How We Select Startups At Seedstars World

While running nearly 100 startup and pitch events in over 55 countries around the world for the past three years, we have met thousands of talented entrepreneurs and fascinating startups. We get a lot of questions about what Seedstars World is looking for in our selection process. How do we select startups? We thought it’d be helpful to break down what we look for and what’s in it for you:

1. Seed stage
2. Raised a maximum of $500K USD in investment
3. Less than two years old
4. Scalable

1) Seed Stage:

We are serious about investing in emerging markets and we want to work with other people who are serious about building a business in these markets. Having a business idea is easy, but executing it is the hard part. This is why we look at startups with a full-time team that has developed a prototype and has achieved early signs of traction in the market. For example, the startups applying for our events have an average of 4.2 employees, meaning that the companies are relatively early stage and at the beginning of their journey.

2) Maximum $500k in investment:

Raising money is like finding a partner: there needs to be a good fit. Our goal is for the financing and resources we provide to effectively support the impact and financial sustainability of the companies we invest in. We can best achieve this by investing in companies that have thus far raised less than $500K USD of equity investment. Non-equity investments such as loans, grants and the founder’s own funds do not count towards that target. This helps us ensure that we work with startups at the stages where we can add the most value in both financial and non-financial terms. Among all applicants for Seedstars World, the average investment raised was $59,666 USD before participating in a Seedstars Event.

3) Less than two years old:

We work with companies that are less than 2 years old (that starting point could be the company incorporation, the shareholder agreement between the founders, etc…). This allows us to compare a company’s growth rate with other companies and shows us who manages to get early product / market fit. We look at the age of the individual project / product rather than the overall company incorporation date as many have pivoted successfully in order to get a market fit. From the past Seedstars World participants, the average age of the companies when they applied was 11 month and 18 days.

4) Scalable:

We only look at ideas that have the potential to be relevant in markets outside the initial market. In order to be a truly scalable business, there needs to be a path to regional / international scale which involves expanding to new countries. We look at regional / international growth potential by looking at other markets with comparable metrics (Size, GDP per capita, mobile penetration etc.) who share the same problem where the proposed solution can be applied to.

Please note however that we have come across businesses where the founder was not aware of the regional / global potential but the jury felt that it had a strong scalability case. In this case, we consider if Seedstars World can make a difference in supporting the founder to scale outside his/her own borders.

Finally, what’s in it for you? If you think your startup fits these criteria, then this is why you should apply to be part of the Seedstars World Family:

• NETWORK: You’ll be part of the global Seedstars World network that connects you to global networking opportunities through our regional summits, investor club and 1–1 matching between your startup and a potential investor, mentor, supplier, connector, client or talent.
• FUNDING: The chance to compete for up to 500k USD in equity financing from global corporate and private investors, where you can get direct investment from top industry leaders in the travel, space or fintech space. Check out all our partners at www.seedstarsworld.com.
• LEARN & GROW: We hand pick top-quality mentors from all over the world with experience in relevant industries. Benefit from the knowledge of corporate leaders, serial entrepreneurs, accelerator directors and investors.
• VISIBILITY: Lastly, each local event/regional event/final event generates a significant amount of media buzz and attention locally, boosting your company and promoting it to new potential clients and partners.
• FREE TRIP TO SEEDSTARS SUMMIT: Every winner of a local event is invited to an all-expenses paid trip to Switzerland for a week in March where he / she will meet investors, other startups and mentors from around the world and compete for a number of cash and in-kind prizes from partners.

Stay tuned for more information on the 2016 itinerary @ www.seedstarsworld.com — please be aware that applications are invitation only.