Despite being small in size, Spain ranks 16th in the world in terms of Global Domestic Product (GDP) according to Statista. Not only that, the country’s economy is also actively growing, and projections show no signs of slowing down.
Spain’s economic health extends to the development of new businesses, encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship and creating an environment in which it can thrive.
Indeed, in “The Spanish Tech Ecosystem Report”, Dealroom and BBVA concluded that Spain is especially healthy in terms of how it’s portrayed to investors, having claimed seventh place in Europe in terms of attracting venture capital.
While it’s not all rainbows and butterflies, the general consensus is that Spain is indeed a good place to start a business, not only due to its burgeoning economy and high standard of living but as a result of several other important factors too.
Why Is Spain an Ideal Location For Startups?
There are plenty of factors that make some countries better suited to startups and new businesses than others. Here are some of the most important reasons why Spain is considered an ideal location for founding and launching startups:
- Strategic Location: Located on the Iberian Peninsula in the Southwestern region of Europe, Spain is well located, giving businesses direct access to the European Union, North Africa and the Middle East.
- Well-Developed Infrastructure: Spain boasts excellent logistics and technological infrastructure, making it a great place to effectively and efficiently run a successful business.
- High Quality of Life: With gorgeous weather, picturesque scenery and a warm culture, Spain offers people a high quality of life and standard of living. This means that the potential employee pool offers a fairly high standard of generally happy people.
- Attracts Foreign Investment: Not only is Spain clearly attractive to venture capitalists (VC), but the government also actively welcome foreign direct investment (FDI) employing strategically relaxed regulations and more.
As with any country in the world, there are also issues to consider that can make starting a business in Spain difficult. This includes things like growing concerns regarding unemployment rates, reduced consumer spending and the fact that Spain falls into the European Union’s jurisdiction, meaning that Spanish startups are required to follow EU regulations which can be incredibly restrictive.
However, these potential issues aren’t confined to Spain, and overall, with both the benefits and potential disadvantages in mind, Spain is, overall, a good place to launch and register a startup.
Top 5 Unicorns in Spain
Reaching a $1 billion dollar valuation is a monumental achievement for any company, and for those who are privately owned, it earns them the title of “unicorn”.
While figures are constantly changing due to shifts in startup valuations as well as seemingly sudden shifts from private to public ownership, there are between 1,450 and 1,500 unicorns in the world as of mid-2024, and Spain is home to five of them.
Leading the way as the country’s most successful privately owned startups, these are the top 5 unicorns in Spain.
1. Jobandtalent: $2.3
Founded in Madrid in 2009, Jobandtalent is a modern virtual marketplace for temporary workers and employers looking to hire.
Jobtalent’s platform offers users, both employers and potential temporary employees, the use of messaging, hiring facilitation (including application management) and payroll options. The purpose of the platform is to help recruiters find the right employers quickly and easily in a way that’s both engaging and entertaining.
The startup was launched by Juan Urdiales, Felipe Navio and Tabi Vicuña, boasting top investors including Goldman Sachs and Hermes GPE.
Jobandtalent was most recently valued at $2.3 billion in December 2021.
2. Cabify: $1.4 Billion
While Uber is currently dominating the e-hailing industry in most parts of the world, Cabify is actually more popular in Spain in many regards, and its status as a unicorn provides good justification as to why.
Launched in 2011, the on-demand transport service was originally known as Maxi Mobility Spain and is open for use by both ordinary and corporate clients, providing varying services based on the customer in question.
Available on both iOS and Android devices, Cabify was valued at an incredible $2.4 billion in March of 2019, and according to Forbes, secured a further $110 million of investment in 2023.
3. TravelPerk: $1.4 Billion
After having secured $115 million of funding during a Series D funding round led by General Catalyst, TravelPerk was welcomed into the unicorn club in January 2022, valued at $1.4 billion.
TravelPerk is a travel management and booking platform specifically designed for use by businesses. The platform allows employees to plan, book and manage professional travel, facilitating the process by helping take company policies into account.
More than just any booking platform, TravelPerk allows users to create travel policies on behalf of businesses, make online payments, manage company expenses and more.
TravelPerk was founded in 2015 and according to PitchBook, has a total of 33 different investors to date.
4. Recover: $1.1 Billion
Recover is by far the oldest company on this list, founded in 1947 in Mariola, Spain, but in many ways, it was way ahead of its time.
Recover is a textile manufacturer that produces fabrics from recycled materials, transforming what is often regarded as textile waste into sustainably recycled and reused fibres and blends. Essentially, the company’s goal is to create more sustainable ways of contributing to manufacturing, using low-impact recycled fibre for fashion, home textiles and other accessories.
Nearly 80 years after its initial establishment, Recover achieved unicorn status in 2022, achieving a $1.1 billion valuation with top investors including STORY3 Capital Partners showing them tremendous support.
5. Factorial: $1 Billion
Operating in the world of enterprise applications, Factorial develops cloud-based HRMS software for small and medium-sized businesses.
Factorial’s software offers users management of documents, onboarding, employee performance evaluations, time tracking, leave management, payroll administration, compensations and benefits management and more.
Founded in Barcelona in 2016, Factorial was valued at $1 billion in 2022 and as of October 2023, had 950 employees on the books.
