KreNI Startup is a regional initiative connecting creativity, entrepreneurship, and youth innovation in Serbia and North Macedonia. The project brought together the experience of KreNI Conference in Niš and Startup Weekend Ohrid to explore how cultural and creative industries can be strengthened through business skills, green thinking, and international collaboration.
The project began with benchmarking workshops and study visits, allowing partners to exchange knowledge and explore successful European models of innovation, technology, and creative entrepreneurship. Insights from Lisbon, Croatia, and Montenegro helped shape new programme elements, mentoring formats, and sustainability-focused approaches for both events.
At the 10th KreNI Conference in Niš, young participants from Serbia and North Macedonia worked with international experts on the theme of proximity, sustainable cities, and the “15-minute city” concept. Through workshops in green and creative skills, mentoring, and pitching sessions, teams developed practical ideas addressing urban mobility, local heritage, sustainability, food waste, and community engagement. The winning idea, E-Ride, proposed an integrated app for urban transport, while the Special Niš City Award went to Take It Back, focused on revitalising Stara Železnička Kolonija as a cultural and urban heritage site.
Startup Weekend Ohrid continued this process through an intensive 54-hour programme where young innovators developed startup ideas with support from mentors and business experts. Participants worked in cross-border teams, combining entrepreneurial methods with creative industry approaches such as design thinking, digital content, user-centred innovation, and storytelling. The winning solutions included Smart Pill, CParts, and Smart Career Switch, addressing health, technology, and career development challenges.
A major success of the project was the active involvement of young people from both countries in each other’s flagship events. Participants from North Macedonia joined KreNI in Niš, while young people from Serbia took part in Startup Weekend Ohrid, contributing to idea development, teamwork, and final pitching. Their participation strengthened regional exchange and showed the value of connecting creative and entrepreneurial ecosystems.
The project also resulted in new resources for the wider cultural and creative sector, including a dedicated website and the digital publication Synergy of Culture, Creativity and Business: Lessons from the KreNI Startup Project.
By linking creative industries with entrepreneurship, sustainability, and youth innovation, KreNI Startup created a model for stronger regional cooperation and showed how young people can turn ideas into solutions with real social, cultural, and economic value.
Implementing partners: Young Ambassadors (Serbia), Startup Macedonia (North Macedonia).
KreNI Startup was supported by the British Council through the “Culture and Creativity for the Western Balkans” project, funded by the European Union. CC4WBs aims to foster dialogue in the Western Balkans by enhancing the cultural and creative sectors for increased socio-economic impact.