Apart from being a real tourist destination, Zagreb has become an actual source for all sorts of different startups. Zagreb Startup Factory has done a lot on this matter with launching a program that helps young, enterprising people with great ideas to realize their goals. The primary sponsor of this program is the city of Zagreb, itself. And how did they return the favor? They've made our capital a better place, be it for a local, or a tourist. These are the short stories about them. 

SightRun

Photo Credit: Goran Pozek/SightRun

Winter is coming! A sentence that's meaning something entirely different to the people of the Seven Kingdoms in Game of Thrones than it does to us, living outside that fantasy world. We're usually connecting it with cold weather and the time we all eat a bit too much, enchanted by the spells of holidays. What happens every year when our new year resolutions are still strong? We run to the nearest gym, and we try to get our pre-Christmas bodies back! If you know what I'm talking about, my good reader, then you've undoubtedly experienced the charm of the full gym (and I mean this in the most sarcastic way possible). But what to do instead, if you think that running outside is boring? Well, thanks to smart and creative people that stand behind the SightRun app, you can now merge sightseeing and running. SightRun app is basically an audio-running tour guide enabling the runners to go sightseeing during their running route. The app is providing the audio navigation and talks about the interesting sights along the way. The diligent people of SightRun are continually working to improve the app even further. Their upcoming plans are to import a new running route and the English language. After they've done that, they will expand the app even further with adding some more cities. 

Photo Credit: SightRun (download on AppStore/Google Play)

Zagreb Time Travel

I have already written about Zagreb Time Travel in one of my previous blogs, so anything I miss writing here, you can read it there. This time I talked with Kata Barišić, the main person behind the startup and I asked her where the idea had come from. "It all began with a webshop called PokloniMe.hr which is an online spot for personalized gifts. Our main idea was in providing people with experiences, not just plain, material gifts. After the webshop had caught on, we wanted to go even further and Zagreb Time Travel was our answer. We wanted to give people an experience of the past times of Zagreb during the present time by using the technologies available." In the future, Zagreb Time Travel should become available in some other cities such as Dubrovnik where the shooting of previous mentioned Game of Thrones took place. 

Photo Credit:Julien Duval/Zagreb Time Travel

I think it's important to point out that this project is unique and that anything similar doesn't exist in the world, at least I couldn't find anything alike. But what goes without saying is that we're talking about another great idea that stemmed from Zagreb.

Photo Credit: Julien Duval/Zagreb Time Travel

Divan

After you went on a morning run and took the afternoon tour through Zagreb history, it's time that you spend the rest of your energy on clubbing, cultural events, and other similar happenings. I'm sure you've already guessed what this chapter's about. Another great and awarded team stands behind the app called "Divan." First of all, the name of it is interesting because it's actually a stylized question "Di van?" (Where to go out?) but it also represents the actual divan, a piece of couch-like sitting furniture from the Ottoman Empire found in their logo. It's like they're inviting you to sit on their imaginary divan and find out where to go out that day. The app itself is currently undergoing a total makeover which I had the pleasure of exclusive seeing. But the most important thing to say about Divan is that all kinds of similar apps tried to offer a similar service, but all failed to mention pretty important events such as exhibits and theatre plays. Instead, they concentrated only on clubs and generally narrow audience. Another great feature of Divan is that it offers a calendar where you can clearly see what's happening and it is also actually counting down the time of days left until the event. 

Photo Credit: Maroje Sabljić/Divan

To conclude, we can easily see what good ideas and diligent people can achieve through hard work and smart investments of people that recognize these kinds of projects. The common and final goal is to make Zagreb a better place, for a local and a visitor alike. I must also add that all three mentioned startups won a prize at the Startup Factory which just recently had its third edition. Do you think you have a good idea? What are you waiting for? 

Header Image Credit: Goran Pozek/SightRun

Author: Tibor Trupec