Warsaw the City of Startups

#TechWawa 1

WARSAW THE CITY OF STARTUPS

Start up in Warsaw!

Each metropolis reflects, to a certain extent, the nature of its residents. Compared to other cities, Warsaw seems to be unique – it is exactly like its residents. When we think about characteristic features of Warsaw, we can see a city that is ambitious, dynamic as well as conscious of its successes and hungry for more. We want our capital city to be even more modern, intelligent, sensitive and, consequently, happier.

Working at the local government level, we fulfil our dream of a Warsaw of the future, as well as work with creative and enterprising circles. We provide them with favourable conditions for development and support their projects. For this purpose, we have established thriving institutions to support the startup ecosystem, we cooperate with the scientific environment and help to develop innovative and creative thinking in children and youth.

Our intention is to continue promoting and fostering the culture of innovation by cooperating and pursuing joint projects with the stakeholders for the development of innovative entrepreneurship, attracting events conducive to knowledge exchange, and encouraging talented authors to fulfil their passions in Warsaw – an intelligent city, where modern thinking and technologies are used for dynamic yet sustainable development.

So if you are searching for a place to make your idea come true, a place where Poland’s startup heart beats, and which offers both the possibilities and high-quality space for development – come to Warsaw!

RAFAŁ TRZASKOWSKI MAYOR OF THE CAPITAL CITY OF WARSAW Look into the world of startups 6

How do higher education institutions 50 support startups?

Getting 18 your bearings Who is a startup 44 founder?

Where to meet? 30 56 What should you know before you Where to begin? get the 66 money?

Corporations 72 and startups 6 WHAT DOES THE CITY OFFER FOR STARTUPS?

Look into the world 6 of startups #TechWawa 7

Hi, I’m Stefan!

For many years now, I have been following the successes of so-called unicorns – startups with an international presence and worth over a billion dollars. They are the ones being talked about a lot! I myself would like to establish such a startup that will develop into a unicorn.

I know my industry inside out and I have an idea of how to revolutionise it. I believe my company will be addressing real problems of many people. But how shall I start? Create a prototype? Tell the potential co-founders about my idea? Search for clients? Find an investor?

I am confused as this is a new field for me. Moreover, I have only recently moved to Warsaw and need to learn how to navigate the startup map of the city, which is teeming with life and bursting with ideas. I see there are plenty of accelerators, startup hubs, budding capital funds and networking events – I feel that fresh entrepreneurs can spread their wings here!

However, I am not sure what may come in handy at various stages of setting up my startup, so I am setting off on a tour around Warsaw to search for partners and mentors, as well as backing and financing for my idea.

Join me! 8 WHAT DOES THE CITY OFFER FOR STARTUPS?

Startups in Poland and the capital

What makes startups eager to choose Poland and Warsaw?

Poland attracts success are highly sought-after and appreciated Poland’s 38-million strong consumer employees who find employment in tech- market is one of the biggest in Europe. nological and IT companies, R&D centres The country’s convenient location (in and scientific institutes. Poland ranked first the centre of Europe at the intersection in the FDI Intelligence ranking in terms of of main communication routes) makes the number of new jobs in 2017, with an it possible to easily export goods to all increase of 53%. The achievements of our European countries and thus reach over domestic companies are highly esteemed 500 million consumers. Thanks to stable abroad, and our local startup ecosystem economic growth since 1992 and invest- has become the leader of transformations Poland is a stable country with ment safety, lower labour costs compared in the region. a high potential, attractive to Western countries and low taxes for for foreign investors. Warsaw entrepreneurs, average speed of fixed-line attracts young entrepreneurs Precisely Warsaw! Internet equal to 42 Mbits, and of mobile and allows their ideas to thrive. Internet – 22 Mbits (Ookla, speedtest.net, What determines the success of the And what exactly is it that makes January 2018), Poland ranks 27th in the technological ventures in Poland’s capital? ⅓ of startups in Poland choose world (the first in Central and Eastern Eu- Qualified specialists, a strong and well-or- Warsaw? rope) amongst startup-friendly countries ganised startup environment, modern (Entrepreneurship Rankings, 2018). infrastructure created with the support Education also plays a role here – of EU funds, as well as state financing. As well-educated Polish economists, en- part of the Start in Poland initiative in 2017, gineers, IT specialists and scientists approx. PLN 640 million from European #TechWawa 9

(41,000). Approx. 58,000 graduates per year stay on the Warsaw labour market. Warsaw, as the only city in Poland, achieved a very high level of language proficiency in the EF English Proficiency Index – a rating illustrating the level of English knowledge. It also ranked third in the category of “Professional skills and experience” of female residents in the Dell Women Entrepreneur Cities Index (WE Cities) – a global ranking defining cities’ ability to attract companies run by women and to support their development. The highest ranked institutions in the catego- 640 ries of academic, technical, economic and non-public higher education institution million PLN in the ranking by “Perspektywy” (2018) monthly, are: the University of Warsaw, was allocated for investing the Warsaw University of Technology, the in the local startup Warsaw School of Economics (SGH), and system in Warsaw the Kozminski Academy.

Warsaw creates development opportunities for young entrepreneurs. In addition to access to key support and funding Funds was allocated for investing in War- events in Poland – 17,000 in 2017, that institutions, largest companies, science saw’s startup ecosystem. is 46 a day – some of which offer free and R&D base, as well as business hubs, The main political, economic and admission (Warsaw Convention Bureau). we offer municipal incubators that provide cultural centre of Poland is valued for its office space, all-year-round training courses, openness to business – it’s the 4th most Warsaw’s human capital workshops and acceleration business-friendly city in Europe (European programmes, along Cities and Regions, 2016/2017). There has The city, through more than 60 private with comprehensive been a constant increase in expenditures and public higher education institu- information for for the development of urban invest- tions, provides education to more than startups. ments – in the years 2016–2022, they 250,000 students from all over Poland are forecasted to reach PLN 16 billion. In and abroad (GUS [Polish Central Statisti- Michał Olszewski, Warsaw, there are 150 research institu- cal Office], 2017/2018) – including nearly Deputy Mayor of tions and 115 co-working offices, and the ⅓ of them at Warsaw-based universities the Capital City city annually holds the most business of technology (42,000) and economics of Warsaw 10 WHAT DOES THE CITY OFFER FOR STARTUPS?

Smolna 4, 00-375 Warsaw T +48 22 443 07 56 [email protected] firma.um.warszawa.pl facebook.com/CentrumPrzedsiebiorczosciSmolna

Centre of Entrepreneurship Smolna networking meetings and workshops, Białołęka which have so far attracted more than Centre of Entrepreneurship Smolna 10,000 people. (CPS), the first Warsaw-based business Owners of small and medium-sized Bielany incubator is entering its 6th year. It has businesses, as well as those who are Targówek thus far been visited by 60,000 people, planning to set up their own business, which is as many as the population of may find out how to acquire the funds Żoliborz Praga Północ the Ursus district. to get off the ground, how to settle the Bemowo Rembertów The Centre rents out rooms and premium in ZUS (Social Insurance Insti- Wesoła desks (40 workstations) at preferential tution), as well as how to protect ndus- Wola Praga Południe rates, and grants free access to confer- trial property and avoid VAT problems. ence halls. A place in the incubator is The incubator also make it possible to ŚRÓDMIEŚCIE Wawer available to any company operating in set up a business – this option has been Ochota Mazovia region and on the market for no used by more than 1,500 people over Mokotów more than 3 years, with a business profile the past 5 years. The Centre also runsUrsus that fits into one of the key industries for a miniportal dedicated to companies, Włochy Warsaw and the region. namely www.firma.um.warszawa.pl. Young entrepreneurs are very It contains guidelines on economic Wilanów interested in the services provided by activities, as well as information about Ursynów the Centre of Entrepreneurship Smolna current training courses, conferences, (CPS), such as specialist legal, account- networking meetings, tenders and ing and financial counselling, as well as pending projects. #TechWawa 11

The series enjoys unflagging popularity and is organised in cooperation with such institutions as: ZUS (Social Insurance Institution), 60,000 the Mazovian Unit of EU Programmes Imple- people visited the Centre mentation, the Polish Chamber of Commerce, of Entrepreneurship the National Contact Point at the Polish Bank Smolna during the Association, and the Patent Office. first 5 years of its existence #Net_Smolna is a networking meeting combined with presentations. The purpose of networking is to promote new ideas and Offer of the Centre of solutions in business, exchange experiences Entrepreneurship Smolna #Open_Smolna offers open training and information, become familiar with good courses and lectures on subjects related to practices, and establish business contacts with The Information Point provides free- setting up and running your own business, potential partners. of-charge information and counselling such as: how to register the company, #Trendy_Smolna – meetings held in the form services for entrepreneurs and indi- possibilities for its development, acquisi- of lectures and presentations. Practitioners and viduals planning to set up their own tion of financial resources for establishing experts share their knowledge on new trends business, as well as help in registering and developing a company, EU financing, and ideas, as well as inspiring solutions that help the company. It provides information as well as the rights and obligations of the find innovative methods and tools for running on events for entrepreneurs, subsidies entrepreneur. a business. and EU funds, terms and conditions of owning a business, as well as about the institutions and initiatives of the startup ecosystem. #Workshop_Smolna – training courses (workshops) on promoting a company online, sales strategies, brand creation, using social media tools and e-marketing. Workshops are held at the Centre of Creativity Targowa (CKT). #Academy_Smolna is a programme of individual counselling and mentoring. It encompasses such subjects In the fifth edition of the #Warsaw_booster’18 municipal as business modelling, law, taxes and accelerator programme, more than ten corporate accounting. The combination of training partners demonstrated their great openness to working courses with individual support has with beginner entrepreneurs in order to support their made the programme very popular and development and jointly test innovative solutions. is an attractive alternative to expensive business counselling services available Adrian Migoń, president of the Management on the market. Board at Youth Business Poland 12 WHAT DOES THE CITY OFFER FOR STARTUPS?

Acceleration programmes

Acceleration programmes are comprehensive programmes for support- # WARSAW ing beginner entrepreneurs and the process of setting up a company from booster’18 a business idea to market stability. As part of our programmes, individuals planning and running their companies receive comprehensive professional support in business development, which allows them to verify and specify the business project, build up a market presence and acquire capital support: • Waw.ac – the first edition in 2015 (biological and biotechnological sector), • Be Creative in Warsaw 2016 (for the creative sector, business: games, design, fashion), • Startup Hub Warsaw 2016 (state-of-the-art communication technologies and the Internet of Things), • Startup Hub Warsaw 2017 – 250 startup teams benefited from the four editions held so far, • #Warsaw_booster 2018 – attended by 40 teams representing insurance and financial technologies – insurtech and fintech.

