RSU B-Space Demo Day 2025: students' ideas on the path to entrepreneurship
Photos: Courtesy of B-Space
At the end of the spring semester, the Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU) Innovation Centre hosted the closing event of the RSU business incubator B-Space 2024/2025 incubation programme – the Demo Day. Six teams presented their business ideas to a jury, competing for the main prize: funding to develop their ideas into real businesses and create their first products. This Demo Day demonstrated that young entrepreneurs are not lacking in courage, knowledge, and creativity when it comes to addressing pressing social issues. It also showed that ideas conceived during studies can lead to meaningful solutions in healthcare, sport, sustainable living, and even niche markets such as horse tack distribution.
The B-Space incubation programme has been operating for five years and is an integral part of the RSU innovation ecosystem. It provides knowledge and mentoring support to students, graduates, and staff, offering them the opportunity to test their ideas and turn them into businesses.
PalLink – a solution to ease the daily work of healthcare staff
The main prize of EUR 2,500 was awarded to PalLInk team, made up of three international students. They have developed a digital application that helps identify healthcare priorities for hospital patients and reduces the administrative burden on doctors and nurses.
Zahraa Merchant, a representative of PalLink and a fifth-year student in the Medicine programme, explained: ‘In Latvia, palliative care nurses often have to care for 80 to 90 patients, although the recommended ratio is 1 to 5.
Our solution classifies cases by symptoms and location, allowing medical professionals to make decisions more quickly. Instead of filling out tables, they can devote more time to their patients.
The time we spent at B-Space was incredibly valuable. We met mentors who opened doors to people we would never have met otherwise. We gained a lot of knowledge about business models and commercialisation – things we were not taught as medical students. The incubator helped us see how to turn an idea into not only a healthcare innovation, but also a sustainable business.’
This autumn, the team plans to launch a pilot project at the Children’s Clinical University Hospital.
TackStore – a tack shop offering on-site consultations
Second place went to TackSTore – an e-commerce platform for equestrians offering tack and specialised services.
Anastasija Kovaļenko (pictured), Head of TackStore and a second-year student in the Management, Administration and Real Estate Management programme at the RSU Faculty of Social Sciences, shared: ‘I joined the incubator out of curiosity and initially thought the idea of a horse tack shop was not particularly special. However, with the help of mentors, the project turned out to be much broader – involving seminars, collaborations with athletes, and specialised services.
The incubator taught me that business is a process that requires constant adaptation. If it had not been for the incubation programme, I probably would have stopped at the idea stage.
The incubator pushed me to think about development every day, look for solutions, and write a business plan.’
CookingLab – healthy cooking masterclasses for companies
Third place was awarded to CookingLab – a platform created by Nutrition Science students offering healthy cooking masterclasses tailored for companies. The concept combines scientific knowledge with practical experience to help introduce healthier habits into workplace teams.
Valda Brūvere, representative of CookingLab and a fourth-year student in the RSU Nutrition Science programme, shared:
‘Our idea started as an academic task in the economics course – we initially came up with CookingLab simply as a theoretical concept. However, an unexpected invitation to host a masterclass at RSU’s 18 November celebration event became a turning point.
We understood that this is a direction we are truly passionate about. The uniqueness of our project lies in the fact that there are no nutrition specialists on the market currently offering such on-site masterclasses for companies. We transform scientifically proven nutritional knowledge into a practical and exciting experience. We started as students with an idea, but now we are entrepreneurs with a clear business model and strategy. During the programme, we developed the brand identity, a demo website, several product offerings, and even launched a pilot project with a well-known Latvian brand. Our biggest gain from the incubation programme was mentoring and practical support we received.’
Other teams in the incubation programme also launched creative and meaningful projects.
Namoori – sustainable clothing for families
The Namoori team presented a clothing line for children and their parents, created from natural materials such as hemp and flax, entirely free from plastic. The garments combine safety, sustainability, and design.
Eva Vīnava (pictured on the right), Namorii representative and a second-year student in the RSU International Business and Start-Up Entrepreneurship programme, shared:
‘We wanted to create clothing that is completely free of any harmful substances and microplastics.
At the same time, we offer coordinated clothing sets for children and their parents to strengthen the sense of family unity. The support from mentors in the incubator was incredibly valuable – it was through face-to-face mentoring that we found our greatest inspiration.’
RiniTea – Indian tea house in the heart of Riga
Rini Stella, a fifth-year student in the Medicine programme, plans to open an Indian tea house in Riga that combines authentic tea culture with peaceful environment for both work and relaxation. The concept includes a wide selection of teas from various regions of India, with the space divided into two areas – one for working and studying, and the other for relaxing with friends. There are also plans to host tea masterclasses and cultural events.
Rini Stella shared: ‘In India, life is unimaginable without tea, and I really miss places like that in Riga. I want to create a space where people can work or meet with friends, all while enjoying authentic Indian tea.
At B-Space, I had the opportunity to meet like-minded people and test how far I could take my idea.
This was my second time in the incubation programme. During my first attempt, I learned how to create a company from scratch, but this time I wanted to test a specific business idea. B-Space gave me inspiration – it was truly motivating to see students with such diverse and bold ideas.’
