Entrepreneurship by numbers
The startup industry in Egypt is becoming well renowned with the rise of numerous resources for entrepreneurs to explore at the early stages of their initiatives, as stated by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Egypt national report.
It is becoming a vital instrument to tackle the expansion of youth unemployment as well. In fact, the majority of the new established successful business of the century is led by young self employed professionals living in Cairo, averaging between 25 and 34 years old, according to ENID (Egypt Network for Integrated Development).
“Entrepreneurship is becoming a vital instrument to tackle the expansion of youth unemployment as well.”
The report also suggested that 2.7 million citizens are involved with entrepreneurial activity in all sectors. Of those 2.7 million, 0.8 million are nascent entrepreneurs who own 0 to 4 months old businesses, while 1.9 million are owners of young businesses aging 4 to 42 months olds and 1.72 million owners of established enterprises of more than 42 months old.
Forbes also agrees that the industry is still young but is rapidly proving major accomplishment as the Arab World is now home of up to 500 startups.
Initiation Phase
However, it can be relatively hard for an entrepreneur to stand up on their feet and make their idea work. They need to carefully study the sector, the market, the financing, the consumers, the team and a thousand other things.
Fortunately, globalization and technological advancements are key factors that never fail to support dreamy entrepreneurs.
As a matter of fact, many startups hugely rely on social media to reach out their segments in the market. For instance, imagine yourself wanting to build a line of sophisticated high-quality handmade leather bags for both genders.
Getting an office and furnishing a store is very unlikely to be your first priority. Instead, one would rather set up a Facebook page and share some of their work, hoping to attract as many potential customers as they can.
At later stages of the startup, an Instagram page would perhaps be able to boost sales and create synergies.
The truth is, the virtual world has united everyone together and is more often than not a tool that aids the entrepreneur cut some costs that may not be crucial in the primary phases of the business.
Once again, the opportunity cost is minimized as the sacrifice the entrepreneur is making by not buying or renting an office allows them to exploit wider options to grow without spending too much.
From an economical perspective, spending a certain reasonable amount of money on production, salaries and a bit of marketing on social medias is likely to be more advantageous than to disburse them all on a Heliopolis office monthly rental, especially for a new business.
Exploitation at its best
A decade ago, such a luxury would be found nowhere. Today however, startups are incessantly empowered through various channels that help them save time, effort and above all, money.
Need to check the potential market size? Check an online database. Want to test your prototype? Prepare a survey and share it on Facebook. Wish to build your software? Apply for a free course right away. Confused on how to reach your potential customers? Upload a few pictures of your product and share them on Instagram.
In a nutshell, all your answers are literally in front of you, if you are the type of person that never leaves their phone. Technology has become our legal affairs consultant, marketer, consumers’ attractor and even financial advisor.
We’ve all heard this a million times before; the world is getting smaller in size, but bigger in opportunities. Here is the chance for all entrepreneurs to network and make their ideas come to live. All it takes is an Internet-connected device and some determination along enthusiasm for you to create your success story.