SMALL DEVELOPed COUNTRIES

A cooking hood manufacturer NOVY embarks on a co-creation project with external designers and surprises themselves by rapidly breaking a company culture of "not invented here" to spark a new vibe of open innovation.

Ten years ago, international businessman, Peter Friberg, signed a confidential know-how agreement with a retired researcher to develop and manufacture what has turned out to be his best-selling product. Today he runs an international distribution network for his puncture-proof tyre sealant with access to an international mass market.

Having matured their capacity to provide R&D services to large companies within an academic environment - traditionally the strength of their value proposition - this Swiss spin-off became a serial founder of new companies for niche markets, moving from a one-client business based on service delivery to a multi-client activity based on high-quality products.  The hallmark of this evolutionary pathway was a positive attitude towards collaboration with third parties.

A Belgian company working in the space technology sector invents a revolutionary device for taking care of the elderly.  Despite collaborating with Open Innovation partners to fine-tune the technology and their go-to-market approach, the product failed to make any sales.  In the long run though, this experience taught the company some indispensable do's and don'ts about new product development which changed the focus of their business.

If you have ever driven through The Netherlands you will not fail to notice the density of traffic on the main highways - especially during the morning and evening rush hours.  MyJINI is a connected car service (an app that registers driving behaviour, mileage and routes taken) which was developed by BNV Mobility, a specialist in creative traffic solutions, to incentivize safe driving behaviour and reduce traffic congestion.  In return, the MyJINI solution rewarded drivers with discounts on fuel, lower insurance premiums and other products from the developer's web shop.

Novosanis is a spin-off from the University of Antwerp which has been driven by collaboration between multidisciplinary research institutes and a design & engineering company.  Their user-friendly and game-changing medical devices, which offer self-sampling and drug delivery solutions, have been able to impose themselves in the market and attract a Nasdaq-quoted medical devices company, which acquired the SME at the beginning of 2019.