Interview with BTU alumna Maria Sobur (eBusiness)

Maria Sobur came to Cottbus from Ukraine for her studies and successfully graduated in 2016, after which she worked for Meta (formerly Facebook). If you want to learn more about her periods of study, you can read our BTU Alumni Interview from 2019 with her. Today we would like to talk about her exciting start-up TripLeap, which she has been working on together with Dr. Julia Korensky since 2023. They have already experienced a few highlights. In January 2024, they won the audience award at the Berlin-Brandenburg Business Plan Competition (BPW). In the nationwide start-up competition - DE Digital: Summer Round 2024, they made it into the top 50. They also received an EXIST-Woman grant from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection.

Hello Ms. Sobur, last year you joined the founding team of TripLeap, a platform for knowledge-based scavenger hunts and tours for children. Please tell us more about TripLeap. What exactly is the idea behind it and who is the target group?
Hello, thank you for the opportunity to introduce myself and our project. TripLeap was born out of a desire to combine learning and fun. We used to be known as Play Travel - Marketplace for child-friendly activities, but we have revised our concept and are overjoyed with the result. TripLeap now focuses on immersive scavenger hunts that are available both as game boxes and digitally. Our main target group is children and their families, but we have also recently discovered an exciting niche for us: school trips. Our goal is to fund children's natural curiosity through playful experiences while teaching them important historical and cultural knowledge.

TripLeap is a start-up by two BTU alumni. How did it come about that you stayed in contact after your studies and how important do you think interpersonal skills are in a start-up alongside professional skills?
Julia and I met during our studies at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg and have been best friends ever since. We complement each other perfectly - Julia is an architect and has a doctorate in Architectural Conservation. She is an incredibly creative person. I am a mathematician and data analyst with experience in web development and marketing. Our shared interests in education and travel brought us together. Interpersonal relationships are just as important in a start-up as technical skills. Trust, communication and a shared understanding of goals are crucial to the success of a startup.

Before founding the company, you worked as a Data and Marketing Scientist at Meta, the Facebook Group. It must have been difficult to give up your job for the adventure of founding a start-up. What was your main motivation for taking this step?
I gained valuable experience at Meta, not only in terms of technical skills, but above all about the work culture. Meta was a great employer for me and I am grateful for every person I was able to work with and learn from. But in a company of almost 100,000 people, it's hard to feel like you're making a difference. After more than nine years of professional experience, six of them at Meta, I felt that I could achieve something bigger. My main motivation was the desire to create something of my own and have a positive impact on children's education. The idea of developing a platform that combines education and fun inspired me and made me take this bold step.

Many tech start-ups tend to focus on marketing issues in the beginning. In your opinion, is it possible to take care of marketing later on or should it be part of the startup right from the start?
In fact, many start-ups tend not to consider marketing a priority in the initial phase. The focus is often on product development and technology. This is understandable, but risky. In today's information overload, it is crucial to present not only the product, but also the team and the startup story. An early marketing strategy helps to better understand customer needs and align the product with them, build trust and attract leads and investors. It also offers the opportunity to take a pioneering role in the industry through thought leadership and position the startup as an expert. Marketing is like a tree whose fruits are success and profit. As the saying goes: "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is today."

Your international founding team lives in different places, you yourself live in Spain, your company is currently based in Cottbus and your main offer is starting out in Berlin. How does it feel to start out so internationally, digitally and mobile? Does this come naturally to you and your team or does it still feel like a challenge?
It feels both natural and exciting. We are used to working digitally and mobile. In addition, there are already some people supporting us with the project who live in Sweden, Poland, other cities in Germany and even India. This internationality allows us to bring in different perspectives and experiences. Of course, there are sometimes challenges with communication, but we see this more as an opportunity to remain flexible and innovative.

It's great to hear that you already have support for your start-up. Does BTU also have a role here?
Being at the beginning of a startup rarely means in-depth work, i.e. "deep work" in the sense of long, focused concentration phases in one area of expertise. Instead, the focus tends to be on a wide range of tasks, or "broad work", which requires a broad spectrum of skills and topics that we have never come into contact with before. This would be difficult to imagine without support. We are incredibly grateful for the Incubator and the support they offer alumni - whether it's organizing workshops, advice, networking or practical help with funding. We feel like we have a strong partner behind us. We can't fail because we are not alone.

Your pilot scavenger hunt is for Berlin, which of course is not far from Cottbus. Will you soon be creating a scavenger hunt for families right in Cottbus?
Of course, how could we forget our dear Cottbus? I am happy to announce that we have recently finalized a scavenger hunt for Cottbus. I tested it myself with my family and it was a wonderful experience and we even learned a lot of new things. And here's something even more exciting: we also recently organized a class activity with the Erich Kästner School, where our scavenger hunts were used. It was a great success. The children had a lot of fun, learned about their city and improved their teamwork.

Recently, the nomination for the STARK 2024 ideas competition, in which TripLeap also took part, took place at Startblock. Can you tell us more about it?
With pleasure. We are overjoyed to announce that we have won the STARK 2024 ideas competition and have received funding to realize our new project: Bicycle scavenger hunt around Lake Senftenberg. But that's not all - we are also working on an interactive book for children in 3rd to 5th grade about Lusatia with a focus on structural change. Our approaches are innovative for the region and, thanks to their model character, offer the possibility of imitation in other regions of Lusatia and beyond. Our project not only contributes to academic education, but also funds awareness of ecological and climate protection issues. The playful involvement of children supports sustainable lifestyles and strengthens regional awareness of structural change.

I've heard you're back at BTU, where are you currently working here?
Yes, indirectly. Julia and I are currently leading an ongoing study project called "Gamification in Cultural Heritage" at the BTU. We are passionate about this topic and want to share our enthusiasm and expertise with others. We also draw new ideas and inspiration from working with the students, which allows for a mutual exchange. The students are so talented, and who knows, we might even find a perfect employee for TripLeap there.