600hours of mentoring have been completed by 40 teams in 2018 #TechWawa 13

Białołęka Centre of Creativity Targowa the creative industries. The CKT features: Opened in October 2016 and attracting • area of 3,000 sqm; artists and entrepreneurs alike, the Centre • 33 creative studios; Bielany of Creativity Targowa (CKT) is a hub for • 6 conference halls; Targówek startups from the creative sector. Entre- • an exhibition-and-event area. preneurs active in the following industries: With its unique location in the revital- Żoliborz design, fashion, games, architecture, ised Minter tenement house fromBemowo 1867 in Rembertów film, music, radio and TV, ICT, artistic the Praga district, close to the Dworzec PRAGA PÓŁNOC craftsmanship, advertising, photography, Wileński underground station, the Mu- Wesoła Praga Południe performing arts, the market of art and an- seum of Warsaw’s Praga district and the Wola tiques or the publishing market – may use Różycki Bazaar – the Centre reinforces its Śródmieście this place to develop their business ideas position as a creative district friendly to Ochota Wawer and new skills. The premises at Targowa art and artists. 56 are also a venue for creative events and a local meeting point for entrepreneurs. Ursus Mokotów The Centre offers a special training Włochy programme for entrepreneurs from the Targowa 56, 03-733 Warsaw creative sector, known as TworzyMY. Par- T +48 22 465 90 66 (67) [email protected] Wilanów ticipants acquire practical skills and knowl- firma.um.warszawa.pl/projekty/ edge about new trends and products that centrum-kreatywnosci-targowa-56 Ursynów can be implemented in companies from facebook.com/KreatywnaWarszawa Białołęka

14 WHAT DOES THE CITY OFFER FOR STARTUPS?

Bielany Targówek

Żoliborz

Bemowo Rembertów PRAGA PÓŁNOC Wesoła Praga Południe Wola Śródmieście Ochota Wawer

Ursus Mokotów

Włochy

Wilanów

Ursynów

Targowa 80, Inżynierska 3 05-077 Warsaw facebook.com/KreatywnaWarszawa

Centre of Creativity Nowa Praga laboratories, as well as training rooms, conference halls and exhibition areas. The Centre of Creativity Nowa Praga will The surrounding yards will be filled with continue the activities of the Centre of spots for senior residents’ physical activ- Creativity Targowa. The two buildings ities and infrastructure complementing at Targowa 80 and Inżynierska 3 will be the Centre’s offer – an outdoor cinema, turned into a venue dedicated to creators, a cafe, a restaurant and a social garden. artists, craftsmen, entrepreneurs, culture The Centre of Creativity Nowa Praga animators as well as residents. It will be is one of the investments implemented intended for various types of activities as part of the revitalisation programme. under the motto “Do it yourself”. It will contribute to social, cultural and The restored buildings of former fur- economic revival of the district, by mak- niture warehouses will feature studios for ing premises available for economic and rent, workshops equipped, amongst oth- artistic activities, as well as educational Source: TREKTURA architectural design studio ers, with woodworking tools, prototyping and social initiatives. #TechWawa 15

ZODIAK Warsaw Pavilion of Architecture part of the investor support system ma- Pasaż “Wiecha” 4 intained by the Economic Development 00-017 WarsawBiałołęka ZODIAK is a source of information and Department of at the Warsaw City Hall. creative space presented in an attractive The comfortable meeting venue in the and modern form. The Pavilion is an heart of Warsaw is dedicated to events Bielany ideal place to present the achievements related to municipal economic, social Targówek of Warsaw in both architectural and and scientific innovations. It constitutes Żoliborz economic domains. It is also a forum for a cooperation platform for the repre- Praga Północ Bemowo Rembertów discussion and knowledge exchange for sentatives of scientific units, leading all those who treat architecture as an technology transfer centres and business Wesoła Wola Praga Południe element for improving the quality of life, support institutions. are active in the urban space and work The interiors of the ground floor, ŚRÓDMIEŚCIE for the benefit of entrepreneurship and which is administered by the Office of Wawer innovation. Thanks to its location at Pa- Architecture and Spatial Planning, are Ochota saż “Wiecha” (Wiech Passage), the city used for exhibitions of architectural and Mokotów Ursus gains a centrally located point of cultural urban designs prepared by the Warsaw and social significance. branch of the Association of Polish Włochy The Pavilion is a new important point Architects (SARP). Residents, architects, Wilanów for discussing the economic and urban students and scientists will be able to future of Warsaw. The first floor of participate in exhibitions, workshops, Ursynów the Pavilion constitutes the economic events, as well as awareness-raising and showcase of the city, a space for hosting educational activities conducted by the both national and foreign delegations, as Association in cooperation with the city. 16 WHAT DOES THE CITY OFFER FOR STARTUPS?

Warsaw: the city of foreign investments and economic prospects

Every year, the capital city of Poland receives high ratings and distinctions in various types of rankings measuring the convenience of investments, the economic and social potentials, competitiveness, and the economic growth rate. These are good indicators for all those who plan to embark on their business adventure in Warsaw.

LaSalle E-REGI Index 2017. European Regional Economic Growth Index 26th place (the first place amongst Central and Eastern European cities)

fDi Polish Cities of the Future 2017/2018 Winner in the general category Winner in the “Economic potential” category Winner in the “Business friendliness” category Winner in the “Human capital and lifestyle” category Winner lace in the “Access to communication infrastructure” category

2017 The World’s Most Competitive Cities Winner in the “Business and financial services” category Winner in the “natural science” category

The Global Financial Centres Index 22 36th place (the first place amongst cities from Eastern Europe and Central Asia)

Source: LaSalle E-REGI Index 2017. European Regional Economic Growth Index; fDi Polish Cities of the Future 2389participants attended the Wolves 2017/2018; 2017 The World’s Most Competitive Cities; Summit 2018 at the Palace of The Global Financial Centres Index 22; IESE Cities in Motion Index 2017 Culture and Science in Warsaw #TechWawa 17

SUCCESS STORY: RENTIER.IO Find a real property for investment

The idea for Rentier.io emerged 3 years needs, after running an instantaneous, ago as I was looking for a property to rent. advanced viability analysis based on over This process was extremely time- and 40 assumptions. work-consuming. I had researched the market for solutions that facilitate choos- Find your clients ing the right property, but I didn’t find any. While I was talking with my friends A serious mistake we made in the begin- about it, most of them confirmed that they ning was to focus entirely on the individ- had the same problems and difficulties as ual user, without analysing the needs of I did. More importantly, it also appeared the business client. The first individual that platforms automating the process client simply entered our website and Anton Bubiel i Michał Gałaszewski of searching and analysing properties bought an access package to our platform. for investment started to emerge on the Fortunately, with the help of mentors who American market. Then, together with support us, it didn’t take us long before we Michał Gałaszewski, my business partner, noticed a huge potential precisely in the enormous support in this regard from the I decided to create such a tool on the B2B channel. Our stable and well-func- city, which helped us – together with the Polish market. tioning tool is continuously expanded by Youth Business Poland foundation – as new functionalities, as requested by users. part of the #Warsaw_booster'18 accelerator programme. We were able to confront Create an optimal offer the detailed business assumptions with Confront your idea The Rentier.io website helps find real experienced mentors and establish a lot of estate sales offers (from many offers avail- Now in hindsight, I can see that it is valuable business contacts. able on the market) that will be the most necessary to talk about the idea as much economically viable, taking into account as possible and validate the business business sector: real estate, data analysis the individual requirements of the user. It assumptions as soon as possible, the number of employees: 6 monitors major advertising portals and au- so-called MVP, on the market. This way it year of establishment: 2018 tomatically notifies the users when there is possible to avoid a number of mistakes funds obtained: confidential are adverts that meet their investment and unnecessary costs. We received www: rentier.io 1818 INFRASTRUCTURE Getting your bearings #TechWawa 19

Will I be able to find a desk to hire in a place where, over a cup of coffee, I will be able to talk about my business ideas with like-minded people? Where is this Warsaw startup ecosystem based? I am looking for organisations that will share my enthusiasm Getting your for innovation. I would also like them to give me access to a space in which I will be able to work on streamlining or modifying my idea. In any case, I need a computer, bearings Internet access, and coffee! 20 INFRASTRUCTURE

Infrastructure

Where is this Warsaw startup ecosystem based?

In addition to office space, Warsaw-based locations for startups offer a whole range of useful services for new businesses. Centre of Centre of Creativity Targowa Entrepreneurship Smolna address: Targowa 56 address: Smolna 4 www: firma.um.warszawa.pl/projekty/ www: firma.um.warszawa.pl centrum-kreatywnosci-targowa-56

The Centre of Entrepreneurship Smolna is The Centre of Creativity Targowa (CKT) an incubator located at the heart of War- supports startups from the creative PLN 2.2 bn saw. It provides training and counselling sector. It offers, amongst others, training, of added value may be generated services for startups, manages a centre counselling and information services, by startups in 2023, with over that information and helps in registering as well as integrates Warsaw’s creative 50,000 new jobs a business, as well as hires out office initiatives. The Centre has 33 labora- space at preferential rates. The Centre tories to rent out, 6 conference halls, Source: Diagnoza ekosystemu startupów w Polsce [Diagnosis of the startup ecosystem has 40 open-space workstations, 4 offices exhibition and event areas, all available in Poland], Deloitte, 2016 and 3 conference halls. at attractive prices. #TechWawa 21

AIP Warsaw coaching and access to a knowledge address: al. ks. J. Poniatowskiego platform. The latter provides accounting PGE Stadion Narodowy, Business Link and legal services, as well as Startup www: inkubatory.pl Training. The headquarters of the AIP is located at the National Stadium, but AIP help entrepreneurs taking their first they can also be found in the following steps in business, by providing them, five Warsaw-based educational institu- amongst others, with a legal personality tions: the Warsaw Agricultural University to run a business without the need to (SGGW), the Vistula Academy of Finance, register their own company. They offer the Warsaw School of Economics (SGH), two development packages: pre-incubator the Lazarski University, and the War- and incubator. The former provides such saw University of Technology. Each of services as setting up a company within them offers places to work and con- 24 hours, business counselling, mentoring, ference rooms. 22 INFRASTRUCTURE

Business Link address: al. ks. J. Poniatowskiego PGE Stadion Narodowy www: business.link

Business Link is an ecosystem of entre- are located in modern, stylish office buildings preneurship that offers creative spaces in the district of Śródmieście, i.e. in Astoria – available 24 hours a day, co-working, con- close to the headquarters of the Nation- ference halls and a wide range of addition- al Bank of Poland, Nowy Świat and the al services. It provides access to a network Philharmonic; in two beautifully designed of contracts and investors. The network Zebra office buildings, situatied next to the currently encompasses 16 cities in Poland. Politechnika underground station and the In Warsaw, Business Link is situated in hipster Plac Zbawiciela. The fourth Business four prestigious locations. Three of them Link is located at the National Stadium.

