13.04.2021

ENTREPRENEURSHIP: THE ACCEPTANCE OF PROJECTS FOR THE ENDEAVOR DARE TO SCALE 2021 PROGRAM HAS STARTED

The acceptance of projects for Dare to Scale has started - a four-month growth program aimed at entrepreneurs and businesses that have already passed the early phase of their development and are expanding their activities. The program is organized by the Bulgarian office of the global entrepreneurial network Endeavor with main partner Postbank and the support of Software Group and the Executive Agency for Small and Medium Enterprises (EASME), the financial institution announced.

Postbank reminds that the editions of Dare to Scale in 2019 and 2020 grabbed the award for "Best Accelerator Program" at the Central European startup awards CESA for Bulgaria.

Entrepreneurs from all spheres of the economy and from all regions in Bulgaria can apply for Dare to Scale. The condition is to have a proven product or service on the market, to have a turnover of at least BGN 200,000 for 2020, the number of employees not to exceed 150 people and most importantly - their business to have the potential for global growth .

Both well-established companies that have been operating for years and those that have started relatively recently can participate in the program. The application takes place on this link until April 30, 2021. The applicant companies will go through a selection process in which mentors and business leaders from the Endeavor network will select the final participants.

The duration of Dare to Scale is four months - from September to December 2021. Like the previous edition, the organizers anticipate that this year the program will be hybrid - physical events in Sofia and virtual ones when needed.

The founders of the companies will have the opportunity to participate in specialized trainings in four main areas: organization management, marketing, sales, business planning and capital raising. Each company will have an individual mentor from the Endeavor network, who will hold regular meetings with the founders and will support them with their expertise.

Participants will be able to participate in physical and virtual events, during which they can exchange experiences and get acquainted with the basic players in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.

The program will end with the final Demo Day event, during which participants will present their businesses to a jury of established business leaders. Detailed information about the program is available here.

Last year's edition of Dare to Scale was attended by 12 companies that underwent training, mentoring sessions led by entrepreneurs and experts such as the founders of Telerik - Vasil Terziev and Svetozar Georgiev, the founder of Telelink - Lyubomir Minchev, and Uber site manager - Alexander Popov.

At Demo Day last year, RPA was rewarded for its participation with an investment of 200,000 euros from the partner organization F27. Continuing its participation in Dare to Scale, the company Out2Bound acquires a new client, with whom they start work on a large-scale project, as well as establishes key contacts in Romania for the forthcoming opening of an office in the neighboring country. Since the beginning of the program in 2019, the companies have received a total of over 150 mentoring hours.

"What makes Dare to Scale unique is the very clear focus that the program has on the practical challenges that companies face in the initial phase of their growth. The program links these challenges to the experience and expertise of Endeavor mentors, who have already followed a similar path and can help with specific advice, commented Momchil Vassilev, CEO of Endeavor Bulgaria. - Over the years, Dare to Scale has established itself as an important element of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the country, as in the previous edition we supported companies that generated BGN 72 million in revenue. During their participation in the program, they managed to attract additional investments, enter new markets and develop new areas of activity."

Petya Dimitrova, CEO of Postbank, pointed out that after two extremely successful years, the Dare to Scale program has established itself as a sustainable model of development that unmistakably recognizes and promotes projects that bring real value to the entrepreneurial environment in our country.

"It is extremely important for us to be part of this process, to support the ambitions of companies that are looking for scale for their business and thus change the whole ecosystem. I am convinced that this is the attitude that is moving us forward. The time we live in provides us with plenty of challenges, but they will measure our resilience and our ability to learn and grow, said Petya Dimitrova. - For the third year in a row, we at Postbank will share with entrepreneurs our high expertise and experience to support them in the most important stage of their business development and to become part of their growth. We will look for the potential of successful partnerships that allow us to innovate and improve the capabilities of the ecosystem. For us, this is an investment in the future and a chance to be part of the change that is moving us forward."

Kalin Radev, founder and CEO of Software Group, reminded that Software Group is a partner of Dare to Scale for the second year in a row. "In last year's edition, we had the pleasure of meeting entrepreneurs from different business sectors and supporting their ambitions and dreams of success and growth, as well as witnessing the impressive results that the accelerator program has helped them achieve. I expect even greater interest and presence this year and I wish success to all participants," he said.

According to Boyko Takov, Executive Director of the Executive Agency for Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises, the agency again participates in one of the most successful entrepreneurial programs in our country. He is convinced that great companies operate in Bulgaria, which with the right guidance and mentoring can develop their business to the highest world standards and be successfully realized in foreign markets.

"I welcome the business to apply for the third edition of the Dare to Scale, because it will get the truly valuable knowledge it needs - on the one hand, to expand its business, and on the other - to get through the complicated economic situation of the last year with the support of experts, representatives of the most developed spheres of the economy ", noted Boyko Takov.

Endeavor is an international non-governmental organization with offices in 40 locations, helping entrepreneurs with big ideas and businesses to grow rapidly internationally.

Entrepreneurs, part of Endeavor, have the potential to change their countries and the world - they can be a key factor in long-term economic growth, job creation and innovation. Endeavor provides selected entrepreneurs with access to markets, capital and talent in its network of over 4,000 mentors and investors worldwide. In Bulgaria, Endeavor started operations in July 2015 in order to expand the organization's presence in Europe. To date, the Bulgarian office has supported over 70 entrepreneurs from more than 40 companies, which have created over 1,700 jobs and generated revenues of BGN 320 million for 2020.