A letter from Erna Sosevic, Bizbook founder

"Dear All,

It's been two years since the Swisscontact Annual Event where I had the honor of being a speaker. Because of that fond memory and support I received from you, I am writing to you on this day with a couple of news from Bizbook.

Although I have faced many challenges, obstacles, and hopeless situations, my team and I have found ways to persevere. Our mission is to bring Bosnia and Herzegovina the positive change it needs and be one of the stories that will inspire others to follow the entrepreneurship path.

It is not easy to place two years in a few sentences, so I will only look at the essential and the most beneficial results:

• November 2018 - we won the award for the best B&H startup;
• April - May 2019 - we were the first to digitize three trade fairs at B&H;
• September 2019 - we received regional recognition for digital economic transformation "Runner Up" in Podgorica, Montenegro;
• November 2019 - the Association of Women Entrepreneurs B&H awarded me the "Power of Excellence" award in the category of entrepreneurship;
• December 2019 - we signed a Partnership Agreement with Market Makers, a project of the Government of Switzerland, who decided to invest in the development of Bizbook;
• January 2020 - we have signed a cooperation agreement with one of the partners of the European Enterprise Network in B&H and publish inquiries of European companies on a platform addressed to domestic companies;
• March 2020 - Bizbook LLC is registered as a software company that employs three young people;
• August 2020 - we signed an exclusive partnership with the largest telecom operator in the country, M:tel a.d. Banja Luka;
• September 2020 - the new Bizbook V3 is launched;

On top of that, Bizbook is supported by the MarketMakers project funded by the Government of Switzerland (Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation SDC).

Today, the Bizbook platform features 689 companies from all over the country, 270 closed deals, 1833 offers, 215 requests, and over 700 products. We organized six B2B events, were partners in four projects, and the media wrote and published about us 27 times.

I want to take this opportunity to congratulate the Swisscontact and Swiss Entrepreneurship Program. All of this is your success in investing and believing in me as a woman founder of tech startups in a country that does not have a support system for people who want to introduce new trends in any sphere of life.

I need to mention that I am very grateful to the Swiss EP Bosnia and Herzegovina team. Their help and support were crucial and very significant for me. I especially want to thank Alema, who has always been moral support and a person who has been looking for opportunities for Bizbook far beyond her job description. Furthermore, I had a fantastic opportunity to work with many different Swiss EP experts from the entire world. They have all contributed to the development of Bizbook, and I am still in contact with some of them.

You have provided me with professional development that I would never have acquired through formal education and a job in traditional companies. Your support inspired me to take up a Chapter Lead Sarajevo role for the SoGal Foundation in New York, which supports women and diversity in entrepreneurship. Through this position, I want to share the knowledge and skills I have gained through Swiss EP support and help as many women as possible to be part of our country's entrepreneurial community. Today I am a lecturer, speaker, and mentor of various entrepreneurship support programs.

I believe that Bizbook has a future, not only nationally but also regionally. I am glad to share our story with you, and I hope that the influence of Swisscontact is significant in all the countries in which it is present.

Sincerely,
Erna Šošević"

This email was published on this blog with the authorisation of its author.