What are the key challenges facing cleantech startups in Europe, Asia and Africa? Here are our notes from the UNIDO Cleantech Days in Vienna.
Top 5 challenges for startups:
1️⃣ User validation. Finding the first customers is a key barrier that startups identify for themselves and seek help with. It is challenging and expensive for startups to introduce their new technology to the end user. Therefore, organizations that support entrepreneurs should help shorten the path to early customers and create “bridges” between startups and corporations that can become potential customers and investors.
2️⃣ Lack of experience exchange between entrepreneurs from different countries. Startups need platforms to communicate with entrepreneurs from other countries and discuss common problems. International organizations should act as an umbrella to consolidate research and conduct their analysis to find and spread best practices. So, companies no longer need to reinvent the wheel.
3️⃣ Lack of funding for pilot projects. Testing new ideas requires significant resources, but most startups don’t have them. Startup support organizations should assist in finding investors and create micro-grant programs to allow startups to test their ideas without significant financial risks.
4️⃣ Connecting with the government and corporations. Bureaucratic obstacles and a lack of contact can make it difficult for entrepreneurs to interact with government institutions and large corporations. Therefore, creating platforms that facilitate dialogue between startups, government agencies, and enterprises is necessary.
5️⃣ Legal advisers. Startups often face legal issues, such as company registration, intellectual property protection, drafting contracts, etc. Free or affordable legal advice and support can significantly simplify this process and help startups avoid potential legal problems in the future.
Stay tuned 💚 We at Greencubator are preparing new exciting projects for green startups in Ukraine.
