(P) Rethinking real estate. Unique business incubator in Romania that reimagines the way we work and live

Crossing the road from the Bosch plant in Jucu, Cluj, a giant metal gate opens, and we are invited into a property that resembles a century-old stable we’ve seen before in the Netflix star show ‘The Crown’.

We follow our host down the road, passing the horse tracks and stop before one of the old buildings that appear to be in the midst of reconstruction.

“Welcome to Wildhills, the place where work, life, and nature blend,” Vlad Buzoianu, CEO of Cluj Business Campus, greets us.

Wildhills is the new campus developed by Felinvest, the company behind CBC, one of the major office projects in Cluj Napoca.

“We took century-old stables situated on a beautiful farm near Cluj and we are turning them into the coolest business incubator facility East Europe has seen,” says Vlad.

Phase 1 of the project – delivered Q1 2023 - includes offices, a farm-to-table restaurant, indoor and outdoor events venues capable of fitting thousands, accommodation, sports facilities, co-working spaces, horse tracks, a farm, running and mountain bike trails, and a lake that will host the first wakeboarding park in Cluj.

“In 2018 when we started planning this project, we imagined the world of work would change. A pandemic later and people no longer think we went too far with an incubator in the middle of nature. If the workplace has become an experience rather than a routine, why not make it one that brings health, reduces stress, and makes us happier while bonding with our team, clients, investors, families, and nature at the same time,” adds Vlad.

This “country club for innovators” as Vlad calls it will be the home for Techville by CBC, a business incubator that plans to grow ideas into startups and people into entrepreneurs with the help of experienced tech founders involved in the making and running of Techville.

“We want to create a place that inspires the startup community and wider business community from Cluj to get together and share both resources and good times while creating meaningful projects,” Vlad says.

Given its closeness to the airport and unique facilities, the team behind Techville expect their incubator to be visited by startups from all over Europe in innovation camps and other partnerships they plan to have with renowned incubators from the continent.