The Second Bulgarian Entrepreneur Selected by Endeavor Fights Against the Global Counterfeit Medicine Business.
Venelin Dimitrov has been selected to join the Endeavor Network of entrepreneurs during the International Selection Panel in Dubai, UAE which took place from March 1-3, 2016. Venelin is the Founder and CEO of SoftGroup, a Bulgarian company and one of the few companies in the world offering an end-to-end mass serialization software and hardware solution for the pharmaceutical industry. SoftGroup’s high growth projections in the coming years are based on up-selling to its existing clients and penetrating new clients from the pharmaceutical industry, as well as on applying its technology to new industries altogether. The company’s growth rate is expected to be further accelerated by the Delegated Act of the Falsified Medicines Directive 2011/62/EU which was enacted in February 2016 and which requires from all pharmaceutical companies selling products in the EU to introduce Serialization and Track & Trace systems by 2019. Such regulations are already underway in other countries around the globe and are expected to soon be applied to the tobacco, alcohol, cosmetic and other industries.
Venelin Dimitrov is the second Bulgarian entrepreneur who has been selected to become a member of the Endeavor Network of entrepreneurs. The organization is active in 25 countries and helps local entrepreneurs grow their business by providing them with access to new markets, capital, mentorship and talent. The help and resources Endeavor devotes to entrepreneurs aim to contribute to their countries’ economic growth and turn them into role models for the new generation of entrepreneurs.
Venelin Dimitrov reached the International Selection Panel in Dubai, UAE after a long selection process which consisted of multiple interviews with local and international mentors and members of Endeavor Bulgaria’s Board of Directors. During the process, he successfully fulfilled the selection criteria related to financial results, innovation strategy, sustainable growth, as well as personal and leadership potential needed to contribute to the Bulgarian entrepreneurial ecosystem. What is more, Endeavor’s pre-selection process provided SoftGroup with access to some of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies. Venelin had a meeting with Mrs. Majda Labadi, VP of Hikma Pharmaceuticals, a pharmaceutical giant based in Jordan and a potential client of SoftGroup. As a result of their meeting, two senior managers from Hikma Pharmaceuticals visited Bulgaria and reviewed the implementation of SoftGroup’s solution at Actavis Bulgaria, the largest production site of Actavis (recently acquired by Teva) in the world. In addition, Venelin had the opportunity to speak to Mr. Leandro Sigman, CEO of Chemo Group, a leading Spanish pharmaceutical company, which offered guidance related to SoftGroup’s go-to-market strategy and confirmed the company’s market potential.
During the International Selection Panel in Dubai, UAE where more than 200 entrepreneurs and business leaders from around the world participated, Venelin presented himself, SoftGroup’s milestones and the company’s growth strategy in three consecutive interviews of 45 minutes each in front of six world business leaders with experience in different industries and markets:
• Phil Wickham, Founder of Sozo Ventures and CEO of Kaufmann Fellows
• Alessandro Fracassi, CEO of Gruppo MutuiOnline
• Raj Gollamudi, Investment Director at Intel Capital
• Samih Toukan, CEO of Jabbar Internet Group
• Mohamed Azab, Founder of Seha Capital
• Souheil Hajjar, Founder of Majid Al Futtaim Trust
As a result of his selection in Endeavor’s network, Venelin would be able to utilize all resources of the organization. Venelin would also be strategically supported by a specially assigned Advisory Board. In addition, he would receive a free access to highly qualified managerial talent from leading consulting companies such as EY and Bain, as well as access to entrepreneurial programs at Harvard, Stanford and MIT. Venelin would also be able to reach out to more than 4,000 mentors and investors from the Endeavor Network.
About Endeavor
Established in 1997, Endeavor (www.endeavor.org) is a global nonprofit organization leading the High-Impact Entrepreneurship movement around the world. High-Impact Entrepreneurs—those with the biggest ideas and most scalable businesses—are widely recognized as the key drivers of long-term economic growth, job creation, and innovation. High-Impact Entrepreneurs have the potential to change their countries and the world. Many of these High-Impact Entrepreneurs, however, face various barriers in growing their businesses. Endeavor provides the support system and resources necessary to overcome these challenges.
Endeavor has set the standard for selecting, mentoring, and accelerating entrepreneurs with the greatest potential for creating impact. In 18 years, Endeavor has screened and provided feedback to 40,000+ candidates and selected 1,200+ High-Impact Entrepreneurs from 800+ companies. Mentored by our growing network of 3,000+ top local and global business leaders, these entrepreneurs have created over 500,000+ high-value jobs and generated more than $7.7 billion in revenue last year.
The World Economic Forum, the Clinton Global Initiative, Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, Fast Company, Time, Forbes and The Wall Street Journal, as well as iconic entrepreneurs including Michael Dell, eBay’s Pierre Omidyar, and LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman, have recognized Endeavor for its innovative and results-driven approach. Thomas Friedman hailed our model as the “best anti-poverty program of all.”
During the summer of 2015, Endeavor opens its third European office in Bulgaria with the support of local business leaders and entrepreneurs. They are committed to having a long-term impact over the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Bulgaria. The Bulgarian Board Members include Andon Tushev (TAL Engineering), Atanas Simeonov (S Group), Vassil Terziev (Progress Software), Dennis Smith (Evolution Equity Partners), Ivo Eugeniev (Rosslyn Capital Partners), Kiril Boshov (EuroHold Group), Lyubomir Minchev (Telelink Holdings), Nedelcho Spasov (Easy Asset Management), Stefan Gugushev (Gugushev&Partners Law Offices) and Christo Iliev (AG Capital).