Czechs are among the most entrepreneurial nations in Europe

                                                                                                                                                   

• More than 35,000 new entrepreneurs registered last year
• From today until 6 March, beginning entrepreneurs can register in the T-Mobile Takeoffs competition supporting start-up businesses
• Free workshops and prizes worth CZK 3,000,000 to be distributed within the competition. The best project will receive financial support, services and products worth up to nearly CZK 700,000 

Prague, 18 January 2016 - More than 35,000 people started a business in the Czech Republic last year; overall, approximately every fifth Czech is engaged in business. According to the Czech Statistical Office, there are 1,868,000 holders of a trade licence in the Czech Republic, which places Czechs among the nations in Europe that are most active as entrepreneurs. A total of 850,000 persons work for themselves (i.e. 8% of the population), which, according to Eurostat data from 2015, is more than in France (4.4%), Austria (5.5%) and Poland (7.6%). Only the United Kingdom reports a higher percentage of entrepreneurs with 8.5%.

From today until 6 March, entrepreneurs who started a business in the Czech Republic last year can register in the sixth edition of the T-Mobile Rozjezdy (T-Mobile Takeoffs) competition. According to lawyer Petr Čížek of Založfirmu.cz, a long-term expert member of the T-Mobile Takeoffs juries, the explanation for the large increase in the people holding a trade licence and their high percentage share in the population as compared with those whose only source of income is from business is that a number of people apply for a trade licence as a complementary activity to their employment. “The legislation has supported the creation of new companies by partially simplifying the conditions for their formation. Other advantages are being prepared or have been put in place with the help of EU funds, particularly those intended for innovative start-ups and social enterprises.”

Every spring, T-Mobile Takeoffs organises workshops in large cities of the Czech Republic, which are free of charge and open to anybody interested in starting a business. “Seminars are focused on areas that are of key importance when starting a business – building the brand, financial planning and communication on the internet and social networks. We prepare them in such a way as to be a guide for small business owners on how to get as much as possible for little money,” says Eva Karasová, CSR Manager at T-Mobile.

The second part of the Takeoffs consists in a competition for the best implementation of a business idea. This year, the overall winner will receive the jury prize comprising CZK 200,000 in cash, a draft of a regional advertising campaign by a professional agency, financial and HR consultancy and other prizes totalling approximately CZK 700,000. All beginning entrepreneurs, i.e. those who started their business within the past 12 months, can register in the competition. Juries composed of experts, successful entrepreneurs and investors, such as Margareta Křížová and Martin Korman, will rate not only innovative ideas but also the successful implementation of each entrant’s business plan. Winners of the regional rounds and the national round will receive a helping hand from experts in marketing, communication and finance as well as tangible and financial support.

Another innovation of this year’s edition is that regional winners ranking first to third will compete to win the favour of the public in online voting. “We have a professional team of small business bankers who provide long-term support to start-up businesses, tailored to suit their individual needs. We look forward to again meeting aspiring entrepreneurs this year, helping them set up their business plans and sharing our experience with business financing with them. Therefore, we will support the start-up business of the winner of the public online voting with CZK 150,000 and all regional winners with a business account,” says František Krčil, MSE Segment Director at Česká spořitelna. 

T-Mobile Takeoffs helped launch the businesses of such successful entrepreneurs as Jaroslava Michalcová (Dortletka café and confectionery, Roudnice nad Labem, T-Mobile Takeoffs 2014) and Lukáš Drlík (Lavender bio farm and café, Zábřeh, T-Mobile Takeoffs 2015). A total of 1,700 beginning entrepreneurs have taken part in the competition and support has been provided to 280 winners. Those aspiring to join their ranks can register their business projects in T-Mobile Takeoffs from today until 6 March at www.rozjezdy.cz.

More detailed information about the prizes and conditions of the competition is available at www.rozjezdy.cz. 

About T-Mobile Takeoffs

T-Mobile Takeoffs is a project supporting start-up businesses. It offers free regional workshops on issues relating to starting a business; the second part of the project is a competition of business ideas. During January and February, those who have not yet started a business or who received a business licence in the past 12 months can register at www.rozjezdy.cz. In each region, three winners will receive financial support, support from experts in different areas of business, packages of telecommunications and banking services and tangible prizes to help them launch their business. The overall winner will receive prizes worth CZK 700,000.

The sixth edition of T-Mobile Takeoffs will be held in 2016. The main partner of the competition is Česká spořitelna and the other partners are Samsung and Xerox. Expert partners are Agentura Najisto, Jobs.cz, LMC, Lovebrand, Lupa.cz, MADE by Vaculik, Podnikatel.cz, Proboston, Regional Chamber of Commerce of the Plzeň Region and Zalozfirmu.cz.

T-Mobile Czech Republic, a member of the international telecommunications group Deutsche Telekom, has almost 6.2 million customers, the number-one operator in the Czech market. T-Mobile is an integrated operator: in addition to telecommunications services, it offers comprehensive ICT solutions not only for companies, but also for other organizations and individuals. It provides outstanding services in the high-speed network, which was proved repeatedly by benchmark testing performed by umlaut (former P3) with Best-in-Test seal.

T-Mobile Czech Republic places emphasis on taking a responsible approach to the environment and society. It adheres to fair business practices, helps beneficial applications and services to see the light of day, supports non-profit organizations, small businesses and individuals, and lends a helping hand whenever crisis situations arise. The company’s employees serve as volunteers in many places across the entire Czech Republic.

More information about the company is available at www.t-mobile.cz, www.t-press.cz (the portal for journalists) and www.t-mobile.cz/pomahame (information on the company’s CSR activities).

Contact details of the press unit: press@t-press.cz.