Business Incubator Series: Jean Boudeguer, Start-Up Chile — Santiago (Part 2)

By guest authors Irina Patterson and Candice Arnold

Jean: We want the founders to start their businesses here, and then go global. There are some companies that want to send in a project manager. Other teams wanted to open branches in Chile. There’s another agency here in Chile that supports that.

Our program, Start-Up Chile, requires the founders to move in Chile for six months.
So, of those 500 who applied for our program last year, 100 were eligible, 25 were selected and, finally, 23 arrived in Chile. Two didn’t arrive because they raised money before coming, so they had to change their plans at the last minute.

Irina: When did they start?

Jean: The application last year was open for several months. The first one arrived in August, and the last one arrived around November. There are two teams that have already left. We have 21 companies left here in Chile.

Irina: What are the key benefits that you provide for the founders?

Jean: They get $40,000 without giving up any equity. We give them access to mentors. We are working with two big mentor networks. We also provide access to the entrepreneurial and social environment here in Chile. We give them the opportunity to prove their concepts or their prototypes with real clients in the real world.

I think that having six months of international experience, for entrepreneurs, is a great idea. They are addressing international markets. We also provide them with other type of assistance. For example, within one week, they can have their one-year visas. With those, they can open bank accounts and get mobile phones. We help them also with their families, if they bring their families.

We are not asking for equity. We are asking that they mix and be tangible examples of global entrepreneurs. We’re asking entrepreneurs who are coming here to go to universities and give talks, one talk a month. They can also attend our events.

But it’s quite flexible. We’re not asking them to work, for example, here, in Santiago. There’s one team that has a solar energy project. There is no point for them to be in Santiago when we have Antofagasta or Inquique, which are two cities in Chile that have an incredible amount of sunlight.

We encourage entrepreneurs to move from Santiago to the place where they think they can add the most value. One of the characteristics of our program is that it’s really flexible.

Irina: Can you think of anything else that makes your program different from any other programs?

Jean: Chile is a safe country. Chile has free trade agreements with 80% of the world’s population. Chile is number one in terms of free trade agreements. The international experience … you don’t even need to speak Spanish to come. The other key thing is that we don’t ask for equity. We’re not asking entrepreneurs to give any money back to us. We want their culture and their enthusiasm inspire our local entrepreneurs. With that, we will be transforming Chile into the innovation and entrepreneurial hub of Latin America.

Irina: Where do your applicants come from?

Jean: We have an online application process. You can go to our site at StartupChile.org and click on “Apply.” We have three rounds of applications this year. One closed March 24, 2011. We’re working with a platform called Younoodle. They help us to select entrepreneurs who will be coming to Chile.

Irina: How do you promote your program?

Jean: There are a lot of people who really don’t know where Chile is. Chile is probably one of the best countries in Latin America. Things go by the rules here. We have a great infrastructure. There’s nothing to envy in any European city or in the U.S.

First of all, we go out and say Chile is a great place to start. It’s quite attractive. As I said, we give $40,000 with no equity.

We’ve been helped by the 23 entrepreneurs who are already in the program. They’ve been really active in promoting the program and think it’s a great program. People who are entrepreneurs and the media like it. They publish our articles. We’ve been receiving a lot of traffic from articles by the external media. We’ve even been on television in the U.S. thanks to two entrepreneurs from our program.

Irina: You have a person who does PR for your program?

Jean: We have Brenna Loury, who’s in charge of our social media and PR. She’s been writing articles on our site, writing all the press releases, contacting media, and helping entrepreneurs to get to the media. That’s about it.

This segment is part 2 in the series : Business Incubator Series: Jean Boudeguer, Start-Up Chile — Santiago
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