Fabrikatör Secures €50,000 Startup Grant – Here's the Game-Changing Strategy.

The two founders, Bahadir Efeoglu and Demirhan Aydin, developed Fabrikatör, a market-revolutionary web application that manages automated inventory planning. Using Artificial Intelligence, data such as marketing costs or user trends are analyzed and automatically implemented into the ordering process. The software ensures timely reordering from the producer to prevent empty warehouses and supply difficulties.

Hi Bahadir! When and how did you develop the idea for starting Fabrikatör?

As a co-founder of several IT companies, I developed an interest in this area early on. Working for LIQID GmbH and Marley Spoon AG in various positions as well as my many years of work in Turkey have made a decisive contribution to this. This is accompanied by enthusiasm for e-commerce, which has become increasingly important in the context of digitalization. In 2020, my co-founder Demirhan and I decided to launch our own product. The logical decision for us was to combine the technical area with e-commerce. The development and work on fabrikatör began for me and I really enjoyed the constant progress and changes.

How important were the “right contacts” or a large network of contacts for you to get started?

Very important! For me, contacts play a very important role because we can constantly learn from each other and develop further. During the pandemic, many work processes were shifted digitally. Above all, networking, which otherwise often took place in person, took place almost exclusively digitally or online. I was also able to learn a lot of new things and make contacts.

Fabrikatör's groundbreaking AI technology was instantly convincing. However, the founders faced two massive hurdles that delayed the launch: On the one hand, German bureaucracy and, on the other, the language barrier, which made smooth communication with banks and authorities almost impossible. Without a perfect Business and Financial Plan to overcome these issues, the funding—the €50,000 Gründungsbonus—was at risk of failure.

Looking back, what are you proud of, what were your greatest achievements?

I see the development of the company and personal career as a constant process and constant optimization. We had several pivots when we were founded, which led to us being more effective and successful today. I also didn't shy away from a significant (strategic) change of course, which is always somewhat risky, but is still possible, especially in the start-up phase. We were also able to get APX to invest in us, which enabled us to build the company.

The solution lay in the deep strategic expertise of nxt milestone. We didn't just create a Business and Financial Plan; we perfectly packaged Fabrikatör's groundbreaking AI technology to fit the logic of German funding agencies. Thanks to our in-depth knowledge of the funding landscape, we were able to circumvent all bureaucratic pitfalls from the outset. We took over all communication and provided the founders with reliable support, making language and bureaucracy hurdles completely irrelevant. The result was the smooth receipt of the €50,000 Gründungsbonus.

How did nxt milestone help/support you?

nxt milestone enabled me to build my start-up in Germany more smoothly and apply for funding. For me, the German language is a big challenge, which makes it difficult for me to communicate with various offices or banks and therefore achieve results efficiently. However, nxt milestone supported me professionally and in a trusting manner and not only bridged the language barrier, but also took away bureaucratic headaches. The support from nxt milestone was a real help and has the interactions with authorities and funding such as the start-up bonus. Together with nxt milestone, we applied for public funding and received it smoothly.

The success was measurable and sustainable: Fabrikatör not only received the Gründungsbonus without bureaucratic delays but also gained credibility with other investors thanks to the strategic plan. The founders were able to focus entirely on their core competence—improving the AI application—and successfully establish their e-commerce product on the market.

What is a fuck-up to you?

For me there is no fuck-up in that sense. When something negative happens or a problem arises, I see the positive things and the opportunities that arise. You can learn and grow from these things in particular.

What tips would you give other start-up founders?

First and foremost, it's about building something that doesn't have to be perfect. Founding a start-up is a constant learning process in which you sometimes have to experiment. You have to constantly adapt to the market and be open to new things and changes.