Entrepreneurship is the main driving force behind the economy of every country, and young people on a global level increasingly recognize its advantages and want to deal with the practical side of business.
In other words, entrepreneurship is cool again. In the past, the idols of young people were mainly rock and pop stars, actors, and other figures from the world of show business. Today, entrepreneurship is popular among young people in many countries, including Turkey.
An example of this is the increase in the launch of so many different online businesses: sales, various services, media, and entertainment – the choice is almost unlimited.
Under the influence of entrepreneurship, many businesses have switched to the online version as more dominant – 7Slots casino is just one example of a casino that has everything brick-and-mortar offers, and much more.
This article explores the growing start-up culture in Turkey, the challenges faced by entrepreneurs, and the market conditions in which they operate.
Why Is Entrepreneurship on the Rise in Turkey?
It is difficult to single out one reason why young people in Turkey venture into entrepreneurial waters. This phenomenon is a combination of several aspects that influence the shaping of a nation. It goes down to the big three: demographics, education, and the sense of creating a healthy working culture for young specialists. Although there are more, the main three are listed below.
Demographics
The demographic landscape plays a significant role in Turkish entrepreneurship, especially because Turkey can boast of a young population – almost half of the citizens are under 30 years old.
This represents a great advantage because this demographic group is technologically savvy, highly educated, and increasingly exposed to global trends through the Internet and social media.
The fact they are up to date with the latest events from around the world, including business-related ones, fosters an entrepreneurial way of thinking that is geared towards taking risks and generating innovative ideas. This is a promising statistic regarding the new professionals to the working market.
Education System
Another reason for the increased number of entrepreneurs in Turkey is their educational system. Universities and other educational institutions have special programs designed specifically for the category of young people passionate about business.
Also, the state has an incentive to shape young entrepreneurs for several reasons. Firstly, the private sector is the one that finances the state through taxes, thus increasing its total income.
Second, if people prefer to choose the private rather than the state sector, then they will not have problems with excessive bureaucracy and inefficient administration. When the line is drawn, it’s a win-win situation for both the youth and the state.
Culture
The third and perhaps the biggest reason is culture – independence, and self-confidence are one of the main and most promoted values in the country, which translates very well to entrepreneurship.
The sense of community and cooperation is also characteristic of Turkey, which is another important factor in the market where you can’t survive without good communication and networking with others.
Mentoring programs and entrepreneurial networks, both formal and informal, also play a huge role in helping young entrepreneurs navigate the challenges of starting and developing a business in Turkey.
The Challenges of Young Entrepreneurs in Turkey
Although Turkey is a country that recognizes the importance of young entrepreneurship and pours significant resources into this sector, there are certain challenges that every young business entrepreneur faces.
The first of them is access to capital. Despite numerous initiatives by the government and the private sector that provide support for startups, financing remains one of the obstacles when it comes to this category of entrepreneurs.
Other regulatory and bureaucratic challenges are also a problem, despite Turkey actively working to reduce administrative barriers to doing business.
Third, the Turkish market is very competitive, and it is very difficult to break into a position where clients or users choose your company over many others that provide the same product or service.
It takes a lot of time to brand yourself and gain experience that could later launch you to the top of the market because quality is the only thing that matters at the end of the day. When it comes to environments suitable for young entrepreneurs, Turkey definitely belongs to that category.
They have taken many good steps towards developing their business landscape, which are already bringing them significant results but will also pay off in the future.
For now, the challenges that exist in the Turkish market will have to be solved one by one. When you have a country of 80 million people, it takes time to completely eradicate the things you are doing badly and replace them with better ones. Until then, entrepreneurship in Turkey seems to be on solid footing.