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Fits.me in FT.com: Small country, big on enterprise
22.05.2010
| FT.com/Small country, big on enterprise By Mike Southon. There is frequent debate about the merits or otherwise of membership of the European Union. But whatever economists may argue, many optimistic entrepreneurs see membership of the EU as an opportunity to enlarge their businesses and have some fun. As a professional speaker, I lead a peripatetic life, regularly speaking at conferences in Europe. Often, it is a UK conference transplanted to somewhere more agreeable, but my favourite events involve meeting other European entrepreneurs on home territory. I have a particular interest in European emerging markets. Countries that have recently joined the EU have an interesting combination of raw talent, a desire to succeed and access to grants to help them become competitive on the world stage. I have written before about Estonia, a small country of only 1.5m people that became independent from the Soviet Union fewer than than 20 years ago. Since then, Estonia has become one of the world's most internet-savvy countries, a leader in electronic government and home to many interesting technology start-ups - the most famous being Skype. This success has inspired many other Estonians to venture abroad, including Heikki Haldre. If there is an entrepreneurial gene, Haldre has it. His early years were notable for six different attempts at a university degree, with only one successfully completed. His early ventures covered an eclectic mix of consulting, property and internet-based logistics businesses. All these were relatively successful, and Haldre kept an eye out for the next opportunity. He knew that if he could find a problem or opportunity, it would be possible to use EU And that is why Haldre started Fits.Me - bringing together the previously unconnected worlds of fashion retailing and |
He believed it would be of huge benefit to online retailers in reducing the number of returns of ill-fitting garments. His first prototype worked well, and Haldre was then able to find local investors to back the project. Given the small market for start-up capital, Estonian businesses tend to have diverse backers. Haldre's investors include a lawyer, a stockbroker, a restaurateur and a developer of railways, as well as an information technology specialist. But when it came to finding the next level of investment, Haldre had to look beyond the Estonian market and focus on the UK. Early results have been promising. Fits.Me recently won the "Hottest European Technology" award at the Plugg conference in Brussels. Initial trials with German retailer Quelle have been very successful. A deal has also been signed with Jermyn Street shirtmakers Hawes and Curtis. But those involved in fundraising know that the process is never-ending: when one round is secured, work starts immediately on the next phase. So Haldre is using the close-knit community of funding sources in the UK as a staging post before approaching Silicon Valley. Like all Estonians, he understands that small is beautiful . . . and leverage is everything.
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