3rd place in the Best Startups of Mendoza contest

The entrepreneurship event of the year took place at the Nave Cultural. The winner selected to be incubated in Mexico was Leandro Vitale with his startup KindApp.

This Wednesday morning, the “Entrepreneurship Marathon” kicked off. The event aimed to promote private investment and the possibility of taking startups international. The day ended in the afternoon with the selection of a winner who will have the opportunity to be incubated in Mexico.

The opening ceremony was attended by the Undersecretary of Public Management and State Modernization, Ulpiano Suarez; the Secretary of Government, Natacha Eisenchlas; the Municipality's Entrepreneurship and Employment Coordinator, Federico Colonnese; and other provincial and municipal authorities.

“We are very happy because this is an event we have been preparing for a long time, but above all because of what it means for entrepreneurial culture, creativity, innovation, turning an idea into an opportunity, and job creation. We believe the way to grow is for the public sector, the private sector, organizations, and universities to work together. And this is possible thanks to the involvement of the state, which must promote and create spaces like this,” said Natacha Eisenchlas.

During the event, 10 selected startups were heard by local and international investors. Representatives of these emerging companies had the chance to pitch to a jury made up of Marcus Dantus (a renowned entrepreneur, angel investor, and startup mentor in both Mexico and the United States), investors, and members of the local ecosystem. The winner was KindApp / QuieroDonar.org. The team is made up of its founder, Leandro Vitale, and his collaborators Tania Yacante, Luis Guzzo, and Martín Odetti, who were chosen to be incubated at Start Up México.

KindApp is an online platform that helps nonprofit institutions raise funds for charitable causes, giving them an optimized profile to receive donations, launch fundraising campaigns, and manage subscribers.

In this context, an agreement was also signed between the Municipality of Mendoza and StartUp Cluster de México (SUM), represented by Marcus Dantus. The document, signed by Mayor Rodolfo Suarez, aims to strengthen the business fabric under an innovation model based on entrepreneurship. It also seeks to create synergy between both institutions in order to share know-how, mentors, and space. In addition, the agreement will establish a two-way channel of institutional communication between the parties, contributing to a better quality of life for citizens, cost savings and improved services, job creation, and economic growth.

In this way, strong entrepreneurial talent and a booming ecosystem place Mendoza among the leading Argentine cities promoting entrepreneurship as a source of economic and social growth. In fact, the City of Mendoza was selected as one of the country's 25 Entrepreneurial Cities under the Ciudades para Emprender program of the National Ministry of Production and Labor.

At this marathon, attendees enjoyed talks by local and international entrepreneurs who shared their experiences. The selected startups were evaluated by the CEO of Start Up México and, in the end, the winner chosen to be incubated in that country was KindApp, an online platform that aims to support nonprofit institutions by making fundraising, donor management, data administration, and progress reporting easier, reducing, among other benefits, costs that would otherwise be high.