What is a Start-up?
“Start-up” is a term that was first introduced in America in 2010 and quickly spread throughout the world. It is commonly used in Turkish as “Girişim” or “Yeni Girişim” to refer to a newly established company or business venture.
“Start-up” refers to companies that begin with a project designed to solve an existing problem, but with no guarantee of the project’s validity. These companies aim to solve a particular problem in a unique way and are often the first in their approach. They can be one year old or five years old. For a company to be considered a start-up, it must show progress in the field it is working on. A company that has been in the same sector for twenty years cannot be considered a startup because it must have already shown progress in that industry.
To qualify as a start-up, the product or service must be with the aim of finding a solution to a problem. Therefore, an idea to open a new shopping center cannot be considered a start-up because there are already countless shopping centers in the world. On the other hand, attempting to discover a new drug model for the treatment of a disease could be a viable startup idea.
To establish a startup company, in which fields should one work?
To become a startup company, it is not necessary to be specifically a technology or an IT company. Contrary to popular belief, there are entrepreneurs who have managed to become startup companies with new ideas in very different sectors. A well-prepared project that is believed to be a solution to a defined problem is the first step towards becoming a startup company. The sector, on the other hand, depends entirely on the entrepreneur.
How to Establish a Start-up?
To start a startup company, you need to have a well-developed idea and an effective presentation for that idea. In Turkey, the biggest role in bringing effective ideas to life is played by projects opened under the scope of TÜBİTAK and KOSGEB.
Another startup funding method that is widely used in the world but not very popular in Turkey is bank loans. In Turkey, investor bank loans are not provided very often to startups or new entrepreneur firms. The idea of starting a business with a bank loan is not a very popular method in our country due to the interest rates applied in loan repayments and the risk-averse nature of investors.