Von Rosen believes Germany’s sluggish economic performance is being compounded by an overly bureaucratic system for business founders, in an economy that is geared towards larger, industrial businesses. He wants to see the priority shift to creating new businesses, such as technology startups, to reignite the economy.

The average time it takes to register a business in Germany is between two and six weeks (Business Centre Niederrhein). By comparison, in the UK, it takes 24 hours (GOV.UK).

Born in Germany, von Rosen began his entrepreneurial journey in Munich with his first venture, CareerConcept, for which he was named a ‘Young Global Leader’ by the World Economic Forum. He later launched the Berlin-based luxury fashion brand VONROSEN, best known for providing Steve Jobs with his iconic black turtleneck (Business Insider).

Von Rosen’s proposal comes as Germany faces its third consecutive year of recession (Sky News). With zero growth projected for 2025 (POLITICO), it is Germany’s worst economic performance since the Second World War (Sky News).

He argues a Federal Office for Entrepreneurship is needed to simplify the process of starting and scaling a business in Germany by making entrepreneurial support a priority at the heart of German government and its growth strategy. 

Dr. David von Rosen said: “We’re seeing innovators across the globe rushing to be the first to launch the next big AI startup or tech firm. Meanwhile, German entrepreneurs are stuck muddling through an outdated and needlessly complex bureaucratic system.  

“A Federal Office for Entrepreneurship would be a game changer for Germany’s innovation landscape. It could radically simplify the entire entrepreneurial journey, from idea to scale-up, making it easy for founders to turn their great ideas into reality. 

“It would strip away the layers of bureaucracy clogging Germany’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, making it faster and easier to register a business, raise capital, and hire talent.

“The process of starting a business in Germany needs to be brought into the modern day. Until this happens, innovation will continue to grind to a halt – and Germany will fall behind while the international competition speeds ahead. 

“Germany simply can’t afford to cling to outdated processes anymore. Entrepreneurs are the drivers of growth and innovation, and we need to see the Government put them at the front of the agenda.”