The startups in Warsaw will easily find friendly and often well-located workplaces, tailored to their specific needs and organisational culture. Our city is being rapidly modernised, thus adapting itself to the new expectations of its residents and young entrepreneurs.

Piotr Grabowski, Business Developer, Partnerships Manager, HubHub #TechWawa 23

CEZAMAT

Center for Advanced Materials and Technologies (CEZAMAT), Warsaw University of Technology address: ul. Poleczki 19 innovative6 Google www : cezamat.eu campuses can be found worldwide, including one in Warsaw CEZAMAT’s futuristic building features one of the best-equipped and state-of-the-art laboratories for research and development (R&D) works in high-tech. Its structure protects it against unwanted vibrations and magnetic fields. The so-called cleanrooms are adapted to the specific nature of the research conducted. CEZAMAT is amongst the largest research and development (R&D) investments in Po- land. The Centre implements interdisciplinary projects in such fields as nanotechnology, micro- and nanoelectronics, semiconductor microsystems, photonics, space technologies, Campus Warsaw advanced materials, as well as biochemi- cal and biomedical engineering. CEZAMAT address: pl. Konesera 10 is focused on cooperating with high-tech www: campus.co business, research institutions and higher education establishments. Located in a beautifully revitalised part of the Warsaw district of Praga, Google FabLab Campus is one of the six such places in the world where founders of innovative address: Twarda 14/16 companies and their teams have access www: fablabtwarda.pl to mentoring and training courses from Google and the local startup community. FabLab (fabrication laboratory) powered by Its activities are highly rated. It is quite Orange is a studio created in Warsaw by the common to hear opinions that emphasise Orange Foundation and Robisz.to Association. the high quality of training courses and Here, you can learn how to use a 3D printer events as well as the energy and atmos- and laser plotter, as well as acquire many other phere of this place – located in a factory skills. This is because it houses, amongst oth- building converted into an office block. ers, a prototype workshop, a sewing zone and The access to office space is free of charge. a carpenter’s shop. 24 INFRASTRUCTURE

Mindspace Koszyki

address: Koszykowa 61 www: mindspace.me/warsaw

HubHub Mindspace is located in a beautifully revitalised Koszyki Hall (Hala Koszyki) which address: Al. Jerozolimskie 93, dates back to the beginning of the 20th Postępu 14 century and which has become a popular www: hubhub.pl place for business and social meetings. The company is a global provider of HubHub is an international network of boutique office spaces for freelancers and co-working spaces currently operating teams of different sizes. The style of the in two locations in Warsaw: city centre Warsaw-based Mindspace is a combina- (Nowogrodzka Square) and the business tion of industrial architecture, modern de- area of Mokotów (Postępu 14). There are sign and vintage style. While in this space, different spaces to choose from: for work, they may count on the support from meetings or events. HubHub also delivers community managers. There are different educational programmes dedicated to types of membership to choose from, technological and social trends, such as including hot-desks, dedicated desks, sin- blockchain, sharing economy, electromo- gle- to multiple-person offices, and suite bility or the future of work. offices with private conference halls. #TechWawa 25

Polish Agency for Enterprise Development (PARP) address: Pańska 81/83 www: parp.gov.pl

The Polish Agency for Enterprise Develop- ment (PARP) supports the innovative and ReaktorWarsaw research activities of small- and medium-sized enterprises, regional develop- address: Bohomolca 15 ment, export growth, human resources www: reaktorwarsaw.com (HR) development and the use of new technologies in economic activities. It ReaktorWarsaw is a non-profit organisation established in 2011 by startups for startups. pursues both national and international It offers co-working spaces in a pre-war villa with a garden, in a green area of the Żoli- financial undertakings from the state borz Dziennikarski housing estate. It is famous for the monthly startup events known as budget, as well as from long-term Europe- OpenReaktor. It organises mentorship programmes – the so-called Reaktor Open Office an programmes and EU structural funds. Hours, and also conducts the preacceleration programme called ReaktorX. 26 INFRASTRUCTURE

Rebels Valley programmes, young companies receive: address: Chmielna 2/31 the possibility of building a joint busi- www: rebelsvalley.com ness offer with the partners of Rebels Valley; the so-called interim manager – Rebels Valley brings together small, market expert, whose task is to support dynamic technological enterprises with the user in product commercialisation corporations that have a stable posi- with a large industry partner; neces- tion on the market, as well as European sary expert’s services, including legal organisations supporting digital innova- services; support in the processes of tions, e.g. EIT Digital. It primarily focuses internationalisation in the EU, Far East on supporting startups with a growing and US markets; and assistance in the number of clients. Within the framework acquisition of investment financing, of acceleration and implementation from round A onwards.

Startberry

address: Grochowska 306/308 www: startberry.com

Startberry is a community and a co-working space for technological startups, which supports creative entrepreneurs. Their headquarters, located in the Kamionek Verify as soon as possible whether the problem you neighbourhood in the Praga district, holds want to solve is important enough for someone to want regular events to develop a network of to pay for it, and whether you will be able to sufficiently contacts. It is possible to consult with experts in various fields, such as technology, improve existing standards. business, sales, law, finances, marketing Michał Skurowski, CEO and founder of Livespace and HR. #TechWawa 27

The Heart

address: pl. Europejski 1 <150,000 sqm www: theheart.tech

of co-working space is offered in Warsaw The Heart is the corporate core of innovation that beats on the 38th floor of the Source: JLL report Warszawski rynek biurowy [Warsaw office market], January 2019 impressive Warsaw Spire. Taking advantage of the technologies generated by the ecosystem of startups, it co-creates new businesses and products with large The Brain Embassy companies. The Heart supervises the Corporate Club, where leaders of digital address: Al. Jerozolimskie 181b, transformation exchange their knowledge Postępu 15, Konstruktorska 11 and experiences, prepares organisations www: brainembassy.com for cooperation with startups through dedicated scouting. As part of the Heart The Brain Embassy is the first co-creat- Ventures, it creates new solutions for the ing office in Poland designed to satis- needs of corporations. It also organis- fy the working needs of the future. es regular events, known as Corporate The functional and tasteful interi- Demo Days, during which startups meet ors serve as a meeting point for the with corporation representatives. Each representatives of corporations, such event is dedicated to specific issues small- and medium-sized enterprises, related to new technologies or digiti- startups and freelancers to share their sation. During the meetings, startups ideas. Currently, these co-creating have an opportunity to present them- offices can be found in three locations, selves in front of businesspeople and including two near the Mokotów participate in a “matching” session with Business District. specific companies. 28 INFRASTRUCTURE

Youth Business Poland

address: Dobra 56/66 www: ybp.org.pl

Youth Business Poland (YBP) is an ac- credited member of the Youth Business International (YBI) network appointed by the Prince Charles Foundation, which supports young entrepreneurship and the creation of new jobs in 52 countries. In Poland, the YBP programme is run by the Technological Incubator Foundation bringing together 100 mentors – experienced business practitioners, which helped to create 600 companies and over 1,000 new jobs in 2008. YBP offers mentoring, acceleration, training and WeWork counselling support, as well as assistance business area of the Wola district. in obtaining capital. The programme’s offer address: Krucza 50 In Śródmieście, WeWork is located is aimed at individuals with a business idea www: wework.com/pl-PL in the freshly renovated building who are looking for assistance in the initial of the CEDET trading house and phase of their development. YBP offers WeWork is an American company that the historical European Hotel, support through acceleration, mentoring, rents out spaces to technological startups which has recently been thoroughly business workshops, legal counselling, in four locations. Two of them, the Men- refurbished and is one of the most networking, assistance in the establish- nica Legacy Tower and Grzybowska 62, architecturally interesting buildings ment of business relations and acquisition are situated in the dynamically developing in Warsaw. of financing. #TechWawa 29

SUCCESS STORY: USER.COM A high-quality product We are currently experiencing dynamic growth. We have recently received financing and the funds obtained made it possible for All data in us to buy the domain that we had long wanted to have. UserEngage has simply become User.com, so we are going to build a strong global brand. Our primary objective is to one place deliver a high-quality product, but we don’t focus on sales. We had an opportunity to participate in numerous contests, including the prestigious InCredibles, Acceleration Pro- Focused on the global market Before User.com came into existence, we gram, which we won. As one of the initiatives tried to create the CivilHub portal – a plat- We have been trying to achieve a global chosen, we received financial and mentor- form focused on bottom-up social initi- presence from the very beginning – ing support, as well as access to numerous atives. When we created the application, we copied the marketing activities of training courses. one person who had access to it wanted such Polish companies as LiveChat and to use it –so we published the application GetResponse, which have achieved business sector: Marketing Automation as userengage.io on BetaList. We received a huge international success. And we number of employees: 25 a lot of interest – 400 people registered made it! The first client of “Franchesco” year of establishment: 2016 within a few days, which provided a drive was from Miami. Others were also from funds obtained: self-financing; since October for further works on the product. abroad. Since the very beginning we 2018 – external financing have had no Polish version, and in the www: user.com support department we hired a person One system, many tools who did not speak Polish – just to focus We focus on businesses where a website on the world rather than on the local plays an important role. We help them market. The first version of our product sell more – thanks to a better under- was not as refined as it should have standing of visitors and personalised, been, which was a mistake. But there multichannel communication. We are were more mistakes. We used to spend also committed to increasing client satis- 16 hours per day in the office and it took faction in the product or services chosen. us too long to focus on ensuring our The User.com platform makes it possible work–life balance. This caused some to adequately adjust communication people to quit – due to burnout. Anoth- to a given consumer to address his/her er mistake was to finance the creation of needs. Our system gathers the tools the application only with our own funds. for marketing, sales and support in one On one hand, it gave us a lot of freedom place, helping to streamlining the work of to act. Now I think, however, that an teams. We also collect all the data about external investor could have been clients in one place. attracted at an earlier stage. Grzegorz Warzecha 3030 EVENTS Where to meet? #TechWawa 31

Where in Warsaw can I find a group of people who think similarly to me? People with ideas or own startups, with more experience than me, but equally passionate about innovations? Where can I find the most interesting startup events? Where can I meet my future co-founder, while enjoying the best pizza and beer? Where should I go if I want to tell others about my idea? The first steps of justifying my business idea are difficult and involve many talks with various people, preferably ones who have already had this experience and can give me some advice, change my line of thinking or reinforce my plans. 32 EVENTS

Events

Where to search for the most interesting startup meetings?

