A remarkable number of Italian female founded startups that are creating waves and challenging conventional gender conventions are present in Milan’s vibrant and fascinating startup scene. Milan The dynamic Lombardy region’s main city in Italy is renowned for its long history and growing business spirit. The city has been a magnet for innovation and entrepreneurship in recent years, drawing in talent from all over the world.
In Milan, female founded startups are bringing about change and paving the way in a variety of sectors, from technology and fashion to sustainability and social impact. These women’s diverse viewpoints and creative ideas contribute to the expansion and diversity of the startup environment as a whole.
The efforts and accomplishments of female founders play a crucial part in determining Milan’s success as it continues to develop as a popular startup location. Their creative thinking, tenacity, and perseverance are not only fueling economic progress, but they are also dispelling prejudices and opening doors for next generations of female entrepreneurs.
Milan’s thriving and diverse entrepreneurial environment is shown by the city’s female founded startups. These women are challenging stereotypes, embracing innovation, and having a big influence across a range of sectors. Their experiences serve as an example for prospective business owners and show the countless opportunities that open up when women are given more authority in the startup community.
The following list of startups includes 11 that we believe you should be aware of.
Ludovica Gualtieri Milano
LUDOVICA GUALTIERI MILANO is a fashion start-up with the collections based on the development of careful search for 100% Italian quality fabrics, eco-sustainable and highly performing.
Italian tailoring, creativity and innovation are the perfect ingredients for a 100% bio-sustainable cocktail, respecting the environment and the person.
Starting from this vision Ludovica Gualtieri Milano Cosmetics Fabric was born alongside the Green Fashion Collections to complete its concept: preserve the garments’ fabrics from the deterioration by the time, with 100% Eco-friendly products, formulated with vegetable surfactants.
Finally, with exclusive design and Italian development of all the products, it gives life to what experts define as the well-being of the future.
Founder: Ludovica
Where: Showroom Il Salotto di Milano, Corso Venezia 7, Milano 20143 Italy
Founded: 2019
Contact here
Recap+
RECUP + promotes social integration and active citizenship while speaking out against food waste. This service is focused on building a sizable network of devoted eateries and food-transformation businesses that are enthusiastic about cutting waste and increasing awareness in their neighborhoods.
By providing these businesses with extra food that would have otherwise gone to waste, RECUP + aims to combat the problem of food waste. In addition to preventing this food from going to waste by selling it to partner companies, RECUP + also adds new items to their menus, promoting a culture of sustainability and awareness.
Raising awareness of the significance of decreasing food waste within the larger population is one of the main goals of RECUP +. The campaign delivers a strong message that every person and organization can play a significant part in reducing waste and encouraging responsible consumption by actively integrating restaurants and food transformation businesses.
Recycling edible food is just one aspect of RECUP +. It intends to turn leftover food into pet food flour, opening up a new channel for recycling and cutting waste. This novel strategy reduces the negative effects on the environment while simultaneously improving the wellbeing of our animal friends.
The project became a force for good change by introducing the RECUP + service in Milan. In addition to addressing the pressing problem of food waste, it promotes social inclusion and engaged citizenship. Restaurants and food-transformation businesses function as change agents, actively fostering a more inclusive and sustainable neighborhood.
Founder: Rebecca Zaccarini
Aileens Pharma
Aileens Pharma, a biotech business founded by successful entrepreneur Sonia Longo Sormani, focuses on creating efficient and secure solutions for inflammatory skin conditions. Sonia got useful experience working as a Business Development Manager at the multinational corporation Sinclair Pharmaceuticals Ltd. before launching Aileens Pharma in 2018.
Claride Pharma SA was Sonia’s first business, established in 2011. A research and development firm called Claride Pharma SA made prescription dietary supplements. Sonia founded Aileens Pharma with a focus on meeting the therapeutic needs of patients with inflammatory skin conditions, building on her experience and knowledge in the pharmaceutical sector.
A biotech substance covered by a global patent is the primary innovation of Aileens Pharma. The substance uses microbes to provide novel therapeutic possibilities. Research and development first concentrate on atopic dermatitis, a prevalent skin ailment that is generally managed with corticosteroids. The goal of Aileens Pharma is to offer safer and more effective alternatives to corticosteroids because they are known to have adverse effects.
Two renowned Italian venture capital firms, Panakes and Invitalia, invested in Aileens Pharma to support their aim. The firm has been able to create a number of formulations that are now being registered as medical devices thanks to these funding.
Founder: Sonia Longo Sormani
Founded: 2018
Where: Milan, Italy
Contact here
Chitè
Chitè is a unique direct-to-consumer (DTC) underwear business co-founded by Chiara Marconi and Federica Tiranti that has transformed the market with its online 3D customisation platform.
