Warrick Cramer, CEO of Tomorrow Street - the freshly launched Innovation Centre in partnership with Vodafone and Technoport – says that start-ups need to be linked to the global economy from the very beginning. Interview.

 

Can you present Tomorrow Street in a few words?

 

Tomorrow Street is an innovation centre which focuses on giving innovative companies access to international business. These companies are already established and have funding but lack the know-how or the network to expand. We assess their operations to see how we can provide added value by including them in our globalization plan. Vodafone’s procurement operations are in Luxembourg and we leverage our connectivity to create links between the companies we support and our suppliers, clients and partners. Online digitalization communities already exist but we feel that they lack the human element. That’s where we come in, putting people in direct contact. By bringing these promising businesses to Luxembourg, Tomorrow Street aims to grow these companies into global success stories and contribute positively to Luxembourg’s fast-growing tech sector and wider economy.

 

 

"We act as a global federator of incubators and accelerators,

in partnership with Vodafone.”

 

 

What kind of companies do you want to attract?

 

Innovation is a field in which it’s easy to get lost. In business, remaining focused is essential to ensure success. My teams are therefore focused on three main areas of business: IoT, AI and Cyber security. These areas represent 80% of our work and we allocate the remaining 20% to other fields. This allows my team members to explore new sectors, which they can learn about, have fun with and be passionate about. We could have set up our business anywhere, but we chose Luxembourg because it’s a country which culturally reflects our globalized operations through its population. Besides that, there’s real proximity to markets in the Grand Duchy, a highly-skilled workforce and the innovation ecosystem is incredible in terms of support, infrastructure and political backing.

 

 

How do you see Tomorrow Street in two or five years from now?

 

I think we’re going to run out of space quickly! I’m surprised at the amount of support we’ve had already from all over the world. We are unique because we support late-stage start-ups with well-established foundations. We’re the first to work on that basis and that’s going to determine our future. We will support players to help them to avoid overreach and financial stress and to help them to grow in a sensible and controlled manner. Our focus is on collaboration. We want to build a strong community, to establish support channels and to call on all levels of expertise to help. We act as a global federator of incubators and accelerators. Our role and our vision will dictate our long-term goals.