Meetings with experts and experienced startup founders, Aula Polska knowledge-enhancing seminars, and knowledge. The events touch upon and inspiring conferences with www: aulapolska.pl the practical aspects related to the the exchange of good practices – frequency: 2/month functioning of companies and technol- all these events bring the industry ogies. Since 2009, Aula Polska has been closer together, facilitate contacts Since 2007, Aula Polska has been organ- handing out the highly reputed awards and boost development. ising meetings that promote the culture known as Aulers, which are award- of cooperation and entrepreneurship, and ed to the best Polish startups with are based on the exchange of experiences a global potential.

What is sometimes referred to as “networking”, or establishing connections and relationships, constitutes – contrary to appearances – the key activity from the perspective of your 83% business. Meetings related to the startup ecosystem provide of Polish startups sell their products an opportunity to establish relationships with an investor, to companies in the B2B model find a partner with whom the company will be developed, or attract an employee. Source: Polish startups. Report 2018, The Startup Poland Foundation Artur Kurasiński, co-founder of Aula Polska #TechWawa 33

BT Progress Geek Girls Carrots www: technologie-relacje-wiedza.pl frequency: 2/month Carrots Meetup Business Technology Progress organises events that are mainly intended to www: gocarrots.org exchange experiences and promote good frequency: every 4–6 weeks practices from interesting programmes. Moreover, it supports the development Carrots Meetup is a meeting initiative organised by Geek Girls of projects based on scientific research, Carrots. They form a community of women who love new technol- innovative solutions and advanced ogies. Their objective is to increase the representation of women technologies. in the IT sector. 34 EVENTS

CEE Startup Challenge Confitura www: ceestartupchallenge.com frequency: 4/year www: confitura.pl frequency: 1/year CEE Startup Challenge are regular online contests linking global investors, corporations and media with startups from Central and Confitura is an annual free-of-charge Eastern Europe. They are organised by CEE Business Angels and conference dedicated to software deve- the Vestbee platform. lopment in JVM languages (Java, Scala, Groovy, Kotlin), as well as more general subjects concerning programme architecture, computer systems and work organisation for programming teams. #TechWawa 35

138 startup events took place in 2018 alone in Warsaw

Source: crossweb.pl

Hardware Garden Human Tech Art www: hardwaregarden.co www: humantechart.pl frequency: 1/month frequency: 2/month

Hardware Garden is a place for all those interested in building their Human Tech Art is a community of individuals own device, such as sensors, drones, 3D printers, robots, etc. The whose work combines humanities, technology events offer a chance to get to know founders and investors who share and art. The events make it possible to get their stories of both success and failure. to know interactive projects, e.g. from the fields of AR, VR, robotics and electronics. The meetings are interdisciplinary in nature and targeted at designers, programmers, startups, and all those interested in new technologies. 36 EVENTS

Inside Trends Innoshare www: insidetrends.businessinsider.com.pl www: innoshare.pl frequency: 1/year frequency: 1/year

An international conference dedicated Innoshare is an international congress to trends that will shape the mar- for scientists, startups, spin-offs, small- kets in the future. The group of over and medium-sized enterprises, opinion 80 speakers includes key figures from leaders, business experts and innovation the CEE industry, from such areas as enthusiasts. The congress contributes to fintech, life science and digital business. the creation of an international network Apart from the lectures and presenta- of innovators, scientists and entrepreneu- tions at Inside Trends, participants may rs, focused around the Polish Innovation attend closed workshops and debates Foundation which supports the internatio- with the lecturers. nalisation of startups and science. #TechWawa 37

Women’s Entrepreneurial Let’s Start Up! Networks Conference www: facebook.com/letsstartupsgh www: siecprzedsiebiorczychkobiet.pl frequency: 1/year frequency: 2/year Let’s Start Up! is a series of events dealing with the issues of entrepreneurship, Every six months, the Network of Women business creation and state-of-the-art technologies. They consist of two parts: Entrepreneurs organises a conference the Startup2Night, a weekend-long hackathon, whose objective is to create where women meet in a larger group of a startup in 72 hours; and EXPO which consists of interactive fairs, networking 500–600. Each conference is accompa- session and conference in a speed-dating formula – for entrepreneurs wishing nied by an inspiring leitmotif related to bu- to establish contacts with venture capital funds. siness topics, around which all the experts’ lectures revolve. It is an excellent opportunity to gain knowledge, meet many incredibly enterprising women, and inspire each other. There have already been 13 conferences, under such leading themes as How to turn a failure into a success, Be The Change, Be Open, Be Yourself, Smarter Together, Be The Leader.

If you are working on something innovative, try launching the initial version of the product on the market as soon as possible before starting to improve it. Focus on one area and put your entire heart into what you do.

Paweł Soluch, CEO and founder of Neuro Device Group 38 EVENTS

Young Entrepreneurs Forum www: minnowacyjni.pl frequency: 1/year

The Young Entrepreneurs Forum is the flagship event of the “Innovative Youth” initiative of the Polish Chamber of Com- merce. Its objective is to integrate key OpenReaktor organisations of young business support, higher education institutions, business www: reaktorwarsaw.com incubators, science and technology parks, frequency: 1/month and above all young innovative entrepreneurs. The “Young Innovative” also OpenReaktor – monthly events at which you can learn about the startup experience, organises training courses, conferences you can network and talk in an informal setting over pizza or beer, as well as find your way and meetings with business leaders. in the Warsaw-based ecosystem. #TechWawa 39

Pixel Heaven The E(x)plory Programme www: pixelheavenfest.com www: explory.pl frequency: 1/year frequency: 1/year

Pixel Heaven is the biggest event in The E(x)plory Programme is a venture by the High Tech Foundation, bringing together Poland for independent studios creating scientists, startups, business, non-governmental organisations, public institutions and the video games, encompassing the INDIE media. The purpose is to support the execution of innovative projects and their promotion BASEMENTexhibition, the PIXEL CON- on the international front. Its seven editions have succeeded in building a community of NECT industry-related conference and 1,200 young scientists, who registered 1,002 scientific projects. the PIXEL AWARDS. Each edition features eminent special guests and attractions that cannot be experienced at any other event in Poland. Pixel Heaven is organised by the publisher of the PIXEL magazine. E(x)plory 40 EVENTS

Scalar Startup Wednesday Startup Grind Warsaw www: scalar-conf.com www: startupacademy.pl www: startupgrind.com/warsaw frequency: 1/year frequency: 1/month frequency: 1/month

Scalar is the first conference in Central Startup Wednesdays are meetings organi- Startup Grind Warsaw hosts monthly Europe dedicated entirely to the Scala sed by the Startup Academy for those who events for startups aimed at sharing programming language. The event has already have a business idea and those knowledge, inspiring and establishing been regularly held since 2014, bringing who are still searching for it. Each meeting contacts, as well as creating a friend- together professional programmers and features a special guest, who presents the ly community of entrepreneurs and enthusiasts. The conference’s agenda con- story of his/her business, and an expert. a business environment. sists exclusively of technical presentations A regular event on the meeting’s agenda is delivered by experienced speakers. the presentation of new startups.

SCALAR Scala Conference in Central Europe #TechWawa 41

Wolves Summit

www: wolvessummit.com frequency: 2/year

Wolves Summit is a conference aimed not only at startups but also investors, entrepreneurs, as well as representatives of corporations and small- and medium-sized Startup Weekend Warsaw enterprises. It is focused on innovative technologies and promotes the idea of networking, which is supported by an application for booking face-to-face meetings. www: swwaw.com frequency: 1–2/year Women in Tech Summit Startup Weekend is an event that combines an international hackathon with www: womenintechsummit.pl the Techstars accelerator. During the frequency: 1/year 54-hour event, participants prepare and verify business concepts. The assumption Perspektywy Women in Tech Summit is an event aimed at demonstrating the poten- is that each team should bring its idea tial of women in the fields of IT and big engineering. A single place for attracting to the prototype/MVP phase (minimum talents from Central and Eastern Europe, as well as Central Asia. The first edition, viable product). which was held in 2018, attracted more than 2,500 female participants. 42 EVENTS

SUCCESS STORY: ACR SYSTEMS Stability in the air

I flew an unmanned plane with a cam- era for the Warsaw-based film-making world, delivering images from the air at a time when it was still impossible to buy a drone in just any shop. For the image to have the right quality, it had to be smooth and stable, so it was necessary to come up with the right solutions. This necessitated the creation of professional equipment – today commonly referred to as a gimbal – that stabilises different types of cameras, specialised antennas and rangefinders, supplies them and makes it possible to control them remotely. Today, we provide comprehensive solutions to specialists – not only film-makers, but also building professionals, electricians and farmers. We have made it our daily routine to work with thermal imaging cameras, superspectral cameras and other advanced image-processing devices. This makes the sales market virtually infinite.

Support from the industry We haven’t achieved a stable business position yet, which in a sense may be due #TechWawa 43

Max Salamonowicz

to our underestimation of the difficulties journey towards success. However, on investors happy. My advice to all those related to the technology we plan to a number of occasions, we committed the who are just beginning their adventure is: build. But in the most difficult times we most common mistake of young entrepre- keep asking questions! Follow those wiser could rely on the support of the War- neurs. The “I know better” attitude should than you, keep nagging them for opinions saw-based startup community. We shared give way to humility. Surely, our track or advice. Let yourselves be known and our concerns, presented spreadsheets record of mistakes and failures would not liked. The “pass it on” strategy in the War- and discussed the complicated produc- be so long today. Delegating tasks also saw-based world of startups really works. tion processes. A considerable part of represents a problem, especially when the Learning doesn’t only happen in school the meetings made it possible for us to business is growing. It soon turned out or at your own company – knowledge is become familiar with new means, methods that a day was far too short to achieve all around at your fingertips. All you need and tools that allow us to pursue our goal all our goals. Skillful time management to do is attend a meeting and make the in a faster, cheaper and more efficient continues to be the biggest problem of most of the experiences shared by other way. As a matter of fact, we got our first our business. entrepreneurs. clients via a crowdfunding campaign on the Kickstarter platform. This is how we business sector: hardware house Get yourself to a meeting! collected the first million and, after some number of employees: 10+ ups and downs, we provided our clients Today we know that we can make hard- year of establishment: 2013 with a hundred devices. We rejoiced every ware. We know who our clients are and funds obtained: PLN 3+m time we heard our equipment mentioned where they live. We know that we under- (crowdfunding not included) on social media. The euphoria when we stand them perfectly and can communi- www: acr-sys.com/besteady.eu saw the first video reviews was enormous. cate with them. The greatest challenge is to maintain the growth rate while ensuring a healthy financial flow – which still The biggest problems seems impossible to achieve. We strive We also made lots of mistakes. We could to achieve the desired level of profitabil- have listened better. Many well-meaning ity and stability. It’s time to see results, people tried to help us during our arduous which will undoubtedly make our patient 44 PROFILE OF A STARTUP FOUNDER44 Who is a startup founder? #TechWawa 45

Rumour has it that a startup founder is a twenty-year-old guy, smoking away the funds obtained from investors during exotic holidays. But is this really true? What are the founders of technological companies really like? What made them want to take this career path? What are they interested in? What experiences do they have? What motivates them to work and pursue their wild ideas? This is what I want to find out. 46 PROFILE OF A STARTUP FOUNDER

Profile of a startup founder

Who are the founders of innovative companies and what are they like?

