European Start-Up Days 2018Accompanying event to the 10th European Economic Congress 2018
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What surprises me during the European Start-up Days is the presentation of a diversity of industries in which start-ups operate. In the common perception, they are mainly associated with IT and the Internet. But this is a rather simplistic view, as evidenced by my own enterprise, for instance. It is worth visiting the ‘Spodek’ Arena for professional reasons – it will be an opportunity to establish promising contacts. Not only will they serve to develop a business that is often just a seed, but they will also satisfy our ordinary curiosity to know how original and innovative the way others think is – including the fields we do not deal with on a daily basis.
Combining the European Start-up Days with the EEC makes it possible for a direct contact to be established between representatives of innovative enterprises on the threshold of their careers and the organisations that have successfully existed in the market for decades. It is a unique opportunity for the ‘young business’ to tap into the knowledge gained by their more experienced colleagues who operate in the same industries. Apart from that, it is also an excellent opportunity for large enterprises to find their inspiration or solve their technological problems among young and innovative inventors. Both circles can initiate valuable co-operation in Katowice.
Events such as the European Start-up Days allow us to catch errors made by others more effectively. And it is far better to learn using the money of others than our own… Of course, it is also a good opportunity to meet people with whom we will start a business. However, we should not be under the illusion that our participation in the event is a success in itself. End of story. No, you actually have to get down to hard work.
We live in exceptionally interesting times. On the one hand, we can create a global start-up in just a couple of years, keep changing our reality through it, and see our business gaining immense value. On the other hand, however, we see the need for change in business, especially on the part of corporations that seek innovations and wish to find or even maintain their positions in this new model of the world. The last year’s European Start-up Days congress showed the need to integrate these two worlds. For the first time in Poland, over 1,000 start-ups, hundreds of chairmen of the board of corporations, and presentations of the most interesting Polish projects all contributed to inspiration and start of a number of contracts, and even of several investments as well.
It is obvious that business is dialogue. But this is what is still lacking in the relations between start ups and mature business in Poland. It is a tedious task to establish contacts with potential partners through the barrier of a secretary, or via recommendations. Unlike in the USA, there seems to be no openness or waiting for start-up proposals here in Poland… The European Start-up Days break down these barriers. The event brings together the two worlds, which still remain separated from each other to a considerable extent on a daily basis.
‘The European Start-up Days have been a bit like the start-ups themselves – you can make plans and unfold your visions, but it is practice that will verify the value of your project. And the last year’s meeting – the largest event of this type in our part of Europe, which had arranged relations between the dynamic and creative group of young entrepreneurs and the representatives of the already mature business – exceeded not only our own expectations. ‘Thanks to the European Start-up Days my business has accelerated,’ said one of the start-up owners. It is worth looking for your investment opportunity this year, too, or even just looking closely at the variety of products and services that Polish start-ups can offer. This is a truly unique opportunity. We invite you to visit Katowice!
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