Cluster “made in Bavaria”: A workshop for Japanese companies in Bavaria

Everyone is talking about the Cluster Initiative in Bavaria over and over again: cluster here, cluster there. It sounds like something innovative and dynamic. The word is that the cluster offensive in Bavaria is divided into 19 key sectors, such as automotive, medical technology, biotechnology, nanotechnology and mechatronics. It all sounds very good, however, after taking a closer look, many of our customers wonder: What exactly is a cluster initiative? Which services does a cluster offer? Can foreign companies based in Bavaria also benefit from clusters?

The business representatives of the Japan Club München Mitokai also asked themselves these exact questions. They then took their questions directly to Invest in Bavaria. How did Bavarian clusters develop? What are they all about? How can Japanese companies based in Bavaria specifically benefit from them? Invest in Bavaria realized – the thirst for knowledge is considerable. In order to satisfy this thirst, we organized a Business Workshop on September 1st, 2015 on the topic “Bavarian Clusters” for representatives of Japanese companies in Bavaria. A representative of the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs explained the main features of Bavarian cluster policy. This was followed by a presentation of the work and possible options for collaboration by representatives of the clusters for biotechnology, chemistry and automotive. The visit by Dr. Christian Geltinger from the representative office of the state of Bavaria in Japan – our Bavarian "ambassador" in Japan – concluded the discussions.

After two hours of introducing the clusters, complete with questions and answers, the participants had a lot to think about. It became evident that the Bavarian clusters are designed to successfully bring together business and science, initiate partnerships, strengthen value chains and increase the innovation dynamism. And, above all, to emphasise that clusters are open to working with foreign companies based in Bavaria.

We are eager to find out how the Japanese corporate representatives will benefit from the knowledge about Bavarian clusters in the future. Maybe we will see some of the participants again at the next cluster event!

You can find more information on Bavarian clusters at www.cluster-bayern.de and in our blog.