Swedish innovation hub Epicenter eyes global expansion

Epicenter's original hub, based in Stockholm, has become one of Sweden’s leading innovation centres, known for fostering startups and scaleups, and providing a collaborative meeting space for entrepreneurs and large companies alike. Now, under the leadership of Adrian McDonald, the company is turning its attention to global growth.

A new vision for European growth

McDonald, who took over as CEO earlier this year, is no stranger to scaling businesses. He has a background in tech, having worked at Microsoft and held senior roles at the Stockholm-born consulting firm Result, as well as being CEO of the HR tech company Adway. His primary focus now is taking Epicenter’s successful model and expanding it into new markets.

“We are definitely in an expansion phase,” McDonald tells Impact Loop. His goal is to leverage Epicenter’s history as a space and community born out of Stockholm, which has a global reputation as a leading city for innovation, and extend the concept to new markets.

Epicenter has already established hubs in other Nordic capitals, Oslo and Helsinki, and is now eyeing strategic locations in Europe, including London, Amsterdam and Berlin.

Australia-born, Adrian McDonald already has connections in London, having worked for Microsoft there prior to relocating to Stockholm in 2012. He says his move to the UK in 2005 was also strategic, since he wanted to be part of the buzz going on in the British capital during what he describes as the first “golden age” for early digital business models.

Not just a coworking space

McDonald is keen to emphasise that he believes Epicenter’s success to date has always been about more than just providing office space. At its core, the company aims to build a community of innovators and changemakers, creating an environment where ideas can flourish.

A key element of this approach is fostering collaboration between entrepreneurs, scaleups, and larger companies, explains the CEO. He says “gathering the brightest minds” in one room at Epicenter’s regular events is one core way its current hubs facilitate this.

Although providing a more corporate environment than some of Europe’s more relaxed, impact-focused hubs, McDonald insists that sustainability is still a core goal for the business.

Last year, Epicenter launched a new hub in Stockholm called Elements, which has a specific focus on sustainability. This new space houses members like Perspetivo (a platform for societal and market research), Climate View (a company specialising in climate data analysis), and Nornorm (a startup focused on a subscription model for office furniture).

Impact through job creation

However, McDonald believes that impact isn’t just about creating greener companies through technological developments. He sees creating work and fuelling economic growth as central to Epicenter’s impact mission.

“For us, impact is about scaling companies that generate more job opportunities,” he explains.

Epicenter is also eyeing expansion in parts of Africa, McDonald adds, which he hopes will fuel job creation in developing countries and create a global community that transcends geographical boundaries.