A man in his thirties, well-educated, often with a doctoral degree or post-gradu- ate diploma, having extensive business experience and good command of foreign languages, internally motivated, wearing The Startup Poland foundation moccasins and a handkerchief in his jacket. has been researching the domes- This is how we can briefly describe a start- tic startup environment for four up founder, according to the Polskie Start- years, publishing a new report upy 2018 [Polish Startups 2018] report. based on this research each year. Nearly half of startup founders used As a result, it is easy to see the to live abroad. Foreign life experiences development curve for the Polish contribute to fostering entrepreneurial startup environment and its share ambitions. However, the success itself, to in the innovative economy. a large extent, is related to studying social sciences. The highest-earning and most rapidly growing startups are considerably Approximately 37% made an effort to more often established by founders with start their own business after a corpora- a degree in economics, sociology and law tion experience. PLN 3bn than by graduates of strictly technical The data show that it is increasingly will be invested by the government into programmes. more common for the startups surveyed the development of startups in Poland Nearly every other founder has to decide that the company should be within the next six years, as part of the a solid experience in running his/her managed by two founders rather than Start in Poland programme own or family business. More than one in alone – an increase from 36% to 41% year Source: Start in Poland, The Ministry of Invest- three former startup founders still holds on year. Cooperation between more than ment and Economic Development, 2017 shares in the startup s/he used to run. two founders is declared by 32% of the #TechWawa 47

respondents – which is 7% less compared to last year’s data. Money is definitely not the main motivation for startup founders. Nor are their business activities influenced by external factors, including family, which is typical of small business. What seems surprising is that, despite the common perception of a startup as a place where one can enjoy flexible working hours and the inde- pendence of being your own boss, these factors were – paradoxically – of moderate importance for the respondents. It can certainly be said that being a startup entrepreneur is the result of highly individual and independent decisions. In analysing the responses of startup founders, two particularly important factors caught our attention:startup provides the respondents with the possibility of utilising their own competences and allows them to make use of the market opportunity under the principle of “I couldn’t just leave it”. A startup seems to be an organisational model that allows to derive full satisfaction from work, and this also plays a significant role for the majority of the 50% respondents. of startups are funded Moreover, they also pointed out to by their founders out of such aspects as having satisfaction from their own pockets managing organisations with people of similar motivation levels, the possibility of continuous development and learning, as well as working with people who like to Don’t wait! If you have an idea, start putting it into work. Quite interesting are the voices that effect. Launch a test version on the market and let users refer to a sense of empowerment offered rank it. In most cases, it will turn out that it is not that by this form of organisation: “I believe this bad, and initial reviews will show you which direction is the best way I can help, while making you should take to further develop your business. full use of my talents”. Source: Polish startups. Report 2018, Startup Poland Konrad Kwiatkowski, CEO and founder of Packhelp Startup founders in numbers Source: Polish startups. Report 2018, Startup Poland

14% sell their products to private 83% direct users their offer to other companies, operating in the B2B segment

60% of founders of the best startups are educated in social sciences

26% of startups have a women amongst their Cooperation between founders more than two founders is declared by 32% of the respondents

37% made an effort to 50% of startup founders start their own business after have lived abroad a corporation experience #TechWawa 49

SUCCESS STORY: DAILYART

More beauty every day

I simply took it for granted. This approach I had been saving every penny for a few was not very sensible, but fortunately years and that’s why we started earning very it succeeded. The first clients found late. On the other hand, we may say that DailyArt simply through the App Store the patience paid off – after seven years we and Google Play. However, their numbers know perfectly well what we do and how rocketed when they read about us on much it costs. foreign startup websites. We appeared on those websites thanks to participating Pursue your dreams in the Blackbox Connect programme in with common sense the Silicon Valley, to which we had been recommended by Reaktor. It was there Based on my experience, I would advise Zuzanna Stańska that I understood why the majority of our young entrepreneurs to fulfil their dreams, users came from the United States. This is but – before starting– talk to many more how the startup ecosystem worked. knowledgeable people and learn more about The idea for a startup was born because your potential clients. Moreover, it is worth I was terribly bored on my holiday. In my taking action and learning from your own We are on the right track boredom, I decided that what I want to mistakes. However, it is advisable to secure see is more beauty in the world on a daily After seven years we are entering new a source of financing before getting down to basis. Lack of beauty is not a very impor- markets – and, more precisely, translat- work. Another advice I would give to others tant problem, but it seems to bother some ing all the contents into new languages, is to count their money well, or – preferably – people. I thought that a good idea would including Chinese. We earn enough to count exactly how much they earn (excluding be to create an application that would support ourselves and invest any surplus- any external financing) and how much they show one work of art a day, with a short es further in the product. I can therefore can safely spend at any given time. description. This is where the idea for say that the company is on the right track. DailyArt came from. Though this has not always been the case. business sector: mobile applications/ I still don’t know whether it was a mistake, education but due to the fact that, as a rule, I didn’t number of employees: 4 Clients from the USA want to use external financing, it took year of establishment: 2012 I did not know whether there would be a long time before the application started funds obtained: PLN 0 any demand for such an application. to generate profits and make money. www: getdailyart.com 50 HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

How do higher education institutions support startups? 50 #TechWawa 51

Where can I find a research laboratory? How can I work with a scientific team? I am no longer a student, but I want to seek support for my idea. A number of higher education institutions support businesses like mine. What problems can I solve by cooperating with a higher education institution? 52 HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Higher education institutions

Which Warsaw-based SWPS Uniwersytet fot. higher education institutions have programmes of cooperation with startups?

Sometimes there are ideas that must be considered by many wise minds and whose testing requires vacuum chambers, chemical laboratories, or workshops equipped with cutting-edge devices. In such situations, assistance may be offered by university innovation centres, incubators and hubs. Centre of Innovations at the SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities

www: swps.pl/nauka-i-badania/jednostki-badawcze/centrum-innowacji

256,478 The Centre of Innovations at the SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities was people study in Warsaw; more than created with a view of bringing together various environments – the business sector, third half of them are women. sector, local authorities, scientists and students. Within the framework of cooperation,

Source: GUS [Polish Central Statistical it offers such services as incubation, execution of research and development (R&D) works, Office], Edukacja i wychowanie [Education expert opinions and assistance in implementing new technologies, as well as UX designs, and upbringing], 2017/2018 prototyping or testing new design thinking. #TechWawa 53

Centre for Entrepreneurship Innovation Incubator of the Warsaw University of Technology and Technology Transfer at the Warsaw School of www: cziitt.pw.edu.pl/inkubator Economics (SGH) The Innovation Incubator of the Warsaw University of Technology (ININ) offers in- www: sgh.waw.pl/cpitt frastructure facilities and substantive experience both for the academic community and non-academic entrepreneurs. It supports, amongst others, startups, technological The SGH Centre for Entrepreneur- spinoffs and spinouts, as well as cluster initiatives. Moreover, it works closely with the ship and Technology Transfer runs the business sector, including international partners. It conducts pre-incubator, acceleration Entrepreneurs’ Club, the Startup HUB, and incubator programmes. ININ also has offices and co-working area. The Incubator as well as contests like Canvas Business offers: access to research services, laboratories and the remaining infrastructure of the Challenge or Żagle Biznesu (Business Centre for Innovation and Technology Transfer Management of Warsaw University of Sails). The former is a platform integrat- Technology on favourable terms; priority of participation in workshops, training courses ing graduates and students, thereby and conferences; support from the incubator’s network of mentors and experts; and an encouraging contacts between science opportunity to present your company at industry-related events. and business. Startup HUB forms a community that provides co-working space, mentoring and investor support. The Higher education institutions are huge organisations. Therefore, the contests, on the other hand, promote the fundamental advantage of utilising them is the possibility of direct preparation of business models according contact with the entire potential of higher education facilities. to the Canvas methodology and award the best participants. Łukasz Sztern, research and incubator specialist 54 HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Incubator of the University of Warsaw www: iuw.edu.pl

The Incubator of the University of Warsaw was created by the academic community of the University of Warsaw and the Medi- cal University of Warsaw. Its members can use such facilities as the electronic lab or the design and 3D print centre. Moreover, the incubator offers three co-working areas, conference halls and office spaces. It operates in four locations in Warsaw, as well as organises the Skillbox workshop, one module of which is dedicated to startups, and training/ team-building Kozminski Business Hub camps known as Brave Camp and PRO- counselling services for startups, an ac- społeczni, conducted under the watchful www: kozminskihub.com celeration programme and access to the eye of experts. Design teams may also Leothon hackathon centre. Kozminski receive mentoring support and benefit The Kozminski Business Hub is a compa- Angels encompasses a share crowd- from an acceleration programme. The ny of the Kozminski Academy, providing funding model and the Business Angels professional and technological partners of support to new and existing businesses. Club (ALK). Kozminski Consulting, on the Incubator of the University of Warsaw It encompasses three brands: Kozmin- the other hand, provides organisational, include Crido, eSecure, Microsoft, Pfizer, ski Venture Lab, Kozminski Angels and legal and financial counselling services and Roche Polska. Kozminski Consulting. The first one offers for developed companies. #TechWawa 55

SUCCESS STORY: SCANYE.PL Easier solutions for accountants

While working in a corporation, we and confrontation with potential clients programmes and online platforms. found out that a group of 13 employees that we were persuaded to research the In short: we have reached the prod- manually rewrites over 80,000 receipts market. We conducted interviews with uct-market fit stage and we are starting per month. After conducting market over one hundred accountancy offices in the scaling phase. But we would not have research, however, it turned out that this Warsaw. We confirmed that the process of achieved it by ourselves. Therefore, if way of transferring data from an invoice rewriting data occupied a significant part I were to advise other people on how to is not an exception, but a much greater of their working time and they would be start creating their own startup, I would problem. We handed in our notices and willing to use a solution for streamlining say: learn the business-IT communication. started work on Scanye. Our programme this process. Moreover, they indicated It turns out that you will not understand reads the data from invoices, allowing a number of issues that had never even everything in the same way! for automatic accounting and analysis of crossed our minds. documents. This way, we avoid manual business sector: accounting/fintech/SaaS rewriting of the data, thereby reducing the number of employees: 8 Communication is the core margin of error that had to be accounted year of establishment: 2016 for in this process. Being surrounded by other techno- funds obtained: PLN 180,000 logical companies provides powerful www: scanye.pl The necessary identification inspiration and allows the exchange of of needs both knowledge and motivation. Startup events help to meet potential clients and In the beginning, we made a big mistake. suppliers. Thanks to such events and our We assumed that, since we would use personal contacts with the accountancy the product we want to create, it must offices that we had interviewed before, we address the market needs. Instead of succeeded in finding clients for Scanye. researching the client’s expectations, we Today, we have nearly 100 subscribers, started off by building a programme for are working on our first implementation reading data from receipts. It was only with a foreign corporate client, and have after talks with more experienced people started direct integration with accounting Łukasz Podgajny 56 KNOWLEDGE What should you know before you begin? How do I get clients? How do I create a team? How do I plan the budget? I go to bed and wake up with loads of questions in my head, so it’s high time I went to an accelerator. What is the best thing about acceleration programmes? What requirements do I have to meet? Who are the mentors that work there? Keep reading! 56 #TechWawa 57

Knowledge

What do the Warsaw-based accelerators do?

