On May 26, within the framework of the project no. LV-LOCALDEV-0004 “Entrepreneurship in Kurzeme”, the Kurzeme Business Forum was organized in the concert hall “Latvija” in Ventspils. The event gathered entrepreneurs and industry experts to find answers to questions on how to be competitive, how to work innovatively and how to create and develop a business in today’s changing conditions. Throughout the day, participants had the opportunity to listen to experts from various fields, ask them questions and interact with business leaders.
The forum was opened with the Kurzeme Business Conference, where Jānis Vītoliņš, Chairman of the Ventspils City Municipality Council, spoke about the business environment in Ventspils. Mikus Brakanskis, the head of “Bucher Municipal” LTD and Ēvalds Urtāns, the head of “Asya” LTD spoke about innovative production methods in their companies. Guntis Čoders, head of the Accenture in Kurzeme Region, introduced current IT innovations to the business. Ilze Zandberga, the head of “Altum” in Kurzeme region, Ilze Valdmane, a member of the board of Ventspils High Technology Park, and Liene Kataševska, the head of the Ventspils Business Incubator of LIAA, talked about the possibilities of financing business plans.
Silva Jeromanova-Maura, the Chairman of the Board of “Silja” LTD, continued the forum with an exciting story about the establishment and development of her company. LatBAN “Investor of the Year 2021” and business angel Voldemārs Brēdiķis informed about the reasons why it is necessary to invest in innovations and new companies. Toms Auškāps, a member of the Board of JSC “Balticovo”, spoke about the importance of the circular economy in strengthening the export capacity of companies.
The forum was followed by a panel discussion on innovative and export-oriented entrepreneurship in the new energy market conditions. Participants of the discussion – Jānis Kirkovalds, member of the board of JSC “Sadales Tīkls”, Jānis Bethers, Business Development Manager of “Virši-A” LTD, Reinis Āzis, Business Development Manager of “Ventspils Nafta Termināls” LTD, Kaspars Osis, Vice-President and CEO of “RCG Lighthouse” LTD, Kristaps Klauss, Executive Director of the Latvian Wood Industry Federation and Chairman of the Council of Ventspils University College, and Gatis Silovs, Head of the Energy Financial Instruments Division of the Ministry of Economics. The discussion was moderated by Jānis Endziņš, Chairman of the Board of the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The concluding part of the forum was dedicated to the “restart” of tourism industry after the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions. The Chairman of Ventspils City Council Jānis Vītoliņš informed about the news of the tourism industry in Ventspils. Artis Gustovskis, Chairman of the Board of the Kurzeme Tourism Association, spoke about the changes, tendencies and priorities of Latvian and European tourism. Jānis Jenzis, President of the Latvian Restaurant Association, presented the challenges of the catering business in the context of the pandemic and current geopolitical events. The owners of Pasiekste Windmill presented the story of the development of their family business. Ēriks Lingerbērziņš, the head of the Tourism Research Center of the School of Business Administration “Turība”, spoke about possible future scenarios for the tourism industry. At the end, Artūrs Butāns, Head of the Office of the Ministry of Economics, informed about the development and reorientation of tourism in the regions.
The forum was attended by more than 100 participants, who welcomed the opportunity to participate in valuable discussions on current topics, as well as listen to presentations and experience stories from industry experts and business leaders. The opportunity for informal talks with Kurzeme entrepreneurs, local government representatives, as well as experts from their own and other fields throughout the day was also acknowledged as valuable.
The event was also provided with a live broadcast, which was shown on the Youtube channel of Ventspils City Municipality and on the websites www.db.lv and www.konferences.db.lv. More than 4,000 viewers used the opportunity to watch the forum online. The video is available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGrjMjyQSyg&t=5667s
The event was organized by Ventspils City Council in cooperation with the Kurzeme Planning Region and the organizational partners of the event – the Green-Tech Latvia Cluster and the Ventspils Tourism Information Center.
The detailed information about the program and participants of the event is available on the website: https://www.kurzemesbiznesaforums.lv/
More information about the project:
More information about project no. LV-LOCALDEV-0004 “Entrepreneurship measures in Kurzeme planning region” (“Entrepreneurship in Kurzeme”) and support opportunities for companies are available on the website of Kurzeme planning region and https://eeagrants.lv.
More information:
Viktorija Reine
Kurzeme Planning Region project coordinator
email: viktorija.reine@kurzemesregions.lv
