CONNECT DAY by BE PRO
Powered by Barcelona Entrepreneurs - the city's largest international founder community (20k+ members)
Are you an entrepreneur in Barcelona?
Join us for the first edition of Connect Day.
What's Connect Day? Most events give you business cards. This one gives you a shortlist:
- vetted providers you can hire
- founders one step ahead of you
- investors who tell you what they fund
What to expect
🎙️ Insightful talks from top speakers
💬 A founder-and-investor panel on what makes a business succeed
🌐 Open networking with 100+ founders, providers and investors
Event details
📍 WHERE — La Fabrica &Co · Doctor Trueta 191, Poblenou
🗓️ WHEN — Wednesday 16 September · doors 17:45
PROGRAM
🕕 17:45 – 18:15 - Doors open
✨ 18:15 – 18:30 - Welcome + intro to BE PRO (Julia Im)
🎤 18:30 – 18:45 - Richard Ferraro - Sales Director, 4YFN
🎤 18:50 – 19:05 - William Villalobos - Founder of Oatberry.ai
🤝 19:10 - A word from our sponsor How2Spain
🍷 19:15 - 20:00 - NETWORKING BREAK - sponsored by VALLE MIL4 - selected Argentinian wines
🎙️ 20:00 – 20:10 - Provider spotlights / shout-outs
💬 20:10 – 20:40 - PANEL: "Build to Last or Scale to Win?" with Francisco Polo (Founder, Movements) & Arno Vis (Founder & CEO, Openprovider · Investor) - Moderated by Julia Im
🥂20:45 – 21:45 - NETWORKING
SPEAKERS & PANEL
🎤 SPEAKER: Richard Ferraro
Sales Director of 4YFN (the startup & innovation event of Mobile World Congress)
With 20+ years in international sales and business development, Richard has driven commercial strategy across the global tech ecosystem — from scaling SaaS revenue 4x as a CCO to leading 4YFN's sales worldwide. He'll share what really works in B2B sales: practical, hands-on, and straight from the front line.
🔗 Connect on LinkedIn
🎤 SPEAKER: William Villalobos
Founder of Oaatberry.ai · Angel investor
William spent almost six years working for Norman Foster in London, on projects like Apple's headquarters in Cupertino and Spaceport America in New Mexico. Designing buildings and cities left him with a question he never dropped: how places actually operate, and what keeps them running day to day.
He went on to found and scale a tech company for agencies’ content production to $4M+ in revenue. Today he's building the answer to that question: an agentic AI workforce for cities and the businesses that keep them running, powering how businesses serve their customers and how governments serve their citizens.
🔗 Connect on LinkedIn
PANEL — "Build to Last or Scale to Win?"
🎤 PANELIST: Francisco Polo
CEO & Founder of Movements
Six months after launch, Movements passed 250,000 registrations — becoming one of Europe's fastest-growing startups. Before founding it, Francisco served as High Commissioner for Spain Entrepreneurial Nation, where the Startup Law was shaped.
🔗 Connect on LinkedIn
🎤 PANELIST: Arno Vis
Founder & CEO of Openprovider · Investor
With over 30 years building successful businesses — including Hosting Concepts, Openprovider and Procys - Arno is one of Europe's most experienced tech entrepreneurs and investors. As founder & CEO of Openprovider, he disrupted a domain industry dominated by overcharging wholesalers, introducing a membership model built on long-lasting customer relationships rather than short-term margins. Today he's also an active investor and mentor to founders.
🔗 Connect on LinkedIn
🎙️ HOST & MODERATOR: Julia Im
Head of Partnerships & Community at Barcelona Entrepreneurs · Co-Founder of BE PRO
With 18 years across business development, partnerships and international business, Julia leads partnerships, community and events at Barcelona Entrepreneurs — the city's largest international founder community — and is Co-Founder of BE PRO, its vetted directory of trusted professionals. A community builder, host and connector, she turns relationships into real opportunities across Barcelona's startup scene.
🔗 Connect on LinkedIn
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BE PRO
Find an expert who can deliver.
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The Coworking Directory
Coworking spaces across Barcelona. Check it out and grab your free day pass.
→ barcelonaentrepreneurs.com/coworkings
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With thanks to our sponsors
🇪🇸 How2Spain - From your Digital Nomad Visa to your Spanish passport. Relocation and insurance solutions for every stage of your life in Spain.
🇦🇷 VALLE MIL4 brings the best of Argentine wine - malbecs, whites, cabernets and rosés full of character - and turns every bottle into an experience, connecting people through tastings, pop-ups and the culture in every glass
🚀 La Fabrica &Co - A 7,000 m² entrepreneurial hub in the heart of Poblenou, bringing together coworking, coliving, and a members' club with a pool, gym, event spaces, podcast room and seaview terraces.