Through Everyone’s Business, participants gain access to networks, knowledge, mentorship, and 300,000 SEK each to support scale their businesses and create greater impact for more people.
The selected entrepreneurs combine strong business together with social commitment and demonstrate how entrepreneurship can be a force for inclusion, sustainability, and hope for the future. They run businesses that make a difference — businesses that contribute to social positive change while creating real impact.
Through Everyone’s Business, entrepreneurs from across the country come together around a shared vision: to drive societal change through entrepreneurship. The partnership between Reach for Change and IKEA Social Entrepreneurship, with support from IKEA Sweden, aims to strengthen the ecosystem for social innovation and pave the way for a more inclusive and sustainable societal development. The goal is to build a broader and more representative innovation movement capable of addressing society’s complex challenges through more
inclusive business models.
Together, they represent the future of entrepreneurship — where social impact, inclusion, and sustainability go hand in hand with innovation and enterprise. Through their ideas, they tackle some of today’s greatest challenges with creative and sustainable solutions to social problems.
Interest in the program has been high — over 60 social entrepreneurs from across the country applied. Sixteen were invited to pitch their ideas for a jury in October, and it has now been decided which 11 will take part in the first cohort of the two-year program.
Through this program, we want, in collaboration with Reach for Change, to inspire more companies to become more inclusive. The participating entrepreneurs demonstrate the potential of contributing to solutions for our greatest social and labor market–related challenges.
The 11 selected entrepreneurs in Everyone’s Business are:
Conexi, Annelie Larsson, Linköping – CONEXI is a work-preparatory initiative in collaboration with the business sector, offering a competence platform focused on autism, cognition, and employment. Together, they work to create a sustainable working life.
Drömstort, Kassim Nagwere, Stockholm – Drömstort creates inclusive pathways to education, employment, and leadership for at-risk youth through a holistic model that integrates school, leisure activities, mentorship, and working life.
Funki, Maria Svahn, Stockholm – Funki develops inclusive musical instruments specifically designed for people with intellectual and other cognitive disabilities.
Watoto Arts, Fatma Guettou, Stockholm – Watoto Arts designs and produces inclusive dolls that strengthen children’s sense of belonging through play, while also creating safe job opportunities for foreign-born women.
Jobbentrén, Andrea and Mark Ahlenius, Stockholm – Jobbentrén creates successful and long-term employment together with long-term unemployed foreign-born talents and employers.
Cirkulärfabriken, Daniel Adolfsson, Gothenburg – Cirkulärfabriken drives the transition toward a more sustainable society by combining circular furniture management with social inclusion.
FCV Sverige, Lars Lundqvist, Boden – FCV Sweden strengthens young people’s motivation and belief in the future through game-based learning and educational tools.
Re:staff, Gustav Gyllensten, Norrköping – Re:Staff is a work-integrating social enterprise that combines professional warehousing services with the creation of safe and meaningful jobs for people far from the labor market.
RecoMended, Rikard Ledin da Rosa, Forshaga – RecoMended works to extend the lifespan of textile products and enable scalable, profitable, and circular business models.
Belong, Ante Nordqvist, Stockholm – Belong is a non-profit organization that builds bridges between newly arrived and established Swedes.
Matmissionen, Johan Rindevall, Stockholm – Matmissionen is a chain of social grocery stores aimed at reducing food waste, alleviating food poverty, and offering pathways toward self-sufficiency.
Everyone’s Business launched with a three-day kickoff in November in Malmö and will run for two years. More information is available on Reach for Change’s website.
About Reach for Change:
Reach for Change is a global non-profit organization that empowers social entrepreneurs with the skills, networks, and funding they need to reach their full potential. Founded in Sweden in 2010, the organization has supported 2,000 Change Leaders in 18 countries and reached 4.7 million children and young people.
About IKEA Sweden:
At IKEA, our vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people. IKEA products are built on the right combination of form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price—what we call Democratic Design. IKEA was founded in Älmhult in 1943. Today, there are 22 IKEA stores and 12 planning studios in Sweden. Approximately 12,000 coworkers work within Ingka Group in Sweden, of whom around 8,000 are part of the retail organization.
About IKEA Social Entrepreneurship:
IKEA has collaborated with social entrepreneurs since 2012 to create opportunities for people in vulnerable situations. To strengthen and scale this work, IKEA Social Entrepreneurship BV was founded in 2018 as part of Inter IKEA. Since then, more than 230 social enterprises around the world have received support through partnerships, financing, and business development—combining profitability with meaningful social impact on a global scale.
