The summer of 2024 brought exciting news for Vilber's with the "Augšup" (meaning "Upwards") contest organized by SEB bank. This initiative aimed to empower social entrepreneurs in strengthening their business sustainability. In mid-June, we were thrilled to learn that Vilber's, as a newly established social enterprise, had won a grant. This crucial funding arrived at the end of July and proved instrumental in acquiring our first essential workshop equipment.
We also extend our sincere appreciation to Ropaži municipality for providing us with the premises that would become our workshop. By August 2025, our workshop doors were open, and we welcomed our first employee – a major milestone for our young company.
Opening of the workshop.
The initial months were a whirlwind of activity. Alongside renovating our workspace and diving into production, we were also focused on building our online presence with the launch of Vilbers.com and our Etsy shop, etsy.vilbers.com. Amidst this busy period, we received an unexpected and exciting invitation: to become sponsors of a mixed couples curling team. Despite being in our very early stages, without even reaching our first 500 EUR in income, we enthusiastically said yes. This opportunity felt like a testament to the community spirit we wanted to embody from the outset.
