Startups are springing up everywhere in Europe at an increasing rate. At the beginning of this year, we took a look at major European countries and tried to come up with a list of 5 startups for each country to look out for in 2014. We started with France, have moved on to Italy and the UK, and now it’s time for Greece.
As with all of the lists, it’s been hard to narrow this list down to just five. Despite this, we’ve decided to select five promising Greek startups, each coming from different sectors. All of them entered the market within the last three years and each of the listed startups has something special to add to the web experience in 2014.
Taxibeat – This smartphone application transforms the taxi-hailing process into a direct marketplace between taxi drivers and passengers. Taxibeat enables passengers to locate nearby taxi drivers and hail the driver they prefer, based on distance, user ratings, car model and on-board amenities, at no additional cost. Headquartered in Athens, Taxibeat initially launched its operation in May of 2011. In 2013, Taxibeat received a total of $6 million in funding and expanded internationally (Update – May 2023: The startup seems to be no longer in business under this website, and we therefore deactivated the original link).
Workable – Founded in 2012, Workable helps companies to improve the quality and efficiency of their hiring by simplifying the most time-consuming task: browsing, screening and managing candidates. Workable left resumes aside and replaced them with online profiles. The Athens- and London-based startup is aiming to create a screening and applicant tracking process that works. Workable’s solution is built for teams, is accessible via the cloud and is comparably cheap. In 2013, Workable secured €600K in a second round of Seed funding.
dopios – The word “dopios” is the Greek word for “local“. The Athens-based startup of this name has created a community marketplace where travellers can discover authentic experiences created by locals. On dopios.com, users can get travel tips before they leave, plan adventures for their next vacation, and meet new friends. Founded in 2012, the startup is taking travellers beyond the guidebook and plugging them into true experiences at their destinations. Last year, the Greek startup received €120K in seed funding (Update – May 2023: The startup seems to be no longer in business under this website, and we therefore deactivated the original link).
LazyPub – Founded in 2012, LazyPub offers a cheap and easy way for companies to distribute their PDF, HTML or EPUB publications through their own branded universal iOS or Android app. Companies get their own, native, branded, mobile and tablet apps. LazyPub’s users are also able to make their content available through LazyPub’s web reader. The Athens-based startup offers great ways to distribute corporate reports (financial results, CSR reports, etc.), brochures, catalogues or magazines (Update – May 2023: The startup seems to be no longer in business under this website, and we therefore deactivated the original link).
IRISena – Inspired by Iris, the messenger goddess in Greek mythology, IRISena is an invaluable push notification mobile marketing system for imparting urgent information, disseminating news, promoting events, activities, special offers and encouraging customer engagement. IRISena was founded in 2012 and is based in Athens. Its solution connects people with similar interests in a closed managed ecosystem. IRISena also allows the creation of unlimited recipient groups and enables attachments such as PDF, photos and documents (Update – May 2023: The startup seems to be no longer in business under this website, and we therefore deactivated the original link).
The above list was prepared with the help of the European Startup Initiative (esi). During their research they spoke to accelerators and startup enthusiasts from all EU member states and asked them which three startups from their home country are most likely to be successful on a global scale. These answers counted towards our calculations, and led us to the above list of 5 French startups to look out for in 2014.
By the way: If you’re a corporate or investor looking for exciting startups in a specific market for a potential investment or acquisition, check out our Startup Sourcing Service!
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