THE STARTUP INCUBATOR DIGITAL MAGICS OPENS ITS NINTH BRANCH IN ASCOLI PICENO TO DEVELOP THE INNOVATION ECOSYSTEM OF MARCHE, UMBRIA, ABRUZZO, EMILIA ROMAGNA AND MOLISE
Ascoli Piceno, January 22 2019 – Digital Magics, the most important incubator of digital startups “Made in Italyâ€, which is active throughout Italy, opens Digital Magics Adriatico in Ascoli Piceno: its ninth branch, in collaboration with the partner company Hub21, a scientific, technological and cultural hub.
The goal of Digital Magics Adriatico is to develop the innovation ecosystem of Marche, Umbria, Abruzzo, Emilia Romagna and Molise: by launching innovative startups on the market, by creating local networks of companies and investors focused on supporting the young talents and the digital startups, by organising initiatives, meetings and business events in order to involve all the players in the local supply chain.
The Adriatic regions of Central Italy comprise 1,726 innovative startups (893 in Emilia Romagna, third region by number of startups; 357 in Marche, 10th region; 219 in Abruzzo; 189 in Umbria and 68 in Molise) plus 148 innovative SMEs (77 in Emilia Romagna, 41 in Marche, 18 in Abruzzo, 11 in Umbria and 1 in Molise)*.
Luca Scali — who boasts more than 20 years of experience in e-commerce and who founded the first Italian digital observatory dedicated to startups’ funding initiatives across the world — will be responsible for Digital Magics Adriatico’s activities.
Thanks to the opening of the new branch, the presence of the incubator in the Adriatic regions of Central and Southern Italy is now strengthened. Since 2016, together with Digital Magics Bari — the incubator born in partnership with L’Arancia, a consulting agency specialised in communication and marketing — Digital Magics has been overseeing the innovation ecosystem in Puglia and Basilicata.
“We continue to focus on the territory and to support Italian digital talents directly where they are born and develop their innovations — explains Gabriele Ronchini, founder and Managing Director of Digital Magics — The districts of Marche, Emilia Romagna, Abruzzo, Umbria and Molise represent a real excellence in the industrial and technological field, thanks to the enormous character and determination shown by local entrepreneurs. With Digital Magics Adriatico we want to create and grow startups to become successful companies, by involving investors and local institutions and by innovating traditional companies thanks to ‘Open Innovation’. Our latest branch is an addition to the 7 Italian offices and the one in London, for the expansion and internationalisation of our startups, and to the single national hub, which we created together with Talent Garden and Tamburi Investment Partners, in order to expand the ‘Digital Made in Italy’.
“The alliance with Digital Magics is an important step towards market consolidation — says Luca Scali, Managing Director of Hub21 and partner of Digital Magics Adriatico — In recent years, Ascoli Piceno climbed the national rankings, taking the first place as the most innovative province of Italy in 2016 and in 2017, and in 2018, it consolidated its presence by taking the second place. We are fully at the center of a growth trend of startups at international and national level, which is a mix of passion, vision, organisation with an original initial idea and a lot of acumen from investors in being able to discern, isolate and qualify the strengths of the startups involved. The partnership with the main Italian player enables us to provide the market with a timely supervision and content with a high added value. I’m thinking primarily about the birth and development of digital initiatives, and more in general of startups, but still in view of development of ‘Open Innovation’ solutions, which I remember being an area in which 70% of Italian companies are not active yet and where 33% struggle to find new projects and talents”.
Emilia Romagna is the third region of Italy by number of innovative startups and represents 9.1% of the national total: 9797. In the Italian ranking, Marche is currently 10th (3.6% of the total). Abruzzo ranks 14th (2.2%), Umbria is 15th (1.9%), while Molise takes the penultimate place (0.7%)*.
Data as of January 2019 by sector of activity show that, in the five Adriatic regions (Marche, Emilia Romagna, Abruzzo, Umbria and Molise), there are over a thousand (1,137) innovative startups and SMEs that provide services to businesses (software production, IT consulting and related activities, scientific research and development, information services); 509 are those related to the activity of the manufacturing industry (manufacture of machinery, computers and electronic products, electrical equipment) and 74 are the tourism-related ones*.
Table – Innovative Startups in Italy – Updated as at January 21, 2019
| Region | Number of startups | Percentage of startups |
| Lombardia | 2429 | 24.8% |
| Lazio | 1074 | 11.0% |
| Emilia Romagna | 893 | 9.1% |
| Veneto | 861 | 8.8% |
| Campania | 759 | 7.7% |
| Piemonte | 490 | 5.0% |
| Sicilia | 477 | 4.9% |
| Toscana | 418 | 4.3% |
| Puglia | 399 | 4.1% |
| Marche | 357 | 3.6% |
| Trentino Alto Adige | 243 | 2.5% |
| Friuli Venezia Giulia | 226 | 2.3% |
| Calabria | 223 | 2.3% |
| Abruzzo | 219 | 2.2% |
| Umbria | 189 | 1.9% |
| Liguria | 178 | 1.8% |
| Sardegna | 164 | 1.7% |
| Basilicata | 108 | 1.1% |
| Molise | 68 | 0.7% |
| Valle d’Aosta | 22 | 0.2% |
| Italia | 9797 | 100% |
*Source: InfoCamere – startup.registroimprese.it
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Digital Magics, listed on AIM Italia (symbol: DM), is a business incubator of digital projects that provides consulting services and acceleration services to startups and enterprises, to facilitate the development of new technological businesses. Thanks to the partnership with Talent Garden and Tamburi Investment Partners, Digital Magics has created the most important national platform for innovation for DIGITAL MADE IN ITALY, by providing support to innovative startups to create successful projects, from conception to IPO, while offering services for the digital transformation and “Open Innovation†to excellent enterprises. The incubation and acceleration services offered by Digital Magics are active in the TAG co-working campuses present throughout Italy. Complementary services include investment activities, which have produced over the years a portfolio of 70 investments in startups, scaleups and digital spinoffs with high growth rates. Accelerated companies are flanked by Digital Magics’ team, a partner of enormous business and digital experience, and benefit not only from the large network of private and institutional investors that support them through “club deals”, but also from the many partner companies that support them on an industrial scale.
For further information:
Digital Magics – Press Office
Giorgio Bocchieri – Mail: giorgio.bocchieri@digitalmagics.com
Tel. 02 52505202 – Mob. 334 6853078
