- Photos of each finalist are available in the download area.
- The +50 Emprende Awards, driven by SAVIA – a project by Fundación Endesa in collaboration with Fundación Máshumano – and the production company 02:59 Films, represent the most important senior entrepreneurship competition in Spain.
- In this 7th edition, 630 entrepreneurs over the age of 50 have participated, submitting more than 200 initiatives.
- At the awards ceremony, the finalists will present their projects before a jury chaired by Leopoldo Abadía, and six winners will be selected: three in the General category and three in the Green Entrepreneurship category.
The jury of the 7th +50 Emprende Awards, the most important senior entrepreneurship competition in Spain, has selected the twelve finalist projects for this edition. This year saw the participation of 630 entrepreneurs – 30% more than last year – and more than 200 initiatives submitted. In the coming days, the finalist projects will be presented in person to the jury, chaired by Leopoldo Abadía, a renowned author, PhD in Industrial Engineering and ITP Harvard Business School graduate, and composed of experts and professionals from the entrepreneurship sector.
Driven by SAVIA, the project of Fundación Endesa in collaboration with Fundación Máshumano, and the production company 02:59 Films, these awards seek to raise the profile of and support the entrepreneurial talent of professionals over the age of 50, offering new opportunities for their professional development. Since their creation in 2019, the awards have helped break down stereotypes and combat age discrimination in the workplace, in a context where more than 755,000 people over 50 are unemployed in Spain, according to the latest Labour Force Survey (EPA).
Among the projects submitted this year are proposals from very diverse fields, with a notable rise in initiatives related to sustainability and the environment. Likewise, Artificial Intelligence once again plays a leading role in this edition, demonstrating that senior professionals are up to date and actively applying AI to their businesses. This edition has also featured projects focused on health, the circular economy and rural depopulation. In terms of gender participation, the split is very balanced, with 52.5% male and 47.5% female participants.
For the second consecutive year, the +50 Emprende Awards include the Green Entrepreneurship category, which recognises initiatives focused on the energy transition and the circular economy, highlighting projects with a positive environmental impact and promoting innovative solutions that reduce emissions and foster sustainable business models. More than 30% of the total projects submitted this year fall under this category, reflecting the growing interest among senior talent in sustainable entrepreneurship.
Ana Berengena, Project Manager at Fundación Endesa, highlights the ability of people over 50 to transform ideas into valuable projects, noting that “participants bring experience and creativity to every proposal. Their initiatives show that a professional track record becomes a driver of innovation and that age enhances the ability to generate a positive impact on society.”
For his part, Fernando Lallana, Director of the +50 Emprende Awards, underlines the key role of this talent within the ecosystem: “Senior entrepreneurs bring perspective, solidity and strategic vision to their projects. Their accumulated experience turns each initiative into an example of how age strengthens the capacity to innovate and generate real impact in the market.”
The awards ceremony will take place at Endesa’s headquarters in Madrid, where the finalists will present their projects before a jury chaired by Leopoldo Abadía and composed of experts in entrepreneurship and innovation. During the event, the winners of this edition will be announced and the three prizes in the General category and the three in the Green Entrepreneurship category will be awarded.
In total, €33,000 in cash prizes will be awarded: in both the General and Green categories, there will be a first prize of €10,000, a second prize of €5,000 and a third prize of €1,500. In addition, the winners in the General category will also receive €20,000 in kind, including training and advisory services from collaborators such as 50 PRO, ARRABE INTEGRA, TQUITY, Revista Emprendedores and Datahack.
THE 12 FINALIST PROJECTS OF THE +50 EMPRENDE AWARDS
The twelve selected entrepreneurs are as follows:
- Alejandra Bernabéu (51 – Cádiz): Alejandra Bernabéu. A luxury smart luggage brand that combines technology, craftsmanship and artistic design. The pieces incorporate GPS, biometric locks and connectivity. They are manufactured in limited and highly personalised series. They are not just suitcases; they are travel companions that protect, represent and tell the story of their owner.
