The Bridge Story
From One Gathering to a Global Movement
The Bridge Story
From One Gathering to a Global Movement
The Bridge Story
From One Gathering to a Global Movement
The Bridge Story
From One Gathering to a Global Movement
The Bridge Story
From One Gathering to a Global Movement
2021
2021
2021
2021
Time to See Each Other
Time to See Each Other
Time to See Each Other
Time to See Each Other
Time to See Each Other
It started with a sense of frustration - and a longing.
Frustration that Bulgaria’s global potential and “brain drain” remained unrealized.
Longing for real connection among people who care deeply about the future of our country.
In 2021, with the support of the Power of BG community, a small group of us organized a gathering we called Time to See. We invited only those who shape the entrepreneurship ecosystem - founders, funders, policymakers, connectors - all based on Babson’s six-actor model. No marketing. No open calls. Just a handpicked group of Bulgarians ready to talk honestly.
We didn’t plan to start a movement. We just wanted to be in the same room, have a good time, and ask:
What’s broken? And if we unite - what could we fix?
The answers were clear:
We struggle with scaling global success stories.
We’re not building enough bridges across borders.
It started with a sense of frustration - and a longing.
Frustration that Bulgaria’s global potential and “brain drain” remained unrealized.
Longing for real connection among people who care deeply about the future of our country.
In 2021, with the support of the Power of BG community, a small group of us organized a gathering we called Time to See. We invited only those who shape the entrepreneurship ecosystem - founders, funders, policymakers, connectors - all based on Babson’s six-actor model. No marketing. No open calls. Just a handpicked group of Bulgarians ready to talk honestly.
We didn’t plan to start a movement. We just wanted to be in the same room, have a good time, and ask:
What’s broken? And if we unite - what could we fix?
The answers were clear:
We struggle with scaling global success stories.
We’re not building enough bridges across borders.
It started with a sense of frustration - and a longing.
Frustration that Bulgaria’s global potential and “brain drain” remained unrealized.
Longing for real connection among people who care deeply about the future of our country.
In 2021, with the support of the Power of BG community, a small group of us organized a gathering we called Time to See. We invited only those who shape the entrepreneurship ecosystem - founders, funders, policymakers, connectors - all based on Babson’s six-actor model. No marketing. No open calls. Just a handpicked group of Bulgarians ready to talk honestly.
We didn’t plan to start a movement. We just wanted to be in the same room, have a good time, and ask:
What’s broken? And if we unite - what could we fix?
The answers were clear:
We struggle with scaling global success stories.
We’re not building enough bridges across borders.
It started with a sense of frustration - and a longing.
Frustration that Bulgaria’s global potential and “brain drain” remained unrealized.
Longing for real connection among people who care deeply about the future of our country.
In 2021, with the support of the Power of BG community, a small group of us organized a gathering we called Time to See. We invited only those who shape the entrepreneurship ecosystem - founders, funders, policymakers, connectors - all based on Babson’s six-actor model. No marketing. No open calls. Just a handpicked group of Bulgarians ready to talk honestly.
We didn’t plan to start a movement. We just wanted to be in the same room, have a good time, and ask:
What’s broken? And if we unite - what could we fix?
The answers were clear:
We struggle with scaling global success stories.
We’re not building enough bridges across borders.
2022
2022
2022
2022
Time 2 Bridge
Time 2 Bridge
Time 2 Bridge
Time 2 Bridge
Time 2 Bridge
The second year, the metaphor emerged: The Bridge.
This time, we didn’t just gather from inside Bulgaria - we invited friends from the diaspora.
Bulgarian Founders from London. Investors from New York. Community leaders from Munich and Berlin.
For the first time, we could see: the like minded critical mass was already there - it just wasn’t connected.
We called it Time to Bridge.
By the end, we knew that’s exactly what we were meant to do.
From that point on, you couldn’t buy a ticket.
That became part of the magic: every Bridger earns their place.
Bridges are built by those willing to give first, not take.
The second year, the metaphor emerged: The Bridge.
This time, we didn’t just gather from inside Bulgaria - we invited friends from the diaspora.
Bulgarian Founders from London. Investors from New York. Community leaders from Munich and Berlin.
For the first time, we could see: the like minded critical mass was already there - it just wasn’t connected.
We called it Time to Bridge.
By the end, we knew that’s exactly what we were meant to do.
From that point on, you couldn’t buy a ticket.
That became part of the magic: every Bridger earns their place.
Bridges are built by those willing to give first, not take.
The second year, the metaphor emerged: The Bridge.
This time, we didn’t just gather from inside Bulgaria - we invited friends from the diaspora.
Bulgarian Founders from London. Investors from New York. Community leaders from Munich and Berlin.
For the first time, we could see: the like minded critical mass was already there - it just wasn’t connected.
We called it Time to Bridge.
By the end, we knew that’s exactly what we were meant to do.
From that point on, you couldn’t buy a ticket.
That became part of the magic: every Bridger earns their place.
Bridges are built by those willing to give first, not take.
The second year, the metaphor emerged: The Bridge.
This time, we didn’t just gather from inside Bulgaria - we invited friends from the diaspora.
Bulgarian Founders from London. Investors from New York. Community leaders from Munich and Berlin.
