SHIFT Business Festival opens the Nordic season of business events in August
In 2021, SHIFT Business Festival will focus on future and growth companies. Finland is the European startup and tech hub, especially within AI. In fact, Finnish startups receive the most venture capital funding in Europe, when examining the invested amount in relation to gross domestic product. The SHIFT stage program focuses on future and Nordic growth companies.
SHIFT stage program presents a range of companies of all sizes from the food tech and circular economy industry, investors, and specialists on AI and digital trust, such as Hedvig Kjellström from Silo AI, and Bruce Schneier from Harvard Kennedy School. Lauri Reuter, a former researcher, current founder and partner of Nordic FoodTech VC will explore megatrends of food technology. At the other end of the food production chain, one of Europe’s most inspiring food waste changemakers, a Norwegian Food Mentor Charlotte Aschim discusses how to balance the plant, people & profit in the food tech ecosystem.
The festival program can be found here (https://theshift.fi/shift-business-festival/).
Intimate and intensive event experience against the remote work apathy
The event industry has been heavily restricted for over a year now and many of the large festivals in Europe have been canceled. However, SHIFT CEO Sini Toivonen remains hopeful:
– Along with other events, it’s important to bring business events back on our calendars. Workplaces have been able to adapt to the remote work culture, and I’m sure some of it is here to stay. At the same time, nothing compares to meeting people face-to-face and this is the need SHIFT wishes to address.
In 2021, participants can attend SHIFT either live at Hotel Kakola and the surrounding yard in Turku, Finland, or virtually. SHIFT has always been an outdoor summer business festival, but this year there’s also a practical reason behind building an open-air festival: it’s safer for the attendees.
The speediest ticket holders have the opportunity to book accommodation right in the heart of the festival venue, Hotel Kakola. The idea came from wishing to provide a more intensive experience to a smaller group of people staying at the hotel, rather than ditching the live event component entirely.
– Companies need inspiration, new business opportunities, and in-person, face-to-face exchange of thoughts. We wish to disperse the innovation deprivation and apathy caused by remote work and have a tonic effect on Finnish and Nordic business life, says Toivonen.
In case the restrictions get tighter as we approach August, SHIFT is fully prepared to turn the festival virtual.