Lighthouse Arts

A lighthouse project for digital art: foundation and growth fast forward.

The mission

Vasily Fedotov is a man with a vision: innovative venues for the presentation of digital art. Launched in 2020, a suitable property for the first location was quickly found: the RAW site in Berlin-Friedrichshain. Arntz & Beckmann was commissioned to advise on the realization of the project. Specifically, this meant developing a viable concept and obtaining financing for its implementation.

The approach

First of all, the business model was checked for economic viability. The assumptions for admission prices, opening hours, visitor numbers, personnel costs and other expenses were specified. A plan was drawn up to simulate various scenarios. This made it possible to clearly determine the financing requirements for investments and start-up costs. The concept envisaged the opening of further locations in Europe in the long term. On this basis, a bankable business plan was drawn up and suitable start-up financing for the first location was successfully secured from the Berliner Sparkasse.

The result

The first location was opened at the end of 2021 and successfully launched on the market. The very next year, the opportunity arose to rent a much larger property in the immediate neighborhood, which would allow the concept to be further developed. The challenge here was the high amount of financing required with a short-term lease. The financing concept developed involved subsidies and Berliner Sparkasse as a financing partner, and was once again successfully implemented. With our support, both the initial start-up and the first major growth step were successfully implemented in quick succession. Further expansion steps are being planned − leaving plenty of room for Vasily’s visions.