Decentralizing entrepreneurship: How Guimarães is building its own Startup Ecosystem

In recent years, entrepreneurship in Portugal has taken on a new dimension. Lisbon and Porto have established themselves as central hubs, attracting talent, investment, and international visibility. But something interesting is happening outside these major centers: medium-sized cities are creating their own dynamics, closer to their communities, better adapted to their realities, and with ambitions that go beyond local borders.

Guimarães is an excellent example of this transformation.

The Decentralization of Entrepreneurship in Portugal

The concentration in Lisbon and Porto brought undeniable benefits — greater scale, global networks, and more exposure to investors. However, it also revealed limitations: high costs, intense competition for talent, and sometimes a cultural distance from other regions of the country.

This is where cities such as Guimarães come into play. Guimarães is part of a group of cities that offer a high quality of life, close connections among ecosystem actors, and, above all, the opportunity to build a deeply rooted entrepreneurial fabric. This “decentralization” does not mean competing with Lisbon or Porto, but rather complementing the country with new narratives and innovation hubs, capable of attracting and retaining talent in areas outside the two main centers.

In the case of Guimarães, the focus has been clear: to put the city on the innovation map while maintaining its cultural and industrial identity.

Guimarães: Tradition, Industry, and Innovation

Guimarães has a strong industrial tradition, especially linked to the textile sector and manufacturing industries. This heritage is not a burden; on the contrary, it is a resource. Many startups are born precisely from the ability to reinvent industry, creating digital, sustainable, and technology-based solutions, always with a close eye on the local business reality.

Proximity to the University of Minho and the Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave is another differentiating factor. Knowledge produced in fields such as engineering, materials science, or medical technologies is increasingly transferred to startups and entrepreneurial projects. The result is a hybrid ecosystem: one foot in tradition and another in the future.

But an ecosystem is not built solely with universities, incubators, or companies. It needs meetings, human connections, and moments that create community. This is where entrepreneurship events come in.

One of the most notable examples in Guimarães is Techstars Startup Week Guimarães. This event, part of a global network, is more than a series of talks or workshops. It is a space where ideas take shape, where people who have never met find synergies, and where stories are created that later become real businesses.

By organizing this event, I was able to observe its impact up close, as it:

• builds connections — a student meets a local entrepreneur, a researcher meets a designer, an investor discovers talent.

• awakens vocations — many young people realize they can go beyond traditional roles in the job market; they can be creators of solutions.

• accelerates projects — early-stage ideas receive feedback, evolve, and find new paths.

These events act as catalysts, accelerating ideas and connections even before they become startups, and, above all, fostering a culture that, over time, transforms the city into fertile ground for innovation.

The future is built in cities that balance innovation and community.

Looking at Guimarães helps us reflect on the future of entrepreneurship in Portugal. The country does not need to rely on just two major hubs (Lisbon and Porto). It needs a network of cities that, although smaller in size, possess unique characteristics and even specializations which, when interconnected, can create a more competitive, innovative, and balanced nation.

This type of city offer advantages that may become even more relevant in the future: superior quality of life for those who do not want to live at the frenetic pace of large cities, lower costs for setting up and running businesses, closer and more collaborative communities, and a direct connection to traditional sectors that can be reinvented through technology and creativity.

Guimarães has already started down this path. The challenge now is to ensure continuity, attract external talent, and