There are places where you can ask question related to your idea, creating a startup and acquir- ing funds. It is worth visiting an accelerator to speed up the process of turning your idea into a real business. Academic Startup League whose concepts will have an impact on www: startupleague.pl the social, ecological and technological environments. The programme was who it is for: micro-, small- and medi- created with the participation of such um-sized entrepreneurs, whose companies Mazovian foundations as: MOST, StartUp are registered in the Mazovia Province, Hub Poland and Digital Knowledge are younger than two years, and develop Observatory. 24% innovative products or services in line with of the startups that acquired the thematic areas of the League. offer: a free-of-charge, personalised and financing found it with the help of flexible three-month acceleration pro- Warsaw-based accelerators – this is The Academic Startup League is an access, an analysis of needs and selection more than twice as many as last year celerator that supports entrepreneurship of a development path, mentoring, Demo

Source: Polish startups. Report 2018, in Mazovia. The aim of the project is to Day, preparation of external capital The Startup Poland Foundation find engineers, innovators and visionaries, acquisition and project implementation. 58 KNOWLEDGE

Business in Women's Hands www: siecprzedsiebiorczychkobiet.pl who it is for: women with a business idea, planning to set up their own company. INVESTIN

Business in Women's Hands is an original www: investin.pl eight-month acceleration programme by the Network of Women Entrepreneurs, who it is for: creators and inventors, technological startups, innovative small- and which was ranked first in the Central medium-sized companies, technology transfer companies, special-purpose vehicles, European Startup Awards 2018 in the ‘Best higher education institutions, B+R entities, global companies, large enterprises, and local Accelerator or Incubator’ category. It is government units. not industry-oriented, just the opposite – it focuses on the diversity of business con- INVESTIN develops and finances advanced technologies through business counselling cepts. For the purpose of the accelerator, in the area of the global innovation market, acceleration programmes for startups and the Female Mentors’ Club (Klub Mentorek) investments in venture capital. It has accreditations of the Business Support Institution in was created, which brings together over the Innovation Centre category, awarded independently by the Ministry of Entrepreneur- 100 women – experienced entrepreneurs ship and Technology and the local government of the Mazovia Province. and top managers. offer: counselling, training courses and workshops, including Akademia Komercjalizacji® offer: a series of business training courses, (Commercialisation Academy), acceleration, which consists of diagnosing needs, expert individual mentoring, networking meetings. support and venture development. #TechWawa 59

Huge Thing

www: hugething.vc

who it is for: startups, corporations, public institutions.

Huge Thing is a global network for innovation support. By organising acceleration programmes, workshops and counselling, it helps to build profitable startups, as well as implement and develop new technologies in organisations.

offer: acceleration programmes, mentoring on company creation, support of innovation implementation processes, organisation of events, workshops and training courses in organisations.

Mazovian Incubator for Technology

www: e-mit.pl

who it is for: people with interesting ideas, companies and owners of SMEs.

The Mazovian Incubator for Technology (MIT) invests in new ventures and companies at the early stage of development and conducts the preincubation process. The MIT is interested in Remember that the success of your company companies related to the sector of new techno- depends mainly on you. An acceleration logies and outsourcing, including Contact Center, programme is (only? or an important type of?) marketing, logistics, sales and customer service. a tool for achieving our goals. The way you use offer: enterprise recapitalisation, strategic it is up to you. support and business development support, Michał Olszewski, Lead Mentor at IMPACT_Poland, as well as legal, business and tech- FundingBox.com nological support. 60 KNOWLEDGE

Enterprise Forum Central & Eastern Europe

MIT Enterprise Forum Poland www: mitefpoland.org who it is for: technological companies at an early stage of development that have an innovative product, service or business model.

MIT Enterprise Forum is a global network of accelerators with a programme based on the know-how of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, one of the world’s leading universities. The objective of the programme is to support the development and business model of scientific and [m]spark powered by technological startups. MIT Enterprise Knowledge Hub Akcelerator of marketing technologies. As part of the Forum Poland also allows for cooperation accelerator, mentors and representati- with the largest international and Polish www: mspark.ac ves of partner organisations share their companies. knowledge about the world of advertising who it is for: startups as well as small and and new media, as well as their market offer: access to an international ecosys- medium enterprises operating in the field experience, with the participants. tem of innovations, investors and infra- of marketing technologies. structure of the programme’s partners; offer: business and capital support, know- mentoring support and refinement of [m]spark powered by Knowledge Hub how of experts from the industry, the a business model; investor presentation Akcelerator is an acceleration programme possibility of business scaling, cooperation academy; a bootcamp in Boston for the whose purpose is to develop and imple- with one of the largest media groups best startups. ment innovative solutions from the sector in Poland. #TechWawa 61

Polish Accelerator of Blockchain Technology

www: akcelerator.tech

who it is for: startups at an early stage of development (before setting up a company).

The Polish Accelerator of Blockchain Tech- nology supports startups specialising in the blockchain technology, especially those pursuing projects for public institutions.

offer: counselling and financial support (remuneration for programmers).

Orange Fab offer: a pilot project concluded with the www: orangefab.pl development of a commercial offer; the possibility of scaling a product on the who it is for: companies that already have international market in cooperation with solutions compatible with the Orange foreign Orange Fabs; access to a network strategy, in the following areas: customer of mentors, experts from the startup sup- experience, e-commerce, AI, IoT, 5G, VR, port ecosystem and from Orange; access AR, RPA, Big Data, cybersecurity, fintech, to Orange’s infrastructure, consumer and blockchain. survey centre and sales network; free-of- charge participation in industry-related Orange Fab is a corporate accelerator of events, conferences, Demo Days in Poland the Orange company. It seeks companies and abroad; participation in the Orange with whom it will be able to develop tech- Fab Club Programme and the possibility to nologically advanced solutions. Orange obtain certification regarding cooperation Fab operates in 17 locations worldwide, with Orange; a co-working space in the allowing startups to develop globally. centre of Warsaw. 62 KNOWLEDGE

StartUp Hub Poland

www: startuphub.pl

who it is for: technological projects at an early stage of development, startups at an early phase of scaling, searching for corporate partners.

StartUp Hub Poland (SHP) is a non-profit foundation established in 2012 for the creation of an international environment of specialists, inventors and pioneers of innovative business in Poland. It supports talented engineers and entrepreneurs from abroad in building competitive teams, as well as provides mentoring. It helps to ReaktorX verify business and technological assumptions. SHP is a manager of activation www: reaktorx.com programmes (six programmes completed by approx. 150 teams selected from approx. who it is for: startups at the idea or prototype stage. 5,000 applications), an organiser of industry-related events, and broker in relations ReaktorX is a preacceleration programme for people running their first startup. with the VC funds. It is addressed to specialists in their fields who need business directions. It allows the participants to verify their business at the idea or prototype level, experience offer: counselling support, mentoring, acti- how it is to be an entrepreneur, and prepare for obtaining the financing. vation programmes, networking, the Startup Hub Poland Prize acceleration programme, offer: a preacceleration programme consisting of lectures, workshops, mentoring where it is possible to win an award of up to sessions, and supervision of the guiding mentor. EUR 50,000. # WARSAW booster’18 #TechWawa 63

Startup Poland #Warsaw_Booster WAW.ac – Warsaw Technology Accelerator www: startuppoland.org www: warsawbooster.ybp.org.pl www: waw.ac who it is for: business representatives who it is for: startups at the beginning involved in the development of the startup stages of their development, with no who it is for: scientists and entrepreneurs ecosystem and supporting the creation of registered business, with only an idea for who have more than just an idea, e.g. MVP. market-oriented legislative solutions. a product or service, as well as small- and medium-sized companies (3 years or youn- WAW.ac focuses on accelerating the develop- Startup Poland is one of the largest and ger), which are more advanced and whose ment of technological companies and startups most influential technological think tanks products or services are already available of different sizes, operating in the fields of life in Central Europe. It represents the sector on the market. science, MedTech, energy, IoT, electronics, mobile in a dialogue with the representatives of and IT/ICT. The programme is based on the long- business and public administration, as well The #Warsaw_ Booster is a regularly-held term experience of the founders and on the varied as with the European Union. Moreover, it municipal acceleration programme execu- practical knowledge of over 200 mentors, who issues a series of publications, including ted by various operators. Its potential lies in are involved in the programme according to the the most comprehensive report dedicated the diversity of accelerated companies that participants’ needs. to startups. It also cooperates with represent numerous industries, as well as in business representatives involved in the the broad range of professional support. offer: an individual acceleration path with ade- development of the startup ecosystem and quately selected mentors; professional support in with non-governmental organisations. offer: a programme for building the com- the form of workshops, training courses and coun- It supports the projects of market-oriented petences of startups working on technolo- selling services; networking support in a community legislative solutions. gies and projects addressing the challen- of entrepreneurs, scientists, artists, business angels ges faced by cities, numerous partners and investors; support in the acquisition of financ- offer: knowledge, representation of the startup from various fields, as well as mentors and ing; technical support in the development of hard- sector in contacts with decision-makers. external experts. ware/software; access to the programme’s partners. 64 KNOWLEDGE

