How do you join EmiliaRomagnaStartUp?
To join EmiliaRomagnaStartUp you need to send an email to info@emiliaromagnastartup.it confirming the following requirements:
- you have your legal or operational offices in the region
- you have been established for less than 5 years
- nature of innovation: include a brief description of the company, highlighting the ways in which it is innovative (either in product, service or process).
What is a business incubator? And an accelerator?
A business incubator is a company that helps startups to develop by offering services such as training, expert advice, financial assistance, networking, etc. They support businesses during the crucial startup and market entry phases of development.
Similar to incubators, accelerators support companies in the transition from startup phase to market consolidation phase.
What are the three stages of development typical of a startup?
- Concept: through the drafting of a business plan, the feasibility of the business idea is verified.
- Launch: the company enters the market and begins to sell products and/or services.
- Consolidation: the company attempts to consolidate its presence in the market, generating profits, increasing human capital with managerial and technical skills, starting to develop new products/services and looking towards new markets.
What is a Business Model?
There are many definitions of a business model. One of the most commonly used is that of Alex Osterwalder (Business Model Generation by Osterwalder, Pigneur and Smith, 2010, self-published). Osterwalder defines a business model as the way in which "an organisation creates, delivers and captures value". This value can be defined in economic, social or other contexts, and it is the prime objective of the enterprise. The definition of the business model is an important tool that allows management to identify and manage major internal and external dynamics that affect the company's business.
What is a Business Plan?
A Business Plan is a sort of "identity card" of the company. It includes, in a nutshell, the mission, the business model, products and services, the market, the industry and the economic and financial aspects.
What's the point of a Business Plan?
The Business Plan is an operational tool which is used in the first instance to assess the feasibility and profitability of the business idea. Subsequently, it is used to monitor actual business activity against objectives.
It consists of an overview, which describes the products and services offered, the target market, the corporate team, the strategy and the operational plan, and an economic and financial overview, which describes identified sources of financing and profitability.
Who can help me write a Business Plan?
There are initiatives (e.g. business incubators, support projects and awards, etc.) promoted by public organisations and institutions, which provide assistance for the drafting of Business Plans, as well as private consulting companies that offer this service.
What is the de minimis regulation?
De minimis aid is provided by Member States within the European Commission without any particular constraints, so long as it does not distort competition between enterprises.
A single undertaking may receive a total amount of up to €200,000 of de minimis aid over a three-year fiscal period, even for subsidies arising under different laws.
The regulation does not apply to the following sectors: coal and steel, shipbuilding, transport, agriculture and fisheries.
The regulation sets an absolute figure as a threshold, below which prior notification to the Commission is not required. To be eligible for this rule, it is necessary that the aid meets the following criteria:
- the total maximum amount must remain within the €200,000 limit over a three-year period from first de minimis payment (from any source).
- this amount includes any public assistance under the de minimis regulation and does not prejudice the possibility of the recipient obtaining other aid under schemes approved by the Commission.
- the amount includes all categories of aid regardless of their form and purpose.
- de minimis aid cannot be given for export-related activities.
What is a Spin-off?
The term spin-off indicates the way in which a new business is established, when it is built upon human resources that have been transferred from a different organisation. Thus a spin-off is created whenever industrial, academic or institutional entities create a separate business initiative, building upon existing professional experience and know-how.
What is a Startup?
The term startup identifies the operation and the period during which a business is established. Usually it refers to newly established companies in which the organisational and development stage is ongoing. During the startup phase, a company may be concerned with acquiring the latest technical resources, defining hierarchies and methods of production, researching staff and defining activities for entering the market.
What is an innovative startup?
In December 2012, a law (221/2012) came into force, converting the Growth 2.0 decree (DL 179/2012), which saw the State adopting legislation concerning business development and growth within Italy. Section IX is dedicated to a new type of enterprise: the innovative startup.
An innovative startup is a limited company or a cooperative under Italian law, or a European company under European law, that meets the following requirements:
- it has been established and carrying out business activities for no more than 48 months from the date of submission of its application;
- it has its head offices and business interests in Italy;
- from the second year of activity as an innovative startup, the total value of annual production - as per recently approved financial statements within six months of the year end - does not total more than 5 million Euros;
- it does not distribute and has not distributed dividends;
- it is concerned solely or primarily with the development, production and marketing of innovative, highly technological products or services;
- it was not created from a corporate merger or division or following the divestment of a company or line of business;
- it meets at least one of the three following additional criteria:
- it devotes at least 15% of its expenditure to Research and Development;
- at least one third of its workforce is composed of PhD students, research graduates or researchers;
- it is the owner, custodian or licensee of a patent relating to an industrial or biotechnological invention, topographies of semiconductor products or a new plant variety, or holds industrial rights related to a program registered at the Public Registry, if directly related to the company's objectives and activities.
This classification is considered a summary of the requirements and we recommend therefore that you explore the site http://startup.registroimprese.it/.
What is meant by the term Fundraising?
Research into the types of financial support appropriate to the business objectives. Contacts with Business Angels and Venture Capitalists fall into this category.
Who can finance a startup?
The financing of a startup usually takes place in the form of financial subsidies from public enterprises, debt capital (loans that must be repaid with interest), venture capital (loans obtained against the sale of shares in the company). Debt capital is that offered by banks, while venture capital is more typical of Business Angels and Venture Capitalists.
What is Private Equity?
Private equity is a source of investment capital from high net worth individuals and institutions such as venture capital funds, for the purpose of acquiring corporate stock in companies. Private equity operators tend to invest over a medium- to long-term period in companies with a specific project and the potential for development.
What is a Business Angel?
Business Angels are investors that provide companies with venture capital for a number of years, usually from three to five, as well as management experience and expertise, and a network of contacts. They become minority shareholders and participate in the running of the company. Their investments do not take the form of loans as they do not have to be repaid by a certain date and they are paid no interest.
Business angels intervene mostly when companies are unable to secure bank loans or, for example, in the case of startups with no previous financial statements and companies that either already have a lot of debt or little capital.
The investment can be made from a single investor (from €25,000 to €250,000) or in a group with investments of as much as €500,000.
There are also business angels primarily of a financial nature, who invest venture capital without having any involvement in the strategic management of the company.
What is a Venture Capitalist?
Venture capital is an investment to finance a startup or the growth of a business in sectors with high growth potential. Often the same name is given to specifically created funds, while those who carry out these operations are called venture capitalists.
Aside from the contribution of capital, they also give added value in the form of management and strategic consulting. They invest more than business angels and for longer periods. Precisely because of the risk factor, the investor devotes time and resources to control their investment.
A business angel or venture capitalist's decision to invest or not in a startup depends on several factors: the organisational culture of the team, their experience and skills, their ability to communicate internally and make decisions, the organisational system, as well as, of course, market forecasts.
What is crowdfunding?
Crowdfunding is a method of raising funds from the public at large. Funds can be of various types - donations, loans, equity - and serve to develop business projects, launch new products, finance cultural or social projects, etc. Crowdfunding is particularly suitable for very specific projects that can attract the interest of a clear if limited target audience, or indeed, a very wide audience.
What services are available for startups in Emilia-Romagna?
For a complete overview of the services available to early-stage startups, go to the dedicated NETWORK page and search (http://www.emiliaromagnastartup.it/rete).
What are the organisations that can help new enterprises in Emilia-Romagna?
For a complete overview of the organisations that provide services to companies in startup phase, go to the dedicated NETWORK page and search (http://www.emiliaromagnastartup.it/rete).