Comparing Bootstrapping High-Tech Start-Up Companies in the West and in a Transition Country

Abstract

This is a study of the process of the development of high-tech start-up companies through the mechanisms of bootstrapping in two extremely different environments: the one of highly industrialized countries, such as USA and Switzerland; the other of Serbia, which is a post-communist transition country with particular difficulties. The research method is the analysis of case studies. One case study of US and two of Swiss start-ups build the base for the analysis. All three cases show common patterns: from the very beginning, these companies sell R&D services in their fields of expertise; and using the cash from these early sales, and the information feedback from cooperation with the early customers, they develop their resources and, eventually, also their own high-tech products. The essential feature of this process is the selling of R&D services and the first products in the neighborhoods. Then also two cases of high-tech start-ups from Serbia are analyzed. Both Serbian start-ups are founded in partnership with small high-tech companies from highly industrialized countries (Switzerland and Germany). The Western partners use their reputations and contacts to enable the early sales of the Serbian start-ups in the industrialized countries. This is crucial for the Serbian start-ups, because they have no domestic market for R&D services. Apart of this element, all other essential patterns of the Serbian cases are very similar to those of the Western cases.