Munich Startup: Who are you and what does BWS Networking do? Please introduce yourselves briefly!
Saina Bayatpour: With BWS Networking, we offer education, community, workshops, and events for women – not only in real life, but also in a compact format on our platform and in an app. We are a team of female founders with extensive business experience. Franzy Spöhrer (32) brings her knowledge of social and business administration, from human resources to the hospitality industry to networking. And I, Saina Bayatpour (40), bring my knowledge of market and advertising psychology and my experience as the founder of a successful event agency.
We found each other through a LinkedIn job posting. What united us was a shared idea and vision. We quickly realized that we worked very well together and complemented each other perfectly. Franzy is more structured and level-headed, and I'm more creative and impulsive.
Linkedin, Netflix and Eventbrite in one
Munich Startup: What problem does your startup solve?
Saina Bayatpour: To offer support to women in every situation, both privately and professionally. We bring together three levels: women, experts, and partners. Here we promote exchange among each other, and with our app, we do this 24/7. So to speak, the Network for your pocketIn the education sector, experts share their knowledge and experience exclusively with our members, and events provide an opportunity to meet and exchange ideas in person. We're creating a LinkedIn, Netflix, and Eventbrite all rolled into one. Not only for our own content, but in the future also for the content of countless speakers and coaches, as well as content from companies and platforms.
Munich Startup: But that's been around for a long time!
Saina Bayatpour: Yes, there are countless women's networks these days. What makes us different? We're open to every woman and offer a completely digital platform. There's no admissions process or distinction based on position or industry. This is also reflected in our membership fee. We've deliberately set the price low so that every woman can afford it. For many, it's also a great gift idea.
“Back to zero and reinvest”
Munich Startup: Has there ever been a point where you almost failed?
Saina Bayatpour: And then Corona came! Many people will have felt the same way. We were very event-focused, as it was always important to us to enable people to get to know each other on equal terms and to create an authentic network. In March 2020, we were forced to rethink our approach. We considered all scenarios: pause, simply keep going, stop completely, or reset everything and reinvest. We chose the latter, and the result is the 'BWS Networking App,' of which we are very proud. Now we face the great task of continuing to breathe more life into this app. We are grateful every day for our decision.
Munich Startup: Where would you like to be in one year, where in five years?
Saina Bayatpour: Our goal is to reach 5,000 women with our BWS networking app in one year. In five years, that number should be 50,000. Since we also pursue a charitable goal, we aim to build our first children's homes using membership fees within five years. Orphaned children are taken in here until they turn 18 and grow up in a family environment that reflects the values of the Business Women's Society. Our motto is: So that future generations can grow up in love.
BWS Networking wants to take a risk – and win!
Munich Startup: How do you rate Munich as a startup location?
Saina Bayatpour: Munich is supposed to be one of the new startup hotspots. Unfortunately, we haven't noticed much of it for a long time.
In our view, many factors play a role: the opacity of certain contact points, the difficulty of understanding the offerings, and the time it takes to gather information as a startup. But once you're in and have found the right contacts, you get support and input at every turn. It's like a big community.
Munich Startup: Risk or security?
Saina Bayatpour: For our network from a business perspective: Risk! Nothing ventured, nothing gained. And that's where the most exciting connections arise.
