(L-R) Fernand Ernster, President, Chamber of Commerce; Stéphanie Damgé, Director of Entrepreneurship; Grand Duke Guillaume; Carlo Thelen, CEO, Chamber of Commerce; Tom Oberweis, President, Chambre des Métiers;
Credit: Ali Sahib, Chronicle.lu
On Tuesday 20 October 2026, Luxembourg’s House of Entrepreneurship celebrated its 10th anniversary with an event in Kirchberg.
Over 250 people attended the celebration, including special guests Grand Duke Guillaume, Laurent Mosar, former President of the Chamber of Commerce and Member of Parliament, and the Deputy Mayor of Luxembourg City, Maurice Bauer.
The event started with a number of formal speeches, with a couple of short video clips and the use of high-definition holograms to demonstrate technology, as well as some light-hearted moderation, before a networking walking dinner.
The House of Entrepreneurship was created from an idea ten years ago by the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce and the Ministry of Economy to act as a central, one-stop shop for business owners.
Fernand Ernster, President of the Chamber of Commerce, spoke in French and conveyed the apologies of Lex Delles, Luxembourg's Minister of the Economy, SMEs, Energy and Tourism, who had intended to address the anniversary celebration but was held up with government duties. He talked about entrepreneurs with innovative business plans who needed advice on how to set up companies, leading to the House of Entrepreneurship being created by the Chamber of Commerce.
Carlo Thelen, CEO and Director General of the Chamber of Commerce, also spoke in French and recalled the early days of the House of Entrepreneurship which provides clear information to entrepreneurs setting up their companies, including access to the complexities of the innovation ecosystem. He talked about opening opportunities and saving time. He thanked everyone involved since its creation.
Stéphanie Damgé, Entrepreneurship Director, talked in French about the organisation’s mission which had been adapted constantly, around three concrete priorities: to reduce the administrative burden, to make it easier to support all business stages and to better respond to the needs of entrepreneurs by connecting with the ecosystem. She thanked all involved in the House of Entrepreneurship over the ten years.
Jonas Kjellberg, entrepreneur, investor and co-founder of Skype, delivered a Keynote Address, speaking in English; he said he has always been an entrepreneur and talked about investing in Salando. He recalled being involved in around 40 startups, most of which did not make it, as well as consulting for large organisations. He recalled a number of anecdotes during his life as an entrepreneur.
He said most companies underestimate how they can grow, with revenue coming through sales. He recalled accepting the job as CEO of Lycos (a search engine owned by Bertelsmann), with Google launching apparently without a business model. He also talked about adopting IP telephony and starting Skype, specifically working out a pricing strategy and a business model.
He asked if people are game-changers or out-performers, mentioning that right now we are in a highly disruptive time with the adoption of AI.
Tom Overweis, President of the Chambre des Métiers, spoke in French and recalled collaborating with the Chamber of Commerce in the setting up of the House of Entrepreneurship. He talked about helping artisanal companies and SMEs, pointing out the complementarity between the two chambers. Looking to the future, he wished the House of Entrepreneurship well in the coming years.
A special anniversary cake was brought in with sparkling candles to the delight of all attendees, prior to the networking part of the evening
