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5 Best European Cities to Start a Business In

Top 5 European Startup Hubs

Top 5 European Start-up Hubs

Europe cannot be referred to as trash with respect to starting up a business because Europe is Hip, Happening and cool for start-ups.

With respect to start-ups, Silicon Valley comes to mind. But in recent times, the world’s attention is beginning to divert towards Europe. Europe can be referred to as the birthplace of the western culture. It is known for innovation and enterprise. It is booming all around, form Tel Aviv to Tallinn, the economy for start-ups is booming. This article seeks to highlight top European cities where lots of commerce activity is going on.

Israel (Tel Aviv)
The statistics has revealed that in Tel Aviv alone, there are about 1200 private investment in the high tech industry in a place that has over 4,000 companies of same nature. It has been revealed that for every dollar invested by the government, the private sector invests $5. GiftsProjects, Face and Bill guard are some examples of start-up success stories. The top accelerators are IDC Elevators, Ventureegeeks, and Window Azure Accelerators.

There are some facts behind the success. Europe plays hot to the research and development of some multinationals which includes Google, Microsoft, Oracle, and Intel. Little wonder the president of the United States of America Barack Obama recently referred to Tel Aviv as the home of the future world economy.

United Kingdom (London)
The figures has revealed that between 2010 and 2013, the number of technological companies has increased from 200 to over 1300 companies in east London. In 2007, there was only 1 incubator as compared to 9 incubators in 2013. Some start-ups who have recorded success are Last.fm, Moo, Hailo. Top accelerators are seedcamp, Techstars London, and Wayra UK.

Google Campus – Google opened its doors to campus in 2012. It provided a seven story center in East London that provided a center for startups. Equipping the place with workspaces, free wi-fi, and mentorship opportunities.

Silicon Roundabout – This is also called Tech City, located near the Old Street Roundabout, it is Europe”s largest indoor “civic space” housing intel, Google, Amazon, Airhub, and Cisco along with many others.

Analyzing the facts, it would be discovered that over one third of London’s population was born outside the UK, this makes it the most global city in the world. Also, being a step ahead of the US government, it introduced the Entrepreneur Visa in 2011.

Germany (Berlin)
In Germany, Berlin has the highest number of start-ups per capital with 128 out of every 10,000 inhabitants. Since 2008, Berlin has also experienced a 50% rise in the number of start-ups since then. Some successful start-ups are SoundCloud, WPooga, and Zalando. Some top accelerators and incubators are Startup Bootcamp Berlin, Prosiebensat 1 and rocket internet.

The success of this city can be attributed to the place being cheap, creative, and being rich in its underground culture. These attributes make it the perfect place for start-ups. Berlin was once known as a relic of the cold war, over the years, it was revamped itself into 20 years since the fall of Berlin.

France (Paris)
Once known as the city of romance, it not longer has that identity. It has been discovered that 97% of all entrepreneurs has been to graduate school. This has resulted in the growth of Paris over time. As compared to London and Berlin, Paris tops the chart in start-up performance index. Some start-up success are Criteo, Dailymotion, Appsfire. Top Accelerators and incubators are Founders Institutes, Le Camping, and Pentalabbs.

Here are some facts behind the success. The French government had to introduce several schemes for young entrepreneurs such as Jeune, enterprise innovante or JEI tax break. With respect to e-commerce, Paris is strong. This is as a result of a booming Fashion Industry to back it up. Slash sales sites like Gilt have precursors like Homegrown Vente Privee.

Estonia (Tallinn)
Statistics has revealed that between 2012 and the first two months of 2013, approximately 25 million Euros was invested in start-ups. Estonia with an average population of 1.3 million people hold the world start up per capital which is an impressive achievement. Skype, Zerply, and GrabCAD are testaments to the success story of start-ups in Estonia. Some top accelerators are Startup Wise guys and game founders.

Behind the success, the country is run based on an e-government system with e-health and keyless signatures. In 2013, it was voted as the best e-government system by the UN. If you want to establish your business in Estonia, it takes less than 30 minutes. This does not require you to pay the 2500 Euros on the spot. For companies, they pay corporate tax on their dividends.

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