Chitè has been working in the inexpensive luxury market since 2018, specializing in the underwear industry. Over 30,000 ladies who are devoted to the company and its products have joined their active online community.
All of Chitè’s clothing are created in Italy by independent craftsmen who follow the ideals of Slow Couture, which is one of the brand’s defining characteristics. The brand’s products are produced ethically thanks to this concept, which places a strong emphasis on sustainability and transparency in the manufacturing process.
Every month, Chitè introduces a new limited-edition capsule collection, giving clients a steady stream of original and stylish alternatives while keeping their offers intriguing and new.
The firm, which presently has an eight-person team of outstanding professionals, just finished a seed fundraising round that went over and beyond their stated goal, demonstrating tremendous investor interest and support. With this successful fundraising, Chitè is now able to grow its business into the English market and reach a larger audience with their unique DTC strategy and personalised underwear experience.
Founder: Chiara Marconi, Federica Tiranti
Founded: 2018
Where: Milan, Italy
Contact here
Filo
The LVenture Group, Pi Campus, AI.Pe Invest, and a few angel investors have invested €2.5 million in Filo. It was established in Rome in 2014 with the goal of creating products that make use of IoT technology to make some elements of our everyday life simpler.
Two products from Filo have already hit the market. The first one is a Bluetooth tracker with the name of Filo Tag that may be used to find items like wallets and keys that are frequently misplaced. The Tata Pad is the second gadget, it is a car seat accessory that acts as an alarm system for parents, informing them if a kid has been left in the vehicle unattended.
Both products are made in Italy and have 30 international patents. To give customers the required functionality, they link to a special smartphone app. Filo intends to increase sales of Tata Pad, which was first introduced in 2020, with the increased investment. According to the manufacturer, several car seat versions have already included the Tata Pad’s technology. Furthermore, Filo has agreements with Vodafone and the major Italian insurance company Generali, demonstrating the rising demand and support for its cutting-edge IoT solutions.
Founders: Stefania De Roberto, Giorgio Sadolfo, Francesco Ceccherelli, Andrea Gattini
Founded: 2014
Where: Rome, Italy
Contact here
InTribe
Mirna Pacchetti and Marzia Di Meo are marketing experts and market researchers who have joined forces to establish InTribe, an innovative startup. They recognized the limits of conventional market research in comprehending the insights of digital and evolved customers after five years of collaboration as strategic advisors. They created InTribe with the intention of creating a subscription-based platform that uses gamification and artificial intelligence to offer real-time market surveys in order to solve this.
The main concept behind InTribe is to use gamification strategies together with a proprietary algorithm to increase the efficiency and engagement of market surveys. They want to increase participant engagement and enjoyment with the survey by introducing gamification. Their strategy is strengthened even further by the application of artificial intelligence, which makes it possible to deliver and analyze surveys in real time.
The minimal viable product (MVP) of InTribe was put to the test on the Italian market in 2019. Building on this early success, they started looking at potential in international markets in 2020 and actively sought out business angels to give funding. By September of the current year, their goal is to shorten go-to-market timelines and achieve scalability.
One of InTribe’s key advantages is their bright and varied crew, which is predominantly made up of women. A data scientist, big data developer, senior data analyst, anthropologist, and psychologist with marketing and innovation experience make up the team. This diverse team’s makeup demonstrates their dedication to embracing many viewpoints and areas of expertise to fuel their creative approach to market research.
Founders: Mirna Pacchetti & Marzia Di Meo
Where: Milan, Italy
Founded: 2016
Meracinque
The agricultural business Meracinque, which specialized in the manufacture of Carnaroli Micro-natural Rice, was co-founded by 29-year-old Silvia. She has a business economics degree and is working on a master’s in agricultural and food economics. Silvia has a strong foundation in export management and has committed her time to advancing the family business.
Under Silvia’s leadership, Meracinque is committed to reinventing the rice agriculture sector with their own Micro-natural Rice production method. The firm wants to encourage ecologically responsible and sustainable methods for growing rice.
The Meracinque team is a family affair, with all five sisters taking an active part in running the business. Margherita and Benedetta are in charge of marketing and product development, while Silvia assumes the position of sales manager. Accounting and financial issues are handled by Anna and Vittoria, who are crucial resources for the organization in these areas.
The five sisters collaborate to develop their goal for sustainable rice production and to improve Meracinque’s prosperity via their combined knowledge and common devotion.
Founders: Silvia Tovo
Where: Verona, Italy
mOOve by Revo
Using the bicycle as its focal point, the four friends who established the innovative Italian firm REVO in 2018 set out to significantly improve both people’s health and environmental sustainability.
Innovating cycle pathways that depend on recycled materials to build a new generation of cycling infrastructure using sustainable technology, their initial project, dubbed mOOve, is an example of this.
