100 co-founders of misto.cafe are selected. Their equal one-time non-refundable contributions will kickstart the opening of the first social impact café in Lutsk.
Its particular feature is that 80% of net profits will fund the grants for implementing projects to develop the region.
The crowdfunding campaign spanned 70 days. On February, 19th, we announced the idea of misto.cafe and started the application submissions on the website. Next, there was a voting for each single candidate. The first five co-founders, who initiated the café's opening, voted for the sixth. Then, with six members, they decided whether to accept the seventh application. This process continued until all 100 co-founders were selected.
Why is this important? According to the project’s rules, a co-founder could not be an anonymous person, a political figure, or a legal entity. The voting process helped to check each application in detail.
In two days after misto.cafe idea had been announced, the team received 55 applications, more than half of the available spots. A total of 159 registrations were submitted, and even after the form closed, interested people continued to send requests to join via social media.
After application submissions, voting, and finalizing all legal details on April, 29 we got a completed list of the co-founders. They have made an equal one-time non-refundable contribution to kickstart the café’s opening. They will never claim any income from the café's operations, but they will vote on what community initiative will be supported with the café's funds quarterly at the general meetings.
100 Social Entrepreneurs: Who Are They?
The criteria for co-founders were straightforward: socially conscious Ukrainians aged 18 and over, interested in Lutsk’s development. Applications from anonymous individuals, legal entities, and political figures were not accepted.
The misto.cafe team analyzed the data of the 100 co-founders, and here’s what they found:
- 54% are male, and 46% are female.
- The largest age group is 36 to 45 (53%), followed by 26 to 35 (39%). Only 4% are under 25 or over 45.
- 88% of co-founders live in Lutsk. The others reside in Kyiv and Lviv. There are also people from Switzerland and the USA.
- Half of the co-founders work in IT (17%), trade (13%), construction and architecture (10%), and communications and marketing (10%). Other sectors represented include the light industry, civic engagement, education, finance, law, medicine, psychology, jewelry, and more.
Why did people decide to become co-founders of the café? You can find their thoughts and motives on misto.cafe website.
In particular, the co-founder and ideologue of the businesses “Halya Baluvana” in Ukraine and “Wesoła Pani” in Europe, Alla Telyha, noted:
I care deeply about the future of my hometown, Lutsk. This is where the story of my brand development began, and it’s also where my entire family is. I want Lutsk to become the best, the most beautiful, and the coziest city in Ukraine. That’s why I’m ready to join the active community of misto.cafe co-founders.
For example, architect, social activist, and military volunteer Slava Balbek supported the social impact café in Lutsk because he believes that regions have unlimited growth potential. It was the balbek bureau the team, which designed the interior for misto.cafe, that came up with the project’s slogan: “Different people — one city. Different people — one place.”
Being involved in social transformations is one of the priorities of my existence on this planet
Statistics with Humor
The project team determined which zodiac signs dominate among the hundred co-founders. One-fourth are Gemini and Sagittarius, while the least represented are Scorpios. Additionally, 13% of men are named Serhii, while among women, the most common name is Iryna, at 11%.
What’s the Next?
The opening of misto.cafe is scheduled for July 2024. Then it will operate as an independent commercial entity, with 80% of its net profit directed to a grant fund to support civic initiatives in Lutsk and 20% will cover the café’s operation activities.
The hundred co-founders will vote to determine what social projects will receive grants from misto.cafe. Each grant season will have its theme. The important point: the focus of grant seasons will be on national resilience, support for veterans and military personnel, and relocated Ukrainians.
For reference: misto.cafe was initiated by Algorytm NGO, drawing inspiration from Urban Space 100, the project of Teple Misto NGO in Ivano-Frankivsk. It is the first Ukrainian social restaurant, directing 80% of its profit toward implementing civic projects. It has supported 163 initiatives during 10 years of successful operation.