SUCCESS STORY: FASADIO Every house deserves a new façade

More than a year ago, when I was still a little bit like guinea pigs. The subsequent running an architecture studio, we had ones responded positively to the offer we a client who wanted to design only the created at www.projektyelewacji.pl and façade of his otherwise finished house. continued placing orders. Together with my partner at that time Just a few years ago, the market of we decided that the projects would be façade finishing materials offered almost presented on one of the building forums. exclusively plaster mosaics and plaster- It was like hitting the bull’s eye! I was work applied in three styles: the “lamb”, answering questions under this post for the “woodworm”, and the “smooth-touch”. an entire day and the forum, along with Over the past few years, the offer has Facebook where we also placed our posts, become more and more extensive, and generated further clients. the clients – increasingly aware of the new possibilities. However, there are still no companies that would help them find their The first challenges bearings on the market, make a decision in In the beginning, we didn’t know how such visual terms, and negotiate the best prices. a project should be valued or professionally Moreover, competitors usually offer pro- presented, so the first clients were treated jects with very long delivery dates. Magdalena Sobczyńska #TechWawa 65

We decided to exclude from the design Secondly, I didn’t have much experi- process all the elements which were not ence in building teams and I concluded Learn from my mistakes necessary for the client, e.g. consulta- that we needed a large office, comput- tions at the construction site, establish ers, telephones and CRM subscriptions. I have a few observations that one day will a fixed price list for developing façades for There were also moments when we be surely converted into an extensive article single-family houses, as well as divide the were rushed off our feet because we about the errors made at Fasadio. The fol- service-related processes into the neces- had tons of orders, and then sudden de- lowing are the most significant of them: sary competences. This helped us create clines – no doubt, we were not prepared • If somethings works well, make im- an interesting product within the price for either. provements gradually, especially if the range of a house owner. Another mistake: sudden and signifi- income from the activity also finances its cant changes without a specific financial development. plan in case something fails. I think The driving force behind • Have a financial cushion for at least I could go on with a long list, but I con- acceleration six months, assuming real costs. If you sole myself with the thought that only need to hire somebody or purchase But things did not go well at all times. those who do nothing are never wrong. something – calculate what it will bring We initially made a few mistakes. First of into the company, what benefit it will all, although we did not know any meth- We are developing the idea generate and in what period of time. ods of stable business scaling, we assumed And you’d better think ten times whether a growth in the number of customers, At the moment, we have already pre- a given item or person is indispensable focusing only on AdWords and Face- pared the MVP of the platform which at a given stage. book advertising. will be used for handling our clients, we • You do not have to hire specialists on Unfortunately, it is not as simple as are expanding our activities on foreign a full-time basis – most of the compe- that, especially with such a small scale markets – mainly the UK, but we are tences can be “purchased” in the form of (fewer than 1,000 clients a year and also researching the US market – and B2B. Nowadays, an office is not nec- a small advertising budget). We there- establishing partnerships with manufac- essary either as the teamwork can be fore joined an acceleration programme, turers of finishing materials in Poland. conducted remotely. A free-of-charge mainly to meet people knowledgeable in We are getting positive feedback from application, e.g. Trello, will be perfect for marketing, PR and automation-related the industry and, above all, from the managing projects and people. aspects. We also wanted to find out how manufacturers of construction materials. • other companies with a similar profile or There is almost unanimous agreement Listen to your advisors, but above all fol- business model operate. The acceleration that the service we have designed will low your own mind. Many people, though has made it possible for us as a startup to make its way to other markets, improve driven by good intentions, do not know appear at various events, as well as par- the clients’ awareness and increase the all the aspects of your business and may ticipate in both national and international average orders of retail clients. therefore give you misleading advice. contests and publications. Participation in the programme, besides the learning expe- business sector: PropTech And one more good piece of advice to end rience and making friends, is an enormous number of employees: 6 with: work–work balance does not work in driving force for the PR. In Fasadio, we can year of establishment: 2017 the long run. You must find time to relax! still feel the great influence of the acceler- funds obtained: 0 (bootstrapping) ator on the company’s reputation. www: fasadio.com 66 FUNDING Where to get the money?

Executing my startup idea is very costly. Who is going to help me? A business angel? A capital fund? Crowdfunding? It goes without saying that investment will be unavoidable. And this raises questions. 66 #TechWawa 67

Funding

At what stage of idea development should I apply for financing?

It goes without saying that turning an idea into a business requires months and sometimes even years of investment. Hardly anyone has access to free funds, and even if they do, the invest- There are many places where one can apply went, what should be taken into account ment outlays usually need to be for funds to set up a company. Business an- when establishing contact and preparing the significantly higher. It is therefore gels will be eager to invest smaller amounts application, as well as what the negotiations worth seeking external sources of at the early, most risky stage. They are usu- looked like. financing at an early stage in or- ally entrepreneurs who have already made Then there is also social crowdfunding, der to support the establishment money by establishing successful compa- or a method of raising a considerable amount and development of the company. nies. As a result, they may often support through small investments from a large num- a startup with their knowledge. ber of people. This way it is also possible to Investment funds are capable of build a community around our company and putting greater resources into a project to find our first loyal clients How much it will accelerate its development. You may want cost to implement a startup idea obviously to spend a while looking more closely into depends primarily on the idea itself. which funds invest in startups depending But not only. As startup founders advise, USD 39m on the stage of development, as well as it is always worth thinking twice whether was obtained in a few rounds from the what kind of amounts they deal with. It is a given expense is really indispensable, international investor market by the also important to check out the portfolio whether an office in the centre of War- Cracow-based startup called Brainly of a given fund and talk with the startups saw is necessary right in the beginning

Source: Polish startups. Report 2018, in which the fund previously invested, in or whether it is enough to hire a desk in The Startup Poland Foundation order to find out how the cooperation a co-working space. 68 FUNDING

BLOCKCHAIN Data Ventures Kogito Ventures SMOK Ventures AI Data Ventures Polski Instytut Badań i Rozwoju SMOK Ventures Tar Heel Capital Pathfinder TDJ Pitango Ventures ValueTech Seed MARTECH bValue KnowledgeHub SILBA Venture Capital

E-COMMERCE Black Swan Fund bValue Kogito Ventures

Choose the right investor for yourself, taking into consideration their specialisation and the amount of financing you need. Learn as much as possible about potential investors, and check how many investments they make, what they specialise in, and whether they are able to invest in your project in later years.

Marcin Zabielski, Managing Partner, Market One Capital and Hedgehog Fund #TechWawa 69

ICT Black Swan Fund Experior Venture Fund SILBA Venture Capital Starfinder Tar Heel Capital Pathfinder FINTECH ValueTech Seed Black Swan Fund bValue Data Ventures KnowledgeHub Kogito Ventures SILBA Venture Capital SAAS SMOK Ventures bValue Corvus Ventures Data Ventures Kogito Ventures Market One Capital Tar Heel Capital Pathfinder TDJ Pitango Ventures

INDUSTRY 4.0

bValue KnowledgeHub TDJ Pitango Ventures IOT Arkley Brinc VC SILBA Venture Capital TDJ Pitango Ventures 70 FUNDING

Alfabeat Experior Venture Fund Starfinder www: alfabeat.com www: evf.com.pl www: starfinder.eu @: [email protected] @: [email protected] @: [email protected] amount of investment: EUR 0.25–0.75m amount of investment: EUR 0.5–3m amount of investment: up to PLN 1m

Arkley Brinc VC KnowledgeHub Tar Heel Capital Pathfinder www: arkleybrinc.vc www: knowledgehub.pl www: thcpathfinder.com @: [email protected] @: [email protected] @: [email protected] amount of investment: USD 0.3–0.8m amount of investment: PLN 1–3m amount of investment: up to PLN 4m

Black Swan Fund Kogito Ventures TDJ Pitango Ventures www: blackswanfund.pl www: kogito-ventures.com www: tdjpitangoventures.com @: [email protected] @: [email protected] @: [email protected] amount of investment: up to PLN 4m amount of investment: PLN 0.5–4m amount of investment: USD 1–3m bValue Market One Capital ValueTech Seed www: bvalue.vc www: moc.vc www: valuetech.pl @: [email protected] @: [email protected] @: [email protected] amount of investment: PLN 1–4m amount of investment: EUR 0.2–4m amount of investment: up to PLN 1m

CEE Business Angels Network Montis Capital CROWDFUNDING www: ceeban.org www: montiscap.com Beesfund @: [email protected] @: [email protected] www: beesfund.com amount of investment: PLN 0.25–4m amount of investment: PLN 5–20m @: [email protected] amount of investment: up to PLN 4m Cobin Angels Next Road Ventures www: cobinangels.com www: nextroad.vc FundedByMe @: [email protected] @: [email protected] www: fundedbyme.com amount of investment: PLN 0.5–5m amount of investment: PLN 1–4m @: [email protected] amount of investment: EUR 0.1–0.5m Corvus Ventures Polski Instytut Badań i Rozwoju www: corvus.vc www: pibir.pl Vestbee @: [email protected] @: [email protected] www: vestbee.com amount of investment: PLN 0.2–2.0m amount of investment: PLN 1m @: [email protected] amount of investment: PLN 0.1–25m Data Ventures SILBA Venture Capital www: dataventures.io www: silba.pl @: [email protected] @: [email protected] amount of investment: USD 0.1–0.25m amount of investment: up to PLN 4m

EEC Magenta SMOK Ventures www: eecventures.com www: smok.vc @: [email protected] @: [email protected] amount of investment: PLN 1–30m amount of investment: PLN 0.1–3m #TechWawa 71

SUCCESS STORY: HANDYSHOWER The first clients and the beta version A great contribution to our idea, when it comes to business solutions, An accidental idea was made by the meetings at the BT Innovation, Reaktor and Startup Hub Warsaw 2017. We got our first clients thanks to the wspieram.to crowdfunding solution. This is how the HandyShower was created – the only 3-in-1 portable device in the world for personal hygiene (featuring a shower, a tap and a bidet), solving the problem of unavailability of basic sanitary equipment and limited water resources for these purposes. At the moment, we are at the stage of the equipment’s beta version, small series production, which still requires some corrections.

