Scaling Ambitious Startups
Across the Nordics and Baltics
Building a startup has never been easier, yet scaling one has never been harder. Across Finland, Sweden, and Estonia, ambitious founders are launching innovative digital businesses at record speed. At the same time, investors are raising the bar. Startups are expected to demonstrate product-market fit, traction, scalable business models, and international potential long before securing significant funding. Grow Nordic and Baltic was created to help founders meet that challenge and accelerate their journey from startup to scale-up.
Grow Nordic and Baltic is a cross-border growth programme for innovative digital startups with global ambitions. By connecting founders with experienced entrepreneurs, business coaches, investors, and startup ecosystems across the Nordic and Baltic region, the programme provides the networks, knowledge, and practical support needed to grow faster and smarter.
Over the course of the project, 64 startups from Finland, Sweden, and Estonia will participate in two international cohorts. Each company will receive tailored coaching, expert mentoring, specialised workshops, market-entry support, and investment readiness training. The ultimate goal is to help at least 30 startups achieve measurable scale-up growth through new customers, increased revenue, funding, international expansion, stronger teams, or more mature products.
What makes Grow Nordic and Baltic different is its cross-border approach. Instead of growing within a single local ecosystem, participating startups gain access to opportunities across three countries. Founders can learn from peers, connect with potential customers and partners, explore new markets, and meet investors through a shared Nordic-Baltic network.
A Structured Path to Growth
The programme follows a structured growth journey:
- Assessing where the startup is today through a baseline analysis and growth readiness assessment.
- Creating a personalised scale-up roadmap with clear goals and milestones.
- Accessing expert coaching and mentoring tailored to the startup’s needs.
- Exploring new markets and building international networks.
- Developing investor readiness and pitching skills.
- Joining a long-term alumni community that continues beyond the programme.
Grow Nordic and Baltic is delivered by Turku University of Applied Sciences, Uppsala Innovation Centre, Helsinki Incubators at the University of Helsinki, and LIFT99 Startup Community. Together, the partners combine decades of experience in startup development, acceleration, entrepreneurship education, investment readiness, and ecosystem building.
We believe that the next generation of Nordic and Baltic growth companies will be built through collaboration, international thinking, and founder-driven innovation. Grow Nordic and Baltic helps startups turn that ambition into reality.
Applications are now open!
Ready to scale? Join the scale-up programme and take your startup to the next stage of growth: Apply here!
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