Entrepreneurial activity is recovering its pulse after the parenthesis of the pandemic. 6% of the Spanish adult population is starting a business and the percentage of people intending to start a business in the next three years, 9.4%, is the highest since 2012, which predicts an increase in activity similar to that of registered after the financial crisis of 2008, according to data from the GEM Spain 2022-2023 report. The report also shows that three out of four people say they undertake to earn a living, although the percentage that considers other reasons such as making a difference in the world or create wealth. Older and more qualified people start, the technological level of projects rises and the family nature of entrepreneurial initiatives is reduced.
Diálogos en La Vanguardia, with the collaboration of BBVA, addressed the current situation of entrepreneurship and its future prospects in a session that included the participation of Juan Carlos Alba, director of the SME segment of BBVA in Catalonia; Lluís Juncà, general director of Innovation, Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship of the Generalitat of Catalonia; Jaume Bordas, entrepreneur in the leisure and restaurant sector in Calella; Estefania González Campins, vice president of AIJEC, the association of young entrepreneurs of Catalonia, and Lluís Vilaseca, founder of Assessoria Vilaseca. Illusion and a good accompaniment are essential ingredients for entrepreneurship, the speakers emphasized.
Catalonia, Juncà explained, maintains its entrepreneurial leadership within the Spanish framework, but is still behind when compared to other European regions, although in some aspects “it is improving rapidly”. Barcelona continues to be a pole of attraction and accelerates its position as a European benchmark in entrepreneurship. In some rankings, it already appears in the ‘top-10’ of the most important cities to undertake. For the Director of Innovation of the Generalitat, the challenge is for this entrepreneurial impulse to expand throughout the territory and, in this sense, he explained that there are already good examples that generally coincide with areas where there is a combination of universities, large companies consolidated companies and a fabric of small companies with an innovative vocation.
Innovation, digital transformation and sustainability are opening doors to entrepreneurship, according to the participants. “Increasingly, in the current context, entrepreneurs take into account the commitment to sustainability and inclusion,” said Alba, who assured that one in two entrepreneurs declares that the social or environmental impact of their initiatives is a priority. The head of the SME segment of BBVA in Catalonia recalled that the volume of investment that must be moved around the world to achieve the decarbonisation of the economy in 2050 amounts to 275 billion dollars, more than 8% of world GDP each year. Faced with this scenario, he asserted, “each SME, each self-employed person, must work on their positioning, their differentiation, adapting their business to what the market, customers and suppliers are demanding”.
The climate emergency and the technological revolution, reasoned the representative of the Generalitat, foster “an explosion of opportunities” to create companies that, in addition to being profitable, “have an impact on society and the planet as a whole”. Specifically, he explained that in Catalonia, entrepreneurial projects in the field of health stand out, which are breaking into the sector “with great force”. The Biocat report points out that, for the last six years, Catalonia has been setting absolute records for the creation of companies in the health sector with both local and foreign investment. “It is the spearhead of the economy and, in particular, of the entrepreneurial capacity of Catalonia”, he summarized.
Estefania González Campins also added the good rate of creation of scientific technology companies, for example, in the field of photonics or quantum, highlighting that they are all focused on providing a service or solving problems. For Lluís Vilaseca, any activity can be good for an investment project, but the important thing is to study and deepen the sector in which you want to enter. “Investing without knowing a sector is a guaranteed failure,” he stated. Alba expressed himself in similar terms, for whom the basic premise when starting a project is to have a good business plan and to know the sector well.
González Campins and Bordas spoke about the challenges of starting a business from their own experience. “The beginnings are hard,” said the young entrepreneur, referring to administrative procedures. He launched his first business at the age of 21 and today, at 32, he has two souvenir shops for tourists, a nightclub and a bar-restaurant in Calella. González Campins, who in addition to being AIJEC’s vice president is an entrepreneur, also reaffirmed this vision. “Entrepreneurs generate wealth and jobs, so the administration must be an agent that serves, facilitates, and helps,” she declared. “Entrepreneurs know about our project and our business, but we are not lawyers or tax or labor experts; we need help in this regard, ”she emphasized. Despite this, both Bordas and González Campins qualified that illusion can overcome all barriers.
As head of SMEs at BBVA in Catalonia, Alba is well aware of the worries and concerns of entrepreneurs which, in short, have to do with financing and having time to grow the business. Regarding the first point, Alba explained that BBVA supports SMEs and the self-employed with liquidity and financing solutions. In 2022, he explained, the entity granted 20% more financing to these groups compared to 2021.
He also explained that thanks to technology the way of providing financing has changed. “Before, the processes were longer; today we are being able to offer credit limits even before they are not asked for”, he affirmed. Also in this area, Alba highlighted that BBVA wants to be “an ally” of SMEs and the self-employed to channel Next Generation funds and thus multiply their effects” because, he continued, “investing in digital transformation and sustainability for an SME means investing in Her future”. The entity, she said, accompanies with financing solutions and technical advice through its ‘partners’.
Regarding the second concern of entrepreneurs, Alba pointed out that the entity provides innovative means and solutions that save entrepreneurs time. It offers accompaniment so that they can carry out their activity calmly and be managers of their time on a day-to-day basis. He recalled, in this sense, that 90% of the projects are micro-enterprises, so that “the same person has to do everything”. “At BBVA we want to accompany our companies from the beginning throughout their lives and help them build that more sustainable and inclusive future that we all want,” she concluded.
The PAEs (entrepreneur service points), such as the Assessoria Vilaseca, in Lleida, also offer accompaniment from the first minute. Entrepreneurs, Vilaseca explained, usually go to the advisor to see what legal form they should give their idea and what requirements they must meet. “At the PAE points, in addition to the fact that the initial advice is free, we help them take the first steps and then accompany them for the rest of their business life,” she assured, to highlight the agility that a PAE provides. Thus, she argued, the constitution of a company carried out through a PAE point is much faster than through the traditional system. “Through the PAE it is three or four days, and not a month; And when it comes to starting, that time is important, ”he declared.
González Campins also recommended a good accompaniment. In his opinion, it is important to surround yourself with people who have had entrepreneurial experiences. “Don’t try to do it alone”, advised the vice-president of AIJEC, an entity that, in addition to representing the young business fabric before the administrations, also serves as a meeting point for businessmen from different sectors. “We help each other; if one stumbles over a stone, we try to ensure that the one next to us does not, ”she summarized.
The general director of Innovation of the Generalitat also referred to the need to network. Entrepreneurship, he said, gives us the image of a superhero, but “to succeed and do great things, it is best to do it with a team, with a network.” In his view, the administration should not provide artisan accompaniment, but make policies that are scalable and that apply to those who need it. “We focus on providing tools through the Emprèn network and we focus on aid that the market does not cover and on high-risk and potential sectors,” Juncà argued. The administrations, he affirmed, are making efforts to end the excess of paperwork and, as an example, he gave the single business window, already operational in 99% of Catalan municipalities. He also admitted that, sometimes, for aid that the employer judges pyrrhic, he has to spend a whole morning reading the documentation. Hence, the latest calls for aid from the Department of Business, through Acció, are easier: “We want to show that things can be easier in aspects as tangible as the number of pages of the calls, the number of requirements and the steps applicants must take.”
The vice-president of AIJEC advocated a greater streamlining of administrative processes and aid procedures. “We need them to ease the way for us,” she stressed. Bordas supported the comment and recommended great enthusiasm to people who want to undertake. “Although the beginnings are hard, carry out the project and provide full employment; you feel fulfilled, because you have achieved your goal and you manage to do good for society, ”she said.
