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Delmenhorst: founding heroes in fifth place in the Germany-wide ranking!
Delmenhorst achieved fifth place in the pioneer score for start-ups. Despite economic challenges, entrepreneurs show great courage.
Delmenhorst: founding heroes in fifth place in the Germany-wide ranking!
What a pleasing result for Delmenhorst! In the latest study by HRlab, the city took an impressive fifth place in the Germany-wide pioneer score for start-ups in economically weaker regions. This impressively shows that entrepreneurial courage and innovative spirit are not a question of location, but depend above all on the determination and will of the founders. With an average rate of nine business registrations per 1,000 inhabitants, Delmenhorst has mastered the challenge of the difficult conditions excellently. While the structural weakness index is 86, other cities such as Gelsenkirchen and Bremerhaven have even higher values.
What is particularly noteworthy is that the study shows how much the founders in Delmenhorst are tackling the hurdles despite a structural weakness index of 86. It is clear that businesses in Germany are registered and deregistered every day. On average, four out of five start-ups fail within the first three years - a number that highlights the challenges for aspiring entrepreneurs. In the so-called new start-up score, which assesses the substantial entrepreneurial strength, Delmenhorst “only” comes in 126th place, but this does not reduce the ambition and potential of the local founders.
The top 10 start-up dynamics in Germany
What does the overall landscape of start-ups in Germany look like? Offenbach am Main is the undisputed leader in both rankings - both in the pioneer score and in the start-up score. With a high start-up dynamic of 14 registrations per 1,000 inhabitants and a structural weakness index of only 74, Offenbach has an impressive 1,035 points in the pioneer score. Leverkusen and Berlin follow closely behind. Here is an overview of the top 5 cities:
| Place | City | Pioneer Score | Structural Weakness Index |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Offenbach am Main | 1035 | 74 |
| 2 | Leverkusen | – | – |
| 3 | Berlin | – | – |
| 4 | – | – | – |
| 5 | Delmenhorst | – | 86 |
Start-ups in Germany – an overview
Start-ups are of central importance for the German economy. They ensure the existence of companies, create jobs and increase both innovative strength and competitiveness. This highlights the importance of new business registrations in recent years. For example, there were almost 258,500 commercial start-ups in 2024, with a significant proportion originating in the new federal states. The number of business registrations has stabilized again since 2020, after previously falling.
An interesting aspect is that most founders are male and between 25 and 34 years old, often with professional training. The motives for starting a business are often the search for independence and the realization of a business idea. As the IfM Bonn figures show, the majority of founders were previously employed before taking the step into self-employment. The federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Bavaria are at the forefront when it comes to business registrations, while Leverkusen is considered to be particularly popular with start-ups.
In conclusion, it can be said that Delmenhorst is well positioned with fifth place in the pioneer score despite the difficult conditions. At a time when start-ups are essential drivers of the economy, the city shows that courage and entrepreneurial spirit, even from smaller regions, can deliver great results. In the end, entrepreneurial success is determined by the willpower of the founders and the dynamics of the community, and Delmenhorst proves that a lot is possible even under difficult conditions.