Learning from the best

Zdzisław Iwanejko with a family team Thanks to the support of the startup environment, we managed to avoid making serious mistakes, but we have Demand for the product At my wife’s request, I constructed made a lot of minor ones that we are a piece of equipment for refilling the The project mostly appealed to Muslims dealing with step by step. Therefore, windscreen washer fluid in a car without travelling to Europe, who need a mobile I have the following two pieces of opening the bonnet. At the same time, ablution unit. Moreover, there were advice for beginner entrepreneurs: an interesting device was created, with numerous contests, organised by such have courage and perseverance, as no defined application yet an incredibly humanitarian organisations as: the Red well as learn from the best. precise valve, which ensured extremely Cross, Oxfam, CEWAS, and Standard smooth running (probably the best result Bank (Africa), which showed a lack of business sector: wash, cleantech in the world) and could be used in many sensible solutions that would allow number of employees: 1 ways. Both solutions were patented. people to take care of their hygiene in year of establishment: 2017 Presented during the Automechanika places with rationed access to water. The funds obtained: PLN 10.000 2014 Fair in Frankfurt, they both aroused market demand was also indicated by the (BTM Innovation); PLN 210,000 interest, but the chance invention proved fact that similar projects are financed by (SEAL of Excellence, PARP) to be a real hit. the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. www: handyshower.pl 72 FUNDING Corporations and startups How to gain access to a corporate database of clients, big money and serious businesspeople? How to land an interview with someone who makes decisions on innovations at Amazon, Google or Facebook? Or perhaps there are other ways to enter into cooperation with a large organisation? 72 #TechWawa 73

Cooperation between large companies and young technological companies may Corporations 82% bring a huge competitive advantage for of the Polish startups polled declare that both sides. For a corporation, it acts as they want to cooperate with a corporation How can we make a breath of fresh air, reinforcement of the a corporation interested culture of innovation, as well as introduc- Source: Polish startups. Report 2017, tion of a product or service that might The Startup Poland Foundation in our idea? help to stay ahead of the competition. Corporations observe dynamically evolv- ing markets and, being aware that their startup–corporation relationships built? huge structure and complex procedures Theoretically, there are many forms of prevent them from responding to these cooperation, from the simplest contests changes using their own resources, are for startups, through incubators and increasingly deciding to implement new accelerators, to the so-called corporate solutions devised by startups. From the venture capital (CVC). Research indicates The Startup Poland 2018 Report perspective of a startup, access to a large that corporations are not only passive indicates that 82% of startups client database and corporate resources, recipients of the solutions offered, but are willing to cooperate with as well as the possibility of testing its they also participate both in the promo- corporations. On the other hand, idea and, quite often, receiving financial tion of a given startup’s technologies and the surveys conducted by the support, are huge assets. Moreover, such undertaking joint efforts in the work on MassChallenge startup accelera- solutions contribute to more effective pro- innovations (co-development). tor show that even 99% of the motion of new ideas, as well as acquisition startups polled and as many as of wide distribution channels. 82% of the corporations recog- Not only technology nise the need for cooperation What do you need to know before you and see it as an opportunity for Various possibilities turn to a large organisation with your pro- rapid development. It is therefore of cooperation ject? Obviously, the most important thing clear that both sides – not only As shown by the Startup Poland 2018 re- is that the solution should be technologi- startups – are interested in each port, more than half of those who cooper- cally adapted to the needs of a given cor- other. So how should a relation- ate with corporations – and this is true of poration. However, there are a few more ship be established? nearly one in three startup s– treat large key features that should be possessed by business as a strategic client. How are a potential partner of a corporation.

Corporations, such as banks, wishing to get closer to their clients and respond to their needs faster, are increasingly more open to the innovative solutions created by beginning companies. Startups, on the other hand, see cooperating with a bank as a chance for quicker achievement of the scale, acquisition of new client database and gaining market trust.

Kamila Wincenciak, FinTech Department, Alior Bank S.A. 74 CORPORATIONS AND STARTUPS

A startup should: 1. propose a stable solution that can be easily scaled and implemented amongst thousands of clients; 2. understand the specificity of opera- tion, communication and project management in large global companies; 3. have an adequate number of individuals on the team, with clearly defined roles and areas of responsibility; 4. have financial resources for the period of negotiations, i.e. at least for a few months. To avoid going into this blindly, it is worth examining the acceleration programmes created by corporations, participating in a hackathon organised by a given company or in the Scale Up programme to get to know the requirements of the 99% of the startups surveyed particular company. by MassChallenge perceive After that, you will be ready for talks the need to cooperate with with potential partners in corporations. corporations #TechWawa 75

SUCCESS STORY: PARROTONE Communication without barriers

As a person with a physical disability, I was built-in translator allows you to create looking for a mobile application that would grammatical sentences, for instance, make it easier for me to send SMSes or in English. text my friends. It soon turned out that the only support is the word suggestion An important need bar over the keyboard in smartphones. It is not enough when your muscles become Efficient remote communication is the easily tired and you have limited manu- basic need of every disabled individual. al dexterity. That’s why I started work Being one and having similar friends, on ParrotOne. I knew that ParrotOne would be needed. This was confirmed by the research and numerous awards we received, e.g. the Writing more easily “Applications without barriers” from the and quickly Integracja association and foundation. We Piotr Lewandowski Our application addresses the difficul- keep working on developing the system ties of writing on mobile devices, which and streamlining the messenger. We plan have our ideas verified and be able to particularly affect the physically disabled, to share the application no later than in talk to mentors. We learned wise lessons invalids (loss of arm, finger(s)), and seniors March-April 2019. So we are currently at from Robert Dziubłowski, Dawid Urban, (problem with precision of movement, the stage of advanced works on the first Lech Kaniuk, Piotr Bucki, Maciej Gałecki, shaking hands). Thanks to a special, public version of the application. Maciej Sadowski, Izabela Disterheft, Arek full-screen user interface, a dictionary Piechocki and others. and a built-in artificial intelligence, which Mentors and development prompts messages on the screen, our business sector: IT, mobile messenger makes typing easier, faster I feel that development is always pos- number of employees: 4 and more effortless. ParrotOne makes itively affected by two factors, namely year of establishment: 2016 it possible to easily use foreign languag- hard work and acquisition of an investor. funds obtained: no data es. Even if you do not know them. The We also found it extremely helpful to www: parrotone.com 76 CORPORATIONS AND STARTUPS Thinking about a startup, choose Warsaw!

I can see that it makes sense to be a startup founder in Warsaw! The city integrates the entire startup environment and has many institutions that provide various types of support. #TechWawa 77

1 Check out how Warsaw can help you 5 Learn to cooperate with higher education institutions Municipal business incubators and creativity centres, sup- Developing an idea at a higher education institution helps porting programmes and specialists at your fingertips – all to make use of its resources – access to laboratories, test you need to do is join the Warsaw-based startup community area, experts in various fields and adequate technology by registering at the Centre of Entrepreneurship Smolna. transfer centres, and – additionally – the brand developed by a given institution.

2 Find a place where you can take off 6 Reach for knowledge By entering the Warsaw-based startup ecosystem, it is It is worth presenting your business idea in an incubator or possible to find not only a creatively arranged place for work, preaccelerator in order to get assistance in launching rele- but also organisations which are equally enthusiastic about vant activities. A finished prototype, on the other hand, may working on their innovations and will be happy to advise on benefit from an accelerator by finding both mentors and the subsequent steps. first funds to get off the ground.

3 Take part in industry-related events 7 Find an investor... Even at the very beginning of your startup journey, it is worth Warsaw is the seat of numerous investments funds, whose attending conferences, seminars and other meetings, in support makes it possible to accelerate the company’s order to start creating a network of contacts and gain basic growth and which greatly contributed to the rapid devel- understanding. opment of the environment and the emergence of the first Polish unicorns.

4 Get to know people wiser than you 8 ...or a corporation Attending organised mentoring hours is the simplest way of The development of startups is also actively boosted by various gaining knowledge. More experienced individuals may advise corporations that are willing to implement products and services on what to do next and help to verify your startup idea. devised externally. It is worth considering such an alliance! 78

SUCCESS STORY: ZWERYFIKUJFIRME.PL Verifying credibility Co-founders: Karol Gałązka, Anna Gałązka and Dariusz Puczyński

An idea generated We began our adventure in the startup an obvious mistake. We did not believe the by regulations world two years ago, shortly after the wise people who warned us that, in such a big introduction of the first regulations con- When the Unified Control Files (JPK) were institution that we were working with, it may cerning Unified Control Files (JPK). JPK are introduced, we soon realised that they are take – under optimistic conditions – 1.5 years accounting books and documents kept by a repository of knowledge about compa- to reach the stage of signing a contract. Now means of computer programmes in a suita- nies. For the first time ever, all companies we already know that help and advice from ble format. They must be generated, stored in Poland send detailed financial informa- mentors are invaluable. We also recommend and submitted at the request of tax offices. tion in a unified format. Given this situa- that all startups take into account another This is how the business idea was born. tion, we made an attempt to devise a tool important lesson: it is worth talking about for automatic analysis of the financial your idea with anyone who wants to listen. data from those documents. We created The perspective of an external observer is Identifying the problem a prototype of a solution for assessing very valuable. The founding team includes experts in the creditworthiness of companies for One way or another, in December 2018 the field of finance (expert auditors) and financial institutions (banks, factoring and we successfully completed the pilot test and an IT specialist. The problem that we, leasing companies). We registered it to the are now talking with PKO BP about further expert auditors, understand very well is MIT EF Polska acceleration programme, steps. We are also involved in talks with other the lack of reliable information about the thereby establishing cooperation with financial institutions. But at the same time, financial situation of enterprises. Merely PKO BP. This reinforced our conviction bearing in mind the lengthy process of talks 1% of financial data in Poland are sub- that we were on the right track. and negotiations, we are starting to work on ject to external verification. This means developing products for entrepreneurs, such that the credibility of 99% of the data is as rating for companies. First clients and development questionable. We should also remember that we can access the data of merely 20% We were given a chance to carry out business sector: fintech of the companies in Poland – that is those a pilot test of our solution in PKO BP. Number of employees: 7 which prepare their financial statements. Therefore, we focused on the devel- year of establishment: 2017 We know nothing about the others. This opment of the product for financial funds obtained: from investors PLN 90,000 means that in fact we mostly have no idea institutions, putting aside other ideas to from the Scale Up MIT EF Polska programme with whom we are doing business. which we are now coming back. It was www: zweryfikujfirme.pl Editorial team Jacek Brzeziński, Natalia Syrzycka-Mlicka (Business Edge), Diana Koziarska, Agata Kwaśniewska (Reaktor)

Graphic design and typesetting Paulina Kloc (Business Edge)

Publisher City of Warsaw um.warszawa.pl firma.um.warszawa.pl

Second edition Warsaw, 2019

The subsequent issues of the guide will be improved and updated according to readers’ suggestions.

Feel free to send any observations and suggestions to the following address: [email protected]

The publication is financed with the funds of the City of Warsaw.

The photographs used in the publications come from the archives of the capital city of Warsaw, as well as from startups, event organisers and influencers.

The views and opinions expressed by the authors of the publication do not necessarily reflect the standpoint of the City of Warsaw. 80 FUNDING

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