Squircle has opened a new office in Portugal because of its amazing talent pool and, with events like Web Summit, will be part of their ambition to become the digital capital of Europe.
Portugal is a thriving country, and we're excited about opening here at such an important time for all things digital.
In recent years there has been a growing interest from companies around the world for locating themselves in Portugal. This trend has been encouraged by the number of international investors who have chosen Portugal as a focal point for investment opportunities in Europe, where it is situated strategically between both North America and Northern European countries. With this in mind, Portugal's economy has become very favourable to the development of digital businesses.
The most recent case is the Swiss private bank Julius Baer which announced its intention to invest €100 million in Portuguese tech companies. This would establish them as one of the main players among foreign investors, hoping to benefit from everything this sector offers: great returns with low risk and profitability up to 20% per annum.
"It makes me proud to see that Portuguese companies are being recognised worldwide," said António Costa, Prime Minister of Portugal. "Our country is becoming a reference in the digital sector, and this is due to the entrepreneurship, creativity and intelligence of our citizens."
This strengthening of Portugal's image has also been seen at the international level. The fact that leading industry conferences are held in Portugal - Web Summit attracts tens of thousands of visitors from over 120 countries - is helping Portugal attract more foreign investment. But it isn't only about major events like these ones. Many smaller initiatives are making an impact too. A good example is Startup Lisboa which is helping to boost Lisbon's startup scene through acceleration programmes and co-working spaces in areas such as coding, design, business development and marketing.
"When it comes to digital, Portugal is a safe bet," says Consuelo Lopes from Startup Lisboa. "Several accelerators have set up here in recent years, and they're all fighting for the same talent pool of developers, marketers and business managers."
Another interesting development that has been going on for a few years is the level of professionalisation among local entrepreneurs who are now able to compete with international companies as well as their own domestic competition. In fact, Portugal owes some of its success to this part of its industry which has allowed Portuguese startups to gain experience internationally before taking their first steps at home.
As time goes by, digital businesses will continue to grow both in number and size - Squircle hopes to help this growing sector as much as it can by opening its doors in Portugal.
We're really excited we've opened an office here and look forward to helping ambitious Portuguese businesses succeed in this flourishing market.
Digital marketing is a vital component of any successful business. When you invest in digital, your return on investment will grow exponentially as you can gauge the success and failure rates for different strategies. Digital marketing helps boost brand awareness, leading to higher sales numbers and more customers. In order to take full advantage of this opportunity, it's important that businesses focus on what their customer wants from them before they start creating content or advertisements.
Ed Katzler
Founder @ Squircle
