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Are You Ready for Unprecedented Growth?

The EHL Innovation Hub Growth Program is a curated, 6-months milestone-driven program taking place in Lausanne and exchanging with Singapore and China, connecting revenue-generating ventures, industry operators, and investors through EHL's global innovation ecosystem.

Covered industries include hospitality, F&B, travel, luxury, education, and wellness, with a focus on human-centric solutions.

S T A R T - U P S  A N D  S C A L E - U P S

From Early Traction to Scalable Growth

Already generating revenue?

The Growth Program helps you strengthen commercial strategy, validate market fit, and become investor-ready with the support of EHL's ecosystem.

  • Commercial strategy and go-to-market support

  • International expansion across Europe and Asia

  • Industry validation and pilot access

  • Modules that prepare for and evaluate investor readiness with expert guidance

  • Access to EHL's network of corporates and mentors

Three Ways to Engage as an Industry Partner

Open membership

Low-commitment entry to test what the program can do for your business.

  • Join at no cost
  • Share operational priorities
  • Benefi
  • Front-row access to relevant startups

Program partner

More direct involvement and active engagement.

  • Impact shortlist and selection criteria
  • Full visibility on all applicants
  • Guaranteed pilot with a selected startup
  • Structured innovation budget line

 

Co-creator

A long-term, strategic partnership.

  • Co-design program themes and focus
  • Bring priority challenge areas directly
  • Choose your startup from the applicant pool
  • Pilot with full EHL program support

Program Timeline

Applications are open to revenue-generating startups across Europe and Asia.

Our selection committee evaluates candidates against six criteria (team and execution, market opportunity, product differentiation, scalability, human-centric impact, and long-term relevance) before finalizing a cohort of 10–15 high-potential scale-ups.

Selected startups are welcomed into the program. Corporate and investor partners are introduced, challenge areas are defined, and each venture undergoes an initial product and technology audit to establish a clear baseline for the journey ahead.

Start-ups work through structured milestone gates covering commercial strategy, market expansion, team and operations, and investment readiness.

Start-ups have access to corporate pilots, expert mentoring, and EHL's global ecosystem throughout.

The program culminates at EHL's annual Summit, where selected startups present to investors and corporate partners.

A moment for visibility and deal flow to mark the next chapter of growth.

EHL-Class-Campus

Ready to Join the Next Cohort?

Program launches May 2026!

FAQs

Yes, the Growth Program is free to participate in for the selected startups.

However, it includes a sweat equity mechanism, meaning EHL can provide services in exchange for equity, aligning incentives with long-term startup success.

The program is designed for revenue-generating startups at seed to pre-Series A stage, i.e., ventures with early traction and a validated business model that are past the experimentation phase and ready to scale.

The program is rooted in hospitality, F&B, travel and tourism, luxury and retail, health and wellbeing, and education.

The common thread is human-centric innovation in service economies, meaning approaches that place people, customers, employees, students, patients…, at the
center of the innovation process, understanding the real needs, pain points, and desires of
individuals to have products, services, or processes delivering meaningful solutions.

The program is anchored in Lausanne, with a strong focus on Europe and Asia.

Startups operating in or looking to expand to Singapore, China, and other Asian markets are particularly encouraged to apply, as EHL has offices and corporate connections across the region.

Applications are reviewed by a selection committee against six criteria: team and execution capability, market opportunity, product differentiation, scalability and transferability, human-centric impact, and long-term relevance.

The program duration is six months, structured around milestone gates that cover product/tech audit, market and growth strategy, team and operations, and investment readiness.

The program culminates in an Investor Day and Summit.

The program duration is six months, structured around milestone gates that cover product/tech audit, market and growth strategy, team and operations, and investment readiness.

The program culminates in an Investor Day and Summit.

  • EHL Innovation Hub 

    Route de Berne 301
    1000 Lausanne 25
    Switzerland

© 2026 EHL Next SA, Switzerland. All rights reserved.