unicorn companies here, unicorn companies there. In recent years, this magical term has flooded the news and social networks, but what are they and why are they called that? A company that earns this recognition has a great job behind it and a good reputation among tech startups.
This term began to be used by Aileen Lee, founder of , in 2013, who after an investigation realized that very few firms of this type reach a value of 1,000 million dollars in less than 10 years without listing on the stock market.
To learn more about the world of unicorn companies, we will now begin a journey that will provide a lot of clarity on the subject. Can you come with us? 🚀🦄
Wildlife in companies
The first step in understanding the birth of unicorn companies is to go back in time to 1979 and talk about the work of David L. Birch, a professor at MIT.
Birch, in his study entitled , carried out a business categorization taking into account some species of the animal kingdom. With this work, he sought to give a place to the different businesses, which, although they have similarities in certain areas, have characteristics that make them unique entities.
The business animals that exist are the following:
Characteristics of unicorn companies
One of the main characteristics of a unicorn company is its valuation, which must be greater than $1,000 million. It must also be private, that is, not have a presence on the Stock Exchange. Development time is another factor that characterizes unicorn companies, since unicorns start their process as startups and, its scalable and promising development, allow them to obtain large investments.
On the other hand, and as a fundamental characteristic, a unicorn company develops products or services that coexist hand in hand with technology to facilitate consumer problems and even generate new needs in society. For example in sectors such as e-commerce, financial services, transportation, streaming services, etc.
Difference between startup and unicorn
It is common for there to be confusion between startup and unicorn, even that they are used as synonyms. But as we have pointed out in previous lines, unicorns and other great technology companies start as startups and, later, become unicorns.
The main difference between a unicorn and a startup is that startups or start-ups do not have much capital for their growth. Their beginnings are unknown, but they are prepared to work in environments of high uncertainty or VUCA environments―with high rates of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity―.
How to be a unicorn company?
- Identify a business idea.
- Become an emerging company or startup.
- Present an innovative business model that works and allows obtaining capital to continue innovating.
You can see the process in detail in the following infographic:
Unicorn companies in the world
In total numbers up to June 2022, according to the Unicorn Companies Report of , there are 1,146 companies that can be categorized under this scheme. If we talk about hard and cold figures, these companies have a cumulative valuation of approximately $3.809 billion dollars.
Top 10 most valuable unicorn companies worldwide
Top 5 countries with the highest concentration of unicorn companies
- United States (554)
- Chinese (180)
- Indian (64)
- UK (43)
- Sweden (26)
Unicorn companies in Latin America
Latin America presents great challenges in terms of the formation of unicorn companies, being the region with the lowest amount of creation of this type of companies worldwide, along with the Middle East and Africa. However, in recent years it has had a gigantic acceleration, going from two to 45 unicorn companies in the last four years.
Fact: Nubank It is not considered a unicorn within the listing as it began trading on the stock exchange on December 9, 2021.
Unicorn CEOs and their inspirational quotes
The CEOs of unicorn companies They have innovative ideas and pass them on to their teams. To understand more about their path to success, we share with you some of the phrases that have inspired many entrepreneurs who follow them.
The biggest obstacle to entrepreneurship is the mental limits we have.
Simon Borrero, CEO of Rappi.
The definition of a unicorn is the least important, the most important thing is the message. If you work hard, if you are ambitious, if you listen to your customers, in a very short time you can achieve great things.
Carlos GarcÃa, CEO of Kavak.
We believe in the value of a multidisciplinary team: design, product management, engineering, customer service, marketing, operations, each with a different vision. The possibility of doing something that works is greater thanks to these people.
Gabriel Braga, co-founder of Quinto Andar.
We need people who have an open mind and who have the desire to learn permanently and we really like talent that wants to grow and knows how to adapt.
Sergio Furio, founder and CEO of Creditas.
When you are down you have to remember that if you keep pushing you will eventually come back up.
Daniel Vogel, founder of Bitso.
is one of the most valuable unicorn companies in Latin America, with a presence in Brazil (under the name of Nuvemshop) and Mexico. In 2021, we obtained a series E investment round with the participation of angel investors with an investment value of 500 million dollars, which places us in the list of the 10 most valuable companies in the region.
Arriving in Mexico as the only one with a local focus allows us to offer technology to entrepreneurs in the country. In addition to being an example of a unicorn company, at Tiendanube we seek to promote success stories.
An example of the impact that Tiendanube is generating in Mexico is that in the past, the stores created on our platform collected a total of sales of more than $5 million MXN during the 9 days that the event lasted.
Likewise, being unicorns was never a goal, but it reflects the commitment we have with entrepreneurs and the work we do every day to digitize more businesses in Latin America.
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