While capital crowds into San Francisco, what should founders in Slovakia do?
Endeavor Catalyst has raised $320M to back founders outside Silicon Valley. Practical steps for Slovak and Central European founders.
Investment firm Endeavor Catalyst has raised $320 million to back founders outside Silicon Valley, and part of its profits will go to a nonprofit. The news is a reminder that the best-funded startup scene is not the only route to growth. For founders in Slovakia and the wider region it is a useful signal, but not a shortcut: money follows evidence.
What investors look for outside the big hubs
Funds that look beyond Silicon Valley typically describe the same priorities: a real problem for customers, revenue you can prove, and a team that can grow. Location matters less than the story your numbers tell.
For a Slovak product, that often means selling to customers in Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic or the wider EU from the start. A product that works in a small home market can still become a serious business, but the plan has to show how it will reach more customers.
Five steps for founders in Slovakia
- Pick a painful problem with a clear buyer. Interview at least 20 potential customers before you write production code.
- Measure what matters. From the first pilot, track activation, retention and revenue per customer, not only the number of sign-ups.
- Build for export early. Plan for multilingual content, EU data rules and the payment methods customers in other countries use.
- Use the local network. Meetups, university programmes and regional accelerators can connect you with engineers, designers and first clients.
- Keep your website honest. Investors and customers check your website first. A clear product page, case studies and a visible team build trust faster than a long pitch deck.
Money will keep moving toward founders who can show progress, wherever they are based. Your job is to make that progress easy to see.