First of all, a short presentation of Empethy...
In just a few years, Empethy has enabled 3,000+ adoptions and partnered with over 750 shelters. Recognized by Forbes Italy’s 30 Under 30 for her social impact, Annamaria is now aiming to scale across Europe, proving how tech and empathy can truly change lives.
👉 What are the biggest challenges entrepreneurs face today?
"One of the biggest challenges we face at Empethy is proving that social impact and business performance can grow hand in hand. In a world where metrics are still often driven by short-term ROI, building a model that values emotional engagement, long-term community impact, and deep partnerships with purpose-driven organizations requires patience, education, and trust.
Another key challenge is navigating a market that isn’t fully aware of the problem we’re solving — raising awareness around responsible adoption and animal welfare while showing companies the tangible value of caring for these issues."
👉 How did you build your business model?
"Empethy started as a marketplace designed to connect people with animals in need of adoption. Over time, we realized that to create real, scalable impact — and to help shelters more effectively — we needed to go beyond the B2C model.
That’s how we evolved into a B2B2C platform, partnering with companies to promote responsible pet adoption through employee engagement and CSR initiatives. This pivot allowed us to generate consistent value for all stakeholders: shelters, employees, and companies alike."
👉 How did you finance your start-up, and what advice would you give on this topic?
"Our journey began with B4i – Bocconi for Innovation, which helped us lay the foundations of our business model.
We then joined Techstars, where we accelerated our growth and expanded our international network. After that, we accessed public grants dedicated to female and under-35 founders, and eventually opened our first round of fundraising with business angels who believed in our mission.
In total, we’ve raised €750,000 between equity and grants.
My advice? Choose investors and programs that align with your values — funding is not just about capital, but about building the right ecosystem around your vision."
👉 How did you find your first customers and develop your market appeal?
"Our first client, Italo Treno, reached out with a desire to create a project with real impact in the field of animal welfare — they wanted to offer free train tickets to support adoptions.
That initial collaboration sparked the idea for our CPR (Corporate Pet Responsibility) program, which today involves over 50 companies.
From the beginning, we focused on listening rather than pitching. We asked companies about their challenges in employee engagement and CSR, and co-designed initiatives that were both meaningful and measurable.
Storytelling played a key role — people connect deeply with our mission, and that emotional resonance has opened many doors."
👉 What technological or economic trends do you think could redefine entrepreneurship in the coming years?
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