Ten businesses from the Central Region of Romania were selected for the ScaleOut 4×10 scaling program, organized by the Romanian Business Leaders Foundation (RBL) and ING Bank Romania, and will learn to scale their businesses at the national and regional levels.
To successfully implement their chosen growth model, entrepreneurs will have access to successful mentors and local and international experts.
Among them are Felix Pătrășcanu (Founder of FanCourier), Dragoș Petrescu (Founder of City Grill), Dan Isai (CEO of Salad Box), Iulian Nedea (CEO of Simtel Team), Marius Ștefan (CEO of Autonom), Iulian Cîrciumaru (Founder of V7 Capital), Eugen Ursu (CEO Graphein) and Daniel Donici (Founder of Artesana).
The program is intended for entrepreneurs with over EUR 1 million turnover.
The ten winning enterprises are Eco Tiny House (the manufacturer of mobile homes on a light metal structure); Aleomi Lab (the artisanal confectionery laboratory); Traditions from Nature – Răzvan Idicel (the producer of traditional products); Evamar Gold & Trade (the manufacturer and importer of disposable packaging); Aknel Industrial (the fuel sales); Dr. Wheel (the motor vehicle repair and maintenance); G&M International Installations (the sales of installations), Casa Petrina (the restaurant and catering business), Elphin (the group of enterprises with activities in the agribusiness field), and Seiv Instal (the sales of air conditioning systems).
Resources for scaling to take the business to the next level
In 2023, the main objectives of the enterprises that want to scale are the expansion at the national and regional levels, the change of the business model, the conclusion of new partnerships, the identification of new methods of scaling, internationalization, and the development of new production units.
“Participants can scale their businesses more easily if they have grown organically and in the right way developed their brand. Positioning the products or services from the beginning is very important. My advice: the brand must be very strong, so investing in marketing early is good. Entrepreneurs can scale a service business if they trust people. It is important to have a well-defined team in charge of scaling,” – said Felix Pătrășcanu, Сo-founder of FanCourier and Mentor in the ScaleOut program.
Within the ScaleOut 4×10 program, entrepreneurs are supported throughout the growth process, from the development of the expansion plan to its implementation, with access to experts, entrepreneurs, and experienced managers. At the end of the program, the selected businesses will have a new method of national business scaling, refined with experts and successful entrepreneurs.
“The mindset of those who run businesses must be prepared for the decision to scale. Our time and management skills are limited, so we need to team up to grow the operations. It is necessary to move from the role of lone fighter to that of the architect of the organization, to design processes and procedures. The objective is to stop making all the decisions yourself, but at the same time to remain in control of the business. The next step is to create the structure on which entrepreneurs want to scale their businesses. But first of all, I recommend them answer this basic question: “What is our competitive advantage?”. My recommendation is to answer this question honestly,” – said Codin Negovan, Head of Sales Network within the Business Banking division of ING Bank Romania.
The mentors of the program will provide entrepreneurs with four scaling models identified in practice and successfully tested through the education programs implemented in recent years: Bootstrapping, Slow Scaling, Fast Scaling, and Blitzscaling. Bootstrapping is a strategy that prioritizes organic growth using the business’s internal resources. Slow Scaling is a similar strategy, with the main difference being that businesses that choose to scale at this pace can access external funding to bolster their local and regional growth. Fast scaling is a growth mode implemented by enterprises that attract financing from an investment fund. Blitzscaling is a process by which an enterprise grows rapidly in a short period.
The next three launch events of the program dedicated to businesses from the North-West, North-East, and South-East Regions will take place in Oradea, Suceava, and Constanța.
Our previous news about the ScaleOut 4×10 scaling program can be found here:
Source: the Bank`s press release
