Gründer-Garage

Google, Indiegogo and Stiftung Entrepreneurship have joined forces to create the Gründer-Garage. Gründer-Garage is a competition that showcases the power of entrepreneurship in Germany. Gründer-Garage combines an online training program with the use of crowdfunding to validate innovative entrepreneurial concepts. Google will award matching funds to the leading projects on October 12. To learn more, or submit an idea go to http://de.indiegogo.com/garage.

Gründer-Garage is a collaboration between Google, Indiegogo, and Siftung Entrepreneurship.

Timeline of Gründer-Garage Competition

August 2 - The application process begins. Teams will be selected on a rolling basis to participate in the online training and to create their crowdfunding campaigns on Indiegogo.

September 7 - Campaigns can begin raising funds on Indiegogo.

October 7 - Google will select leading teams to receive matching funds.

October 12 - All participating teams will be invited to the Entrepreneurship Summit in Berlin to celebrate the completion of the contest.

How to Join Gründer-Garage

Gründer-Garage is seeking applications from German-speaking entrepreneurs who wish to launch ventures in the following areas:

• Product, service or technology innovation
• Social entrepreneurship
• Art & culture

Participants can apply individually or as a team, but at least one applicant must be 18 years or older.

You can sign up to compete in the Gründer-Garage competition here: http://www.entrepreneurship.de/gruender-garage/

You can find competition rules and information on how to submit your ideas here: http://www.entrepreneurship.de/gruender-garage/teilnahmebedingungen/

How do I create a campaign linked to Gründer-Garage?

If you have already signed up to compete in the Gründer-Garage competition and your competition proposal has been accepted (see "How to Join Gründer-Garage" above), Gründer-Garage will send you a special link that will allow you to create an Indiegogo campaign that is pre-linked to Gründer-Garage. Once you submit your campaign to go live, Gründer-Garage will be prompted to approve your campaign. Campaigns linked to Gründer-Garage can begin fundraising September 7: Gründer-Garage Timeline.

How Payments Work

• Contributions to Gründer-Garage campaigns will be in Euros only.
• You can only receive contributions via PayPal, although a PayPal account is not required to contribute. Contributors can use their credit or debit card to "Pay as a Guest" on PayPal, without signing into a PayPal account. Read more about: How to Contribute via PayPal without a PayPal Account
• PayPal accounts need to meet the following requirements in order to receive contributions successfully through your Gründer-Garage-linked Indiegogo campaign: PayPal-Konto Setup für Gründergarage-Kampagnen
1. Your PayPal account needs to be Verified (bank account added)
2. Your email address must be Confirmed (email address confirmed)
3. Your account must be a Business account
4. Your account must be capable of accepting Euros (€)
5. Your Payment Receiving Preferences must be set to allow "Send Money" payments
6. For German PayPal accounts, in order to receive more than €2,500, you will need to provide more information about your business to increase your receiving limit (screenshot and instructions included in PayPal-Konto Setup für Gründergarage-Kampagnen)
• All campaigns linked to Gründer-Garage will have a flexible funding campaign structure. This means that you will receive all funds raised on your campaign, minus fees, whether or not you meet your funding goal by your campaign's deadline.
• Contributions make through PayPal are sent to your PayPal account instantly. You will receive a disbursement confirmation from PayPal with each contribution. After the contribution has been sent, your PayPal account will be charged our 9% platform fee by Indiegogo. If you meet your goal, we will refund 5% of your campaign's total funds so that your net platform fee is only 4%. That refund will be sent to your PayPal account, within 5 days after your campaign's deadline.

Related Links:

For information on how to set up your PayPal account for your Gründer-Garage campaign, please see: PayPal-Konto Setup für Gründergarage-Kampagnen

Gründer-Garage website: http://www.entrepreneurship.de/gruender-garage/

Gründer-Garage Wettbewerb on Indiegogo: http://de.indiegogo.com/garage