From Hobby to Flourishing Business
Fabian Gutbrod, the founder and CEO of GP Motion GmbH, discovered Carinthia was the ideal environment for his business success.
Pole position in the race to success: the lightweight e-bike made in Carinthia.
“add-e” will transform an existing bike into a powerful but lightweight e-bike within seconds. Its inventor Fabian Gutbrod is originally from Bavaria and completed a Master’s degree at Carinthia University of Applied Sciences Villach. Series production of the ingenious invention began in 2015 with a highly successful crowd-funding campaign on Indiegogo. (Photo credits: GP Motion GmbH)
Prototypes
In a business plan, Fabian Gutbrod optimised what he had learned with his initial drives, and built several further prototypes to refine the drive concept until he had a product ready for series production, and thus the market. The supportive environment for logistics and development played a vital role, as did the man who is now Gutbrod’s business partner, Thomas Pucher, “a typical Carinthian if ever there was one”.
Carinthia has a wide range of funding schemes and the Start-Up Centre in Villach provides outstanding support. (Fabian Gutbrod)
» “build! helped me turn my hobby into a business when I finished my Master’s degree in 2013.” «
SUSTAINABLE IDEAS / FABIAN GUTBROD
Optimal Starter Package
While at university, the young entrepreneur had access to the machinery, software and other resources available at Carinthia University of Applied Sciences Villach, enabling him to build prototypes with very few initial expenses – a huge help, especially in this early phase. A funding programme run by the build! Start-Up Centre also provided financial support for material costs and consultancy services, as well as office space, coaching and brainstorming sessions. “Altogether it was a brilliant starter package at the beginning of my career as an entrepreneur”, Gutbrod says.
