshops, guided tours, and on-site dining and merchandise retail. The museum operated from April 2016 until its permanent closure on January 5, 2025.

Product overview

MIMA (Millennium Iconoclast Museum of Art) was a single-venue contemporary art museum focused on street art and urban culture. The museum operated from April 2016 to January 2025 in a converted Belle-Vue brewery building in Brussels. Its offerings included rotating exhibitions showcasing international street and urban artists, a permanent collection of over 50 artists' works, an online shop for merchandise and catalogs, and on-site restaurant facilities. The museum closed permanently on January 5, 2025.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MIMA Museum A contemporary art museum in Brussels, Belgium, focused on street art, urban culture, and digital-age creative movements, showcasing boundary-pushing artists with multidisciplinary approaches. The museum closed permanently on January 5, 2025.
• Exhibitions Rotating contemporary art exhibitions featuring international street artists and urban creators, including notable shows like MULTITUDE, POPCORN, Jean Jullien: STUDIOLO, Local Heroes, Invader Rubikcubist, and City Lights.
• MIMA Collection A permanent collection of contemporary artworks featuring over 50 international street artists including Barry McGee, Felipe Pantone, Todd James, Swoon, and others, documenting the art movements of the digital era.
• MIMA Shop Online merchandise store offering artist t-shirts, tote bags, exhibition catalogs, and exclusive artworks from past exhibitions.
• Restaurant On-site dining facility located within the museum premises, also providing event catering services.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Loterie NationalecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMain partner of MIMA, supporting museum operations and events including late-night nocturne programming
• Fédération Wallonie-BruxellescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMain institutional partner representing the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, supporting cultural programming
• Visit BrusselscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerBrussels tourism promotion organization, supporting visitor outreach and tourism promotion
• Circles GroupminorOthersPartner organization listed on the museum's partner page
• Stella ArtoisminorOthersBeverage brand partner, reflecting the brewery heritage of the museum building
• ArkadiaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerProvided French-language guided tours of exhibitions
• Museum Pass MuséesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership allowing access through museum pass programs
• La LibreminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBelgian French-language newspaper providing press coverage and media partnership
• RTBFminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBelgian public broadcaster, media partner for events and coverage
• Clear ChannelminorGTM or Marketing PartnerOutdoor advertising partner for promotional campaigns

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Broad incumbents

• Tate Modern: Major London contemporary art museum. While far larger and broader in scope, it is a comparable operating model (rotating exhibitions, permanent collection, shop, restaurant, events) at a much larger scale — useful as an aspirational reference and for international-press benchmarking.
• BOZAR (Centre for Fine Arts): Belgium's flagship multi-disciplinary arts center in Brussels. Comparable as a contemporary arts venue in the same city, sharing some partnership and audience overlap, though broader in scope (music, film, visual arts, literature).
• Centre Pompidou: Paris institution for modern and contemporary art with rotating exhibitions, permanent collection, shops, restaurants, and educational programming. Comparable in operating structure and audience-development approach to MIMA, though at vastly greater scale.
• M+ Museum: Hong Kong museum of contemporary visual culture covering design, moving image, and visual art of the 20th–21st centuries. Shares MIMA's interest in digital-age and popular-culture-rooted visual art, though at institutional scale.

Emerging players

• Subliminal Projects: Los Angeles gallery founded by artist Shepard Fairey focused on street, lowbrow, and contemporary art. Comparable to MIMA's curatorial lens on street-art-adjacent contemporary artists, though operates as a commercial gallery rather than a museum.

Regional players

• Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain de Strasbourg: Strasbourg museum of modern and contemporary art with a permanent collection of post-1945 art including street and graphic arts. Comparable institution in scale and curatorial scope to MIMA's permanent collection.
• KAAN-Museum (KANAL – Centre Pompidou): Brussels contemporary art museum opened in a former Citroën garage, presented as a Centre Pompidou offshoot. Directly comparable venue (converted industrial building, Brussels, contemporary art focus) and a likely local competitor for cultural tourism in the same city as MIMA.

Direct peers

• Urban Nation Museum for Urban Contemporary Art: Berlin museum and foundation focused on urban contemporary art and street art. Operates in a comparable niche to MIMA with rotating exhibitions, artist residencies, and a permanent collection of street/urban artists.
• WIELS Contemporary Art Centre: Brussels-based contemporary art center housed in a converted industrial building (former Wielemans-Ceuppens brewery). Directly comparable to MIMA in city, building typology, and contemporary art focus, though broader in programming than MIMA's street-art lens.
• STRAAT Museum Amsterdam: Amsterdam museum dedicated to street art and graffiti in a former shipbuilding shed. Closest direct competitor in the street-art/urban-art museum niche MIMA occupied, with comparable converted-industrial venue and curated-artist roster.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/mimamuseum
• Facebookfacebook.com/mimamuseumbrussels
• Instagraminstagram.com/mimamuseum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mima-museum

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 MIMA MUSEUM