CALL FOR APPLICATIONS!

GREEN-TECH CHALLENGE

HEY!
We have big problems to solve.
Do you see problems as opportunities?
Are you a game-changer, do-er, curious learner, passionate,
dynamic innovative startup trying to save the planet?
If so, we need you.

bluemoon logo          Bluelab

We invest in innovative and scalable businesses within

  agriculture livestock fisheries forestry
in any commodity and across the value chain, such as:

  • Input use and delivery
  • Pre – Production
  • Production
  • Post-harvest processing
  • Quality management
  • Packaging
  • Storage
  • Transport and logistics
  • Marketing
  • Agro-industrial processing
  • Data services
  • Financial technology

blueMoon Incubator

We believe in exceptional.  We match exceptional startup ideas and founder teams with exceptional support and seed funding. Twice a year, we select up to 10 startup teams of 2 to 3 entrepreneurs into our highly competitive 4-month incubator program in Addis Ababa, with less than 1% acceptance rate, offering a life-changing experience with:

SKILLS TRAINING
Key business and life skills such as business modeling, financial management, marketing, HR, tax, legal, risk management, team building, leadership, ethics, accountability, and more.
LIONS
Access to blueMoon Lions, highly successful agri-business CEOs, at our monthly Lion Lunches, where our startups get inspiration as well as feedback and guidance.
WORKING SPACE
Our startups work and live for four months in our awesome office, open 24/7, high-speed wifi, networking and peer learning events.
COACHING
Support from our in-house team to get from a great idea to an investable business, with company registration, licensing, branding, business plan, investment prospectus, and pitch readiness.
SUPPORT SERVICES
Links to our business services network for low-cost or deferred payment modularized support services in legal, branding, web design, IT enabling, accounting, admin, etc.
CONNECTIONS
Access to a huge network of investors, service providers, business mentors, government agencies, and the startup community.
MENTORING
A one-to-one relationship over 12 months with voluntary external mentors, business professionals themselves, to support our founders individually and as a team.
SEED FUNDING
We invest Eth. Birr 200,000 in every startup we incubate in exchange for 10% equity. For its part, each startup must invest Eth. Birr 20,000 into the business and meet its performance milestones.
MORE FINANCING ROUNDS
At the end of the incubator, our startups have a number of different options through blueMoon Ventures for their next rounds of financing.

blueMoon Ventures

We see a huge gap between early stage startups and sources of capital that are willing to bet on high-impact but high risk startups. We aim to close this gap by taking the first risk ourselves, and then provide several options for our startups to obtain their next rounds of financing after our seed funding:

Lions Den

At the end of the incubator program, all of our startups participate in a highly publicized Lions Den event, when they pitch to the blueMoon Lions to raise equity financing for their companies.

Angels Network

At any time after the incubator program, whether or not they successfully raised funds during Lions Den, we facilitate investments for our startups from our network of pre-identified domestic angel investors on a case-by-case basis.

blueMoon Crowd

Through our online crowd equity funding, our startups can get equity financing from anyone, anywhere in the world. blueMoon Crowd takes our startups to the world and brands Ethiopia as a place where young entrepreneurs are actively shaping their future with innovative startups that can transform Ethiopia and the world.

addis-garage

Curated| Co-Working| Community

Addis Garage is our amazing work space in Bole, right in the lively heart of Addis Ababa, Ethopia’s (and Africa’s) capital.  Addis Garage houses blueMoon but is also open to any startups in any sector, and is both a co-working and event space. We think great things happen when smart, passionate, people get together, creating synergies that we don’t even know exist. Addis Garage is a curated co-working community, which means that those who join are committed to sharing their experiences, mentoring the blueMoon incubator startups, and engaging in our events.

COWORKING
Open 24/7, multi-functional spaces, open desks and offices flexible rental, informal and formal meeting areas, hi-speed wifi, café lounge and kitchen, coffee and tea, event stage, printing and receptionist services, daily bunna time, and more!
COMMUNITY
Regular community events to ensure that things happen when smart and dynamic people get together, that the sum is greater than the parts. We keep it real with daily Lunchbox informal talks, networking and learning events, pitch competitions, company launches, Friday happy hour ``Ye Arb Chewata``, art displays, poetry and jazz mixers.

SPACE PRICING

MonthlyWeeklyDaily
Open Space
Fixed desk
3,0001,000300
Hot desk (any free desk)1,500600300
Day pass (no desk)- -200
Offices10,0003,5001,000
Board Room (for 10)Half-dayFull-day-
Weekday 2,5004,000-
Weekend1,5002,500-
Events 60 max85 max150 max
Up to 4 hours 10,00015,00020,000
Full day18,00025,00035,000

Our partners, collaborators, and friends

“If you want to go fast, go alone.
If you want to go far, go together.”  African proverb

We want to go far.  And we believe our partners will help get there, together.

Within Ethiopia:

iceaddis
Federal Micro and Small Enterprises Development Agency
Dot
EDC
The X-HUB
Entrepreneurship and outsourcing center
SNV
Save the children
UNIDO

Globally:

The Master Card Foundation
Mowgli
Aspen Network
Intellecap
Growth Africa
Novastar

our team

 We are a small company with big ambitions. We don’t have employees. Rather we are all partners who are personally engaged to discover and grow Ethiopian youth agribusiness startups that can change the world. We are passionate about what we do and take our values seriously. We want to transform Ethiopia one young dreamer at a time.

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Dr. Eleni Gabre-Madhin

chief happiness officer
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Bezawit Getenet Negussie

Corporate Strategy Lead
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Shem Asefaw

chief rainmaker
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Bethlehem Lemma

Finance Manager
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Biruk Yosef

incubator coordinator
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Menna Moges

Curator