It’s a wrap-up for the Greek Startup Universe online program. The tech ecosystem in Greece is now more prepared to fundraise, grow, and scale. Program results will be revealed at the closing ceremony on June 3rd.
The Greek Startup Universe was organized by Startup Greece and Founderhood, under the patronage of the Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affair and the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad.
“We wanted all Greek founders, wherever they are located, to have access to the best startup resources (network, experts, funding opportunities, etc.), in order to make the next step easier,” says Dimitri Dimosiaris, founder at Founderhood, for The Recursive.
It’s all about networking and mentorship: 430 Greek and Cypriot tech founders participated in the eight weeks program. They had one-on-one meetings with 46 Greek experts on topics such as fundraising, business development, growth, and scalability. They also had 10 hours of Q&A live sessions with speakers such as founders Kostas Pardalis and Panos Papadiamantis (they have collectively raised more than $500M – Ed.note) and investors Niko Bonatsos and Kimon Angelidis.
Dimitri Dimosiaris tells The Recursive: “I’m delighted about the network effects both in the short term and in the long run that the program has produced! Something that was also cool and exciting was that we had Greek founders from all around the globe – from Hong Kong to Chile and Thailand”. From Startup Greece, Thanos Paraschos further shares that he was surprised by the huge participation and the willingness of every stakeholder to support the Greek founders’ community.
Boosting startup success: More than 300 startups with diverse backgrounds joined the Greek Startup Universe. They operate mostly in the health tech and biotech industry. 55% of them already have a legal entity, while the other half is in the idea or development stage. In terms of the offering, 50% of startups provide a service-as-a-product, the organizers state.
31 of the startups that reached the program’s final stage gained access to Greek angel investors with a global presence. They will be able to further claim potential funding, as well as scale their business locally and internationally.
One of the participants was Creators of Cosmos S.M.P.C., the first Hellenic company that produces Live Action Role Playing Games and Events. Mario Chatzidamianos, the firm’s Director Communications and Business Development Creator, mentions: “The Greek Startup Universe program helped us to better understand how to engage with intellectual property protection rights (…). Moreover, it allowed us to reevaluate our business plan and, to this extent, redevelop our pitching deck to obtain angel investing, (…) as we are moving on to our pre-seed and seed phases of development.”
What’s next? All of the Greek Startup Universe’s participants can join the NY Soft Landing Program in early July, organized by CyprusInno and Greektech, and supported by the U.S. Embassy in Cyprus. This new opportunity opens up the way for Greek startups to enter the American market.
The program’s results will be shared at the final online ceremony on Thursday, June 3. The full agenda will be announced in the next few days – stay tuned to the Greek Startup Universe website and social media.