For the first time, we could see: the like minded critical mass was already there - it just wasn’t connected.
We called it Time to Bridge.
By the end, we knew that’s exactly what we were meant to do.
From that point on, you couldn’t buy a ticket.
That became part of the magic: every Bridger earns their place.
Bridges are built by those willing to give first, not take.
2023
2023
2023
2023
The Crossroads of Innovation
The Crossroads of Innovation
The Crossroads of Innovation
The Crossroads of Innovation
The Crossroads of Innovation
In 2023, we finally adopted the name: The Bridge.
The theme was fitting: The Crossroad of Innovation.
We became the meeting point between the local ecosystem and the global diaspora.
We hosted our largest gathering yet - including dozens of international guests and some of Bulgaria’s most inspiring doers and dreamers.
It was also the year of our first major donations.
Support from cultural icons like Maria Bakalova helped legitimize the event.
That summer, the first local community in London, inspired by The Bridge, was born. We supported them and began to believe this wasn’t just an event - it might be something bigger.
In 2023, we finally adopted the name: The Bridge.
The theme was fitting: The Crossroad of Innovation.
We became the meeting point between the local ecosystem and the global diaspora.
We hosted our largest gathering yet - including dozens of international guests and some of Bulgaria’s most inspiring doers and dreamers.
It was also the year of our first major donations.
Support from cultural icons like Maria Bakalova helped legitimize the event.
That summer, the first local community in London, inspired by The Bridge, was born. We supported them and began to believe this wasn’t just an event - it might be something bigger.
In 2023, we finally adopted the name: The Bridge.
The theme was fitting: The Crossroad of Innovation.
We became the meeting point between the local ecosystem and the global diaspora.
We hosted our largest gathering yet - including dozens of international guests and some of Bulgaria’s most inspiring doers and dreamers.
It was also the year of our first major donations.
Support from cultural icons like Maria Bakalova helped legitimize the event.
That summer, the first local community in London, inspired by The Bridge, was born. We supported them and began to believe this wasn’t just an event - it might be something bigger.
In 2023, we finally adopted the name: The Bridge.
The theme was fitting: The Crossroad of Innovation.
We became the meeting point between the local ecosystem and the global diaspora.
We hosted our largest gathering yet - including dozens of international guests and some of Bulgaria’s most inspiring doers and dreamers.
It was also the year of our first major donations.
Support from cultural icons like Maria Bakalova helped legitimize the event.
That summer, the first local community in London, inspired by The Bridge, was born. We supported them and began to believe this wasn’t just an event - it might be something bigger.
2024
2024
2024
2024
Clarity Through Fire
Clarity Through Fire
Clarity Through Fire
Clarity Through Fire
Clarity Through Fire
2024 tested us.
For the first time, we fully stepped out on our own - an independent initiative, no longer under Power of BG, though still deeply allied and interconnected.
With independence came fear: Would people still show up? Was it worth continuing?
That doubt burned away in the fire of commitment.
We raised €180,000 in donations, thanks in part to new champions like Dimitar Berbatov.
We knew what we stood for. We sparked the birth of a second community in DACH, inspired by Bridgers.
Our mission became clear:
To unite the top high-impact Bulgarians in the entrepreneurship ecosystem across the world.
To do so with the purpose of shaping the next generation of global success stories with Bulgarian DNA.
2024 tested us.
For the first time, we fully stepped out on our own - an independent initiative, no longer under Power of BG, though still deeply allied and interconnected.
With independence came fear: Would people still show up? Was it worth continuing?
That doubt burned away in the fire of commitment.
We raised €180,000 in donations, thanks in part to new champions like Dimitar Berbatov.
We knew what we stood for. We sparked the birth of a second community in DACH, inspired by Bridgers.
Our mission became clear:
To unite the top high-impact Bulgarians in the entrepreneurship ecosystem across the world.
To do so with the purpose of shaping the next generation of global success stories with Bulgarian DNA.
2024 tested us.
For the first time, we fully stepped out on our own - an independent initiative, no longer under Power of BG, though still deeply allied and interconnected.
With independence came fear: Would people still show up? Was it worth continuing?
That doubt burned away in the fire of commitment.
We raised €180,000 in donations, thanks in part to new champions like Dimitar Berbatov.
We knew what we stood for. We sparked the birth of a second community in DACH, inspired by Bridgers.
Our mission became clear:
To unite the top high-impact Bulgarians in the entrepreneurship ecosystem across the world.
To do so with the purpose of shaping the next generation of global success stories with Bulgarian DNA.
2024 tested us.
For the first time, we fully stepped out on our own - an independent initiative, no longer under Power of BG, though still deeply allied and interconnected.
With independence came fear: Would people still show up? Was it worth continuing?
That doubt burned away in the fire of commitment.
We raised €180,000 in donations, thanks in part to new champions like Dimitar Berbatov.
We knew what we stood for. We sparked the birth of a second community in DACH, inspired by Bridgers.
Our mission became clear:
To unite the top high-impact Bulgarians in the entrepreneurship ecosystem across the world.
To do so with the purpose of shaping the next generation of global success stories with Bulgarian DNA.
© 2024 The Bridge. All rights reserved.
© 2024 The Bridge. All rights reserved.
© 2024 The Bridge. All rights reserved.