Business Plans Creation and Incubation Success in WINOVATE

As part of the WINOVATE project, INNOPOLIS successfully implemented a full business incubation cycle focused on non-alcoholic wine innovation. Through a series of structured workshops and personalized mentoring sessions, INNOPOLIS engaged VET trainers and students in a hands-on entrepreneurial journey. This intensive program combined knowledge transfer, business modeling, and co-creation strategies, ensuring participants acquired both theoretical insights and real-world startup skills adapted to the growing alcohol-free wine market.

In November 2024, INNOPOLIS organized six Co-Creation Meetings at its Training Center in Athens, bringing together young innovators and educational mentors to brainstorm, design, and refine innovative business ideas. These interactive sessions led to the development of five complete business plans, each exploring a different promising sector: a premium organic non-alcoholic wine brand, a non-alcoholic wine bar concept, a subscription box service for non-alcoholic wines, a wine tourism experience integrating non-alcoholic options, and a skincare line using wine byproducts. After careful evaluation based on criteria such as innovation, market feasibility, and sustainability, the project selected “Vinostalgia – Non-Alcoholic Wine Subscription Box” as the best business plan.

The entire incubation process has been documented in the Business Plans Report, which provides detailed descriptions of each plan, evaluation results, and strategic recommendations for further development. Through this initiative, INNOPOLIS demonstrated how educational entrepreneurship can foster real-world opportunities, empowering a new generation to innovate responsibly and sustainably within the agri-food sector.