This season, Maxima Estonia will join the sponsors of Estonia’s largest business ideas competition and will become the third major sponsor of Brain Hunt alongside SEB and Elisa. By this collaboration, Maxima aims to introduce more innovative solutions in the retail industry.

Harri Tallinn, Brain Hunt team leader, said that including Maxima will provide new opportunities for testing and commercialising business ideas by providing the teams with insight about competitive retail markets. ‘Every year, we have teams in Brain Hunt who could progress much faster with such a partner. For example, the innovative Biofire ignition gel, available in stores both in Estonia and outside Estonia, Timey, the winner of last season, which produces indicators for refrigerated goods, or Z-Basket, which provides a convenient mobile payment solution in stores. The assistance of such a partner in launching these products is already of great added value during the initial phase of product development,’ Tallinn added.

According to Edvinas Volkase, the company found inspiration to join the largest competition of business ideas in Estonia in the success stories of recent years, which confirm that good and innovative solutions can be offered to both retail and food industry. ‘There are so many different processes in the retail industry that affect the shopping experience of customers. We hope that through meaningful collaboration, we will find inspiration as well as exciting new solutions that can be used by Maxima and elsewhere in the commercial sector,’ Volkas added.

Brain Hunt is Estonia’s main competition for business ideas, offering an intensive, high-level development programme to start a business, a mentoring network with international experience, and funding to implement a business idea. Business ideas for the Brain Hunt Development Programme can be submitted until October 27.

Brain Hunt was launched by the Enterprise Estonia Foundation. The partner of the competition is SEB and the sponsors Elisa and Maxima Eesti. Enterprise Estonia will finance the implementation of the competition from the resources of the European Regional Development Fund. Brain Hunt is also supported by Linguist, TRINITI Law Firm, UMA Workspace, Harku Rural Municipality, Saue Rural Municipality, the city of Tallinn, the city of Tartu, and the city of Pärnu.