- Julián Cuadrado (55 – Madrid): Quantivedata. A startup leading the digital transformation of the surgical sector by automating implant traceability, giving time back to professionals and ensuring maximum patient safety. The company has designed Flexia, a computer vision solution that turns each intervention into quality data, ensuring tracking and financial visibility of implant expenditure.
- Cristina Fransi (58 – Lleida): BioseGen. Promotes a personalised prevention model based on risk stratification through a multi-omic approach (integrating genetic information and other biomarkers). The aim is to help people better understand their biological profile to anticipate diseases, improve quality of life and support more informed clinical decisions, including personalised treatments when necessary.
- Israel Ferrer (54 – Alicante): Kai Clothes. A circular fashion brand that reuses nylon collected worldwide from disused kitesurfing kites, giving them a second life by producing exclusive accessories, footwear and garments. Products are sold through e-commerce and social media in various European countries and the brand is expanding into North America, Australia and the United Arab Emirates.
- Manuel Fernández (60 – Lugo): CcVet. A project that analyses veterinary prescription data in companion and farm animals to protect both animal and human health. Improving prescriptions through data and artificial intelligence helps prevent antibiotic resistance and protects public health.
- Vanesa Lorences (50 – Asturias): La Vaqueira. A natural cosmetics brand with its own laboratory, born from a personal decision to live in a village. It combines Asturian vaqueira tradition, local territory and beekeeping to create small-batch natural cosmetics using locally sourced ingredients, promoting rural life and environmental protection.
- Pablo Martínez (58 – Jaén): Riegató. An innovative irrigation system for olive groves that combines atmospheric moisture capture with runoff management. It includes the Riegató Condenser, which extracts water from the air and injects it directly into the soil, and Pozamatics moulds that store winter rainwater for summer irrigation.
- Analía Pesquera (53 – Argentina, resident in Madrid): Isatbot. An automated system combining collaborative robotics and artificial intelligence to improve agricultural production. The harvesting robot identifies fruit using computer vision and operates through precision algorithms and machine learning to provide a more efficient and sustainable model.
- Nacho Rey (50 – Madrid): bondal MADRID. A brand of timeless shoes inspired and designed in Madrid, produced in small batches with a focus on quality and conscious production, using premium leathers and artisanal processes that reduce waste.
- Cayetana Rodenas (53 – Madrid): Repobladoras. A docu-reality show in which a group of women over 50 leave urban life to repopulate a village at risk of disappearing, transforming it into a sustainable model through renewable energy, circular economy practices and innovative resource management.
- Marcelo Schvartz (64 – Valencia): Utopy Tech. A startup developing autonomous systems capable of converting atmospheric humidity into usable water, offering solutions to water scarcity through solar-powered devices integrated with advanced sensors and communication systems.
- María Carmen Sáez (50 – Madrid): Impulsa tu Farmacia. A project supporting pharmacists and rural pharmacy owners in achieving a profitable and sustainable business while maintaining their healthcare vocation, providing tools to optimise management and strengthen essential services in rural areas.
About SAVIA
SAVIA, the Fundación Endesa project in collaboration with Fundación Máshumano, has been promoting employability for professionals over 50 for more than seven years through training, networking and recognition initiatives. It is a platform and community that fosters collaboration and creates opportunities for senior professionals. More than 49,000 senior professionals and over 870 companies are registered with SAVIA, and 200 organisations collaborate in the project. More information at: https://www.generacionsavia.org/
About 02:59 Films
DOS CINCUENTA Y NUEVE S.L. is an audiovisual production company founded in 2010 with the mission of conveying human values through audiovisual content. Initially focused on creating viral internet videos, it achieved 200 million views across social media. In 2018, it diversified its activity by developing and producing its first feature film, “Abuelos”, released in October 2019. The company currently combines film development projects with the creation of viral online advertising campaigns.