Second International Businet Startup Competition – ISLA Gaia, Portugal (October 2025)
The 2nd International Businet Startup Competition, hosted by ISLA Gaia in Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal, has successfully concluded — and it was a true celebration of international entrepreneurship, creativity, and collaboration.
This second edition brought together 18 participants from 6 countries, including the United States, representing 11 universities.Throughout the week, students worked intensively on developing and pitching their business ideas, supported by workshops, mentoring, and company visits.
🏆 Winners of the 2025 Edition
Startup Category – SensitWear (UCLL, Belgium)
The winning team in the Startup Track was SensitWear, represented by Sophie Meeuws from UCLL – University Colleges Leuven-Limburg. Together with Rune Stevens and Nathan Poelmans, Sophie founded SensitWear — a start-up that designs stylish hoodies with discreetly integrated fidget elements, specially created for neurodivergent children.
These innovative garments promote calmness, focus, and confidence in a subtle and fashionable way. The jury praised the concept for its social relevance, originality, and strong market potential.
“SensitWear beautifully merges inclusion and innovation — fashion with a purpose.” – Jury comment
Scale-up Category – PadelGrab (Rotterdam Business School, The Netherlands)
In the Scale-up Track, the winning team came from Rotterdam Business School (RBS). Jens Peeters represented PadelGrab, a company founded by first-year Entrepreneurship students Dex Kuijpers and Julian van Aalst.
PadelGrab is the padel gadget! Pick up balls faster, save energy, and stay focused on your game — no more bending down with the PadelGrab, perfect for every padel player.
The jury commended the team for their clear product vision, market readiness, and strong potential for scaling.
🌟 An inspiring international experience
The competition was part of a Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) within the Businet network, combining an online preparation phase with a five-day on-site programme in Portugal.
Participants highlighted the value of:
- hands-on workshops on business modelling, pitching, and innovation,
- expert mentoring from academics and entrepreneurs,
- and the collaborative spirit that defined the week.
Students gained 3 ECTS credits for their participation, reflecting the academic recognition of the experience.
💬 Appreciation
A heartfelt thank-you goes to the entire ISLA Gaia team — Marco Llamas, Paulo Furtado, and Helena Gonçalves — for their outstanding organisation, warm hospitality, and inspiring guidance throughout the week.
Our gratitude also goes to all mentors, jury members, and participants for their enthusiasm and professionalism.
A special word of thanks to Yvonne from Businet, who served as one of the Dragons in the final jury. Her presence highlighted the strong sense of connection and community within the Businet network, reinforcing how collaboration across institutions truly drives entrepreneurship forward.
➡️ For more information about the competition, visit: https://int-islagaia.pt/2nd-businet-international-startup-competition/
🚀 Looking Ahead
The 2025 edition confirmed that the Businet Startup Competition has become a valuable platform for experiential learning, international teamwork, and entrepreneurial growth. With projects like SensitWear and PadelGrab, the event showcased how student-led innovation can make a real difference — both socially and commercially.
“It’s inspiring to see students from six countries challenging and supporting each other — this is entrepreneurial learning at its best.”
Looking ahead, preparations for the 3rd International Businet Startup Competition will begin during the Entrepreneurship Special Interest Group meeting on Friday, 14 November at 14:00. Everyone interested in joining the discussion is warmly invited!
Agenda highlights:
- Planning the 3rd Businet Startup Competition – sharing ideas for hosts, structure, and themes.
- Embedding the SDGs within higher education – Marco Llamas will present how ISLA Gaia integrates the UN PCA Trajectory 2030 framework into its institutional development. ISLA Gaia is preparing for its SDG assessment and will share its progress with the group.
- New BIPs – presentation by Maruša Malovič Šprah from GEA College, Ljubljana (Slovenia), who will host six BIPs: one for staff and five for students. Other members are also welcome to share their upcoming BIPs.
- Open contributions – feel free to contact me if you would like to propose additional entrepreneurship-related topics for the agenda!
Paul Bartels,
WG-chair SIG Entrepreneurship
Avans University of Applied Sciences
