The entrepreneurial environment in Bulgaria has developed a lot over the past years, Nickolay Andonov, co-founder of Start It Smart, has said.  

Andonov is one of the four Bulgarians selected in the New Europe 100 ranking - a list of 100 changemakers in Central and Eastern Europe selected by Warsaw-based journal Res Publica, Google, state-supported Visegrad Fund and the Financial Times. He and Aton Tsenov, who is also in the list, founded seven years ago Start It Smart as a training and mentorship program for first-time entrepreneurs in Bulgaria.

"For us it is an honour to be selected in this ranking and among such people. For the past seven years since Start It Smart exists and after other similar organizations appeared, the entrepreneurial environment in Bulgaria has developed a lot and has also grown more mature in terms of people's attitude to start-up companies," Andonov has told Novinite when asked to comment on his achievement.

"Since venture accelerators are operating, many start-ups have been launched and a vast part of them have failed, which in my opinion has contributed to the realization among many people of how difficult it is actually to develop a company from scratch into a self-sustained and developing business."

"On the other hand, there are those developing quite well, which validates the time and funding being invested into this sphere."

"Our focus with Anton over the past four years is entirely on Join The Players - a tech company that develops sports and sporting experience. I am glad that we managed to bring together an exceptional team and at the moment we are growing on several European markets through a product that is unique on a global level."

"I sincerely believe that if things keep developing at the same pace, a start-up leader on the global market will emerge out of Bulgaria within several years."

The New Europe 100 list is a selection of people and organizations changing the region's societies, politics or business environment and displaying innovation, entrepreneurialism and fresh approaches. Nominations came from national institutions, think tanks and the public.

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