It’s estimated that there are around 300 million startups around the world, with many of these located in the various clusters that have formed around the world. The Global Startup Ecosystem provides an overview of the global startup landscape and highlights how the best startups are no longer concentrated in globally renowned hubs, such as Silicon Valley for technology, Boston for medtech and London for fintech, but rather spread around the globe, with smaller, less glamorous locations proving that specialization can allow them to thrive.
The appeal of these clusters is that they allow not only entrepreneurs to rub shoulders with those who can help them to scale, but also provide access to the kind of sophisticated markets required to help the company grow.
Despite the support offered by these clusters, and the numerous accelerators, incubators and other support frameworks, the fabled unicorn is no more common now than when the moniker was coined in the first place. It makes a recent report from ThinkYoung and Tata Consulting Services particularly interesting, as it provides the view from the frontline in terms of what startups need in order to grow.
The report, which was launched at the Makterstown festival, explores what the EU can do to help startups in the region grow and scale up globally. It draws directly from personal testimonies from 15 startups from 12 countries, as well as insights from ThinkYoung themselves.
“This year’s edition included some mind-blowing new projects and concepts. It is proof that Europe has both the ideas and energy needed for a truly digital society,” the authors say.
Building an entrepreneurial culture
The report suggests that Europe needs to shift the conservative culture that can often hold back the startups emerging across the continent. A unified digital marketplace across the EU can support this shift to ensure that as few trade barriers exist as possible. These barriers don’t just exist around access to markets, but also to talent and finance. As such, a greater ease of doing business across member states is required.
The report concludes with a number of key recommendations that the authors believe can best support startups in the short/medium term:
- Complete, strengthen and extend the EU Single Market and the EU Digital Single Market.
- Removing asymmetry in the ease of doing business, especially around areas such as tax systems and regulations.
- Support to scale up, not just to start up
- Capital funds and investment for globalizing, with the costs involved in scaling across Europe greater than when doing so domestically.
- Build an entrepreneurial spirit and overcome the preference for employment over self-employment in Europe.
The so called “Juncker Plan” does address some of these issues, and support is being raised for startups across Europe, with the likes of the European Fund for Strategic Investment providing considerable amounts of funding to ventures throughout Europe. Member states are also working collectively to remove some of the structural barriers that are harming startup growth outside of their domestic market.
“Europe’s strengths, competitive advantage and know-how are reflected in young European successful ventures: a focus on purpose, an enduring resilience, the importance of societal impact and the constant attention to sustainable business models matched with environmental awareness,” the authors conclude. “This is why the support of companies like Tata Consultancy Services in empowering the ecosystem of young entrepreneurs is vital for their long-term success. It is our time, more than ever, to help Europe achieve its full potential.”
The number of national level initiatives highlights the tremendous importance placed upon supporting startup creation and growth. Reports like this provide a valuable way for startups themselves to feedback on the issues that matter to them, and the struggles they still face in scaling up.
