Newly established company to promote Mainz as hub for life science and biotechnology now operational and supporting the city of Mainz

• “biomindz Standortentwicklungsgesellschaft Mainz GmbH i.G.” owned by the City of Mainz as a 100% subsidiary of city’s holding company “Zentrale Beteiligungsgesellschaft der Stadt Mainz mbH” (ZBM)
• Established with goal of supporting Mainz as the capital of Rhineland-Palatinate in its transformation into an internationally recognised hub for biotechnology
• ZBM's project team transferred to the new company, with Felix Wälder as Managing Director
• Mainz to be positioned and marketed on international level under "biomindz - Life Science Hub Mainz" brand
• Website goes live at www.biomindz.com, providing extensive information and points of contact

(Mainz, Germany): (skh) At the beginning of february the 'biomindz Standortentwicklungsgesellschaft Mainz mbH i.G.' (biomindz GmbH i.G.) was founded. The formal establishment of the company therefore lays the groundwork for biomindz GmbH i.G. to commence its activities. As a wholly owned subsidiary of "Zentrale Beteiligungsgesellschaft der Stadt Mainz mbH" (ZBM), the city's holding company, biomindz GmbH i.G. is also owned and managed by the city of Mainz. The existing team at ZBM, which had been specifically recruited to support the city's development into a biotechnology hub, will now be transferred to the new company and will continue its activities there. Felix Wälder, who was previously a general manager at ZBM, has been appointed as Managing Director of the new organisation. Setting up a dedicated company to support the transformation of the city into an international hub for life sciences and biotechnology enables the city to bundle all related promotional activities under one roof.

Günter Beck, the Mayor of Mainz, explains that the creation of the new organisation is the logical next step in the city's ongoing strategic development: "Thanks to the success of BioNTech, in particular, Mainz has attracted worldwide attention as a hub for life sciences and biotechnology. This achievement was further underscored in 2022 when Mainz ranked second in the European Commission's European Capital of Innovation Awards. We want to capitalise on this momentum and drive the successful evolution of the city as a hub for research and development. In 2021, we paved the way for this process. The project team recruited at ZBM last year as well as the biotechnology coordination unit in the office of the Lord Mayor have made an outstanding contribution in laying the groundwork for the future. The findings of the detailed needs analysis that our staff oversaw were subsequently used as a basis for determining the precise scope of our ongoing activities. Now, the logical next step is to pursue these initiatives with a clear focus within a dedicated organisation. This also aligns with Mainz's aspirations, as the state capital of Rhineland-Palatinate, to develop the city into an internationally recognised and successful hub for biotechnology".

The organisation's primary task is to support the ongoing development and promotion of the life sciences and biotechnology sector in Mainz. In doing so, biomindz GmbH i.G. will be closely coordinating its activities with departments within the city responsible for urban planning and development as well as sustainable mobility. The company's activities are divided into four key areas:

• Development of the Life Science Campus close to the University and the University of Applied Sciences Campuses, south of Saarstrasse.
• Sustainability management to ensure sustainable and, as far as possible, net zero carbon development from the outset that is intended to serve as a showcase for subsequent projects.
• Networking management and cluster formation to connect various local partners and to facilitate the creation of structures for a supra-regional and neutral cluster organisation.
• Public relations and marketing activities to raise the international profile of and market the location as well as to provide regular updates to the public.

Over the last few months, the brand "biomindz - Life Science Hub Mainz" has been designed to bundle positioning and marketing efforts under a single brand. It has been created to represent and appeal to smart minds ("minds[z]"), while incorporating a phonetic reference to the state capital Mainz. Using this label, the location will already begin marketing itself as a biotech and life science hub at national and international trade fairs and conventions over the next few months, while marketing campaigns to promote the Life Science Hub will be developed and launched. In this way, the brand aims to directly target talent from research and academia, start-ups, investors and companies both from Germany and around the world.

The ultimate goal is to establish the brand among the previously mentioned national and international target groups and to raise awareness and knowledge of what the state capital Mainz has to offer in terms of services and opportunities. At the same time, the intention is that the Life Science and Biotechnology Hub Mainz will be perceived as a trusted partner and an attractive location as a hub for life science and biotechnology. The objective is to generate interest among players in this sector within Germany and beyond and to encourage them to consider Mainz when planning an expansion, a relocation or a new business, deciding on future research activities and sustainable investments as well as choosing a future workplace in the city.

The new company will take on a pivotal role as a one-stop-shop in order to pool and coordinate the resulting interests and activities. In addition, a crucial element in the organisation's marketing strategy is the website that has now gone live. At www.biomindz.com, interested parties will find detailed and comprehensive information about Mainz as a location for life science and biotechnology as well as direct points of contact and partners for a variety of purposes. An interactive map highlights the advantages of the region and provides details of existing players in the biotechnology ecosystem. A virtual model of the Life Science Campus outlines the most important services and facilities that are planned to be implemented. The website is being constantly developed to meet the needs of users and the news section will provide regular updates on the latest developments and events in the hub region.

"Under the "biomindz" brand, we are taking a professional approach to marketing Mainz as a life science and biotech hub on the national and international stage. Our message is clear: Mainz is a city in which you can successfully conduct research, establish a company and grow sustainably. In setting up this new organisation within ZBM, we are helping to ensure that the optimum prerequisites for this are in place, that relevant interests are addressed professionally and competently and channelled to the right places," stresses Daniel Gahr, Managing Director of ZBM.

Herausgeber

Stadtverwaltung Mainz

Pressestelle | Kommunikation (Hauptamt)

Sarah Heil

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