“Green, quick, and easy urban space transformation. a novel idea for cycling pathways that are unobtrusive and easy to manage. Safe for users and equipped for smart cities, according to REVO.
All of this and then more is what mOOve is. Thanks to components made from recycled plastic, this product is 100% green.
mOOve consists of prefabricated, modular panels made of recycled plastic and rubber that can be installed on any surface without the requirement for paving or other types of surface preparation.
Once installed, these entirely eco-friendly and green panels may be converted into bicycle lanes that can be set up in a variety of ways to build an almost infinite network of connected bike lanes and long-distance routes.
The creators of mOOve claim that they were influenced by both some of the bigger Italian metropolises, such as Milan, that are adopting “smart mobility” ideas, as well as the cities of Northern Europe where the bicycle still serves as a significant mode of transportation.
The mOOve system is ecologically friendly and includes active road markings, integrated and adaptable LED lighting, connectivity, and sensors to further increase the safety of cyclists who use them.
The system is also intended to gather data, giving urban planners access to current statistics and environmental information.
The mOOve concept has been so well received by environmentalists that REVO was the proud recipient of a prestigious Innovation Dream Engineering (IDEA) award at 2019 annual competition in Milan.
Founders: Elena Mancuso, Stefano Arvati, Marco Lucci, Andrea Ariotti
When: 2018
Where: Milan, Italy
Novis
A 23-year-old Business Administration student at the University of Turin, Arianna Ortelli is passionate about business and innovation. She established NOVIS, a social enterprise with a mission to develop a gaming platform usable by the blind, in April 2019.
The world’s first virtual console created particularly for the blind is NOVIS’ ground-breaking device, BlindConsole. Through touch and hearing, it offers a completely accessible gaming experience that enables blind people to participate actively in the physical and psychological aspects of video games. The gaming system has a cutting-edge joystick that is linked to a smartphone, giving blind players a novel gaming experience.
For NOVIS, Arianna has assembled a multicultural team that includes three engineers from the Politecnico di Torino. It is admirable that the phases of creation, design, and testing actively engage blind people, ensuring that their feedback is taken into account at every stage of the procedure.
Founders: Arianna Ortelli
When: 2019
Where: Turin, Italy
Rice House
The creators of Ricehouse, Tiziana and Alessio, have always been passionate about difficult and difficult tasks. Long before Ricehouse was formally established in 2016, they set out on an original mission to challenge preconceived notions about the profession of design. They are based in Biella, Lombardy, and were motivated by the ecosystem and potential of the region to build a non-energy-consuming home and adapt to the environment.
Instead of concentrating simply on manufacturing, Ricehouse operates with an open-minded objective and looks to forge alliances with businesses that share their ethical principles. Their strategy is based on the circular economy principles and uses the processing of rice cultivation to create a variety of construction goods. By embracing both the industrial and artisan realities of the area, this design only solves the environmental problems connected with disposing of rice but also promotes links between agriculture and architecture.
In order to meet the demands of a constantly changing market, Ricehouse is always searching for new possibilities. This is motivated by their mission of “changing the world” and a strong sense of social responsibility. Their mission goes beyond merely building houses; they also want to create a healthy atmosphere by offering creative solutions, turning our homes into our “third skin.” Ricehouse displays its commitment to constructing a sustainable and socially responsible future via its goods, programs, and devotion to innovation.
Founders: Tiziana Monterisi
When: 2016
Where: Biella Lombardy, Italy
Renoon
Renoon, a promising startup in the sustainability sector, is based in the Netherlands but boasts an Italian co-founder Iris SKrami.
Renoon makes it simple and fun to access knowledge and products for sustainable fashion. Over the past years, searches for sustainable fashion have grown by 200%, but consumers who are actively looking for sustainable alternatives lack a place to go where they can search for products and where all of the industry’s players’ efforts are consolidated for a convenient, pleasurable online shopping experience. Similar to Lyst.com, Omio, and Skyscanner, Renoon’s business strategy is based on affiliate marketing, in which it receives a fee for successful transactions made on other websites.
Renoon also provides a plug-in service for material manufacturers that are actively involved in ingredient branding and data dashboards in response to the existing lack of information related to sustainability offerings, market research, and other areas.
Founders: Iris Skrami, Pierro Putini and Gabriele Trapani
When: 2019
Where: Amsterdam Netherlands
These socially responsible startups are excellent examples of the revolutionary potential of women-led companies in Italy. They are making waves in their respective fields and advancing a more inclusive and sustainable future. The top accelerators in Milan, which give these startups the tools, guidance, and chances they need to succeed, are the driving force behind their success.
If you are an Italian startup owner you may be interested in the list of accelerators in Milan we think are notable in this post.
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