In 2022, London became the second-best city for technological innovation, right after Silicon Valley and New York. As the only European city, London made it to the top ten of global startup ecosystems (Startup Genome, 2022). That’s why our first foreign trip this year was headed to the mecca of business, innovation, and creativity. You can read about what we took away from it in the article.
During the first week of March, a part of our business team spent time in a city widely considered the best in Europe for foreign trade. According to industry experts, it’s a financial centre like no other. The occasion was the Alpha Wolves London event, which combined a showcase for startups with a networking conference. This year, the event brought together nearly 300 creative and technological innovators from across Europe. Our colleagues, Števo and David, made the most of their time in London by attending several inspiring events.
DevDrinks by London Tech Network
It would be a missed opportunity to visit London without getting to know the local startup community. „The city hosts a plethora of networking events and parties, and we opted to attend London Tech Network and the DevDrinks event,“ explains David, who oversees business development for us. London Tech Network boasts over 1,000 members, primarily from the local startup and software development community. The meetings, attended by 30 to 40 participants, take place in a laid-back setting at least once a week. „If you really want to gain insight into the mindset, behaviour, opinions, and preferences of local players, informal conversations are the ideal way to go,“ David remarks.
Rise with SAP
They planned their schedule perfectly and managed to attend the Rise with SAP event directly at the British branch headquarters. „The most talked-about topic was digital transformation and migration to SAP S/4HANA Cloud. It was very enriching to listen to SAP experts and analysts and their views on how to optimize business processes, minimize risks, and achieve better results even in times of crisis,“ says David. One of the experts they met was Atul Sareen, Business Director of the Customer Experience division at SAP. The SAP Commerce Cloud platform, which was the main topic of Atul’s exceptionally inspiring and encouraging meeting with our CTO Števo, is also part of the SAP CX ecosystem. In Slovakia, Cassovia Code is the only consulting and implementation partner of SAP for this e-commerce product.
Alpha Wolves by Wolves Summit
The final stop for our business team was a two-day conference focused on startups. Alpha Wolves is an ideal opportunity for startups in the growth stage who are looking for investors. They kicked off the event with an informal networking party on the first evening.
The next day, they had rapid 15-minute business meetings, also known as 1:1 meetings. „We arranged the meetings in advance using a practical application. To make sure that the time spent during the meeting is really effective, it is always good to clarify who my target group is, what they currently need, and whether I can offer them exactly that,“ emphasizes David. For our team, the most useful meetings were with representatives of business chambers, whose mission is to attract technology companies to the British market and connect their offerings with the needs of local players.
Anything that was not covered in the meetings could be caught up during the after-party. The relaxed atmosphere in a traditional London pub strengthened new partnerships even more and created an ideal environment for exchanging experiences and knowledge about business.
What did we take away from our business trip to London?
London is a very open, multicultural city with friendly people, which was confirmed at the summit itself. „Regardless of which country you come from or what important function you have, people talk to you, exchange contacts or give recommendations. It was very valuable for us to hear directly from the founders about the problems that startups in the growth stage are solving. We broadened our horizons, met interesting people, and established new business partnerships. London simply did not disappoint,“ concludes David.
One final piece of advice? „Stay calm, don’t play games, get straight to the point, don’t feel embarrassed, and always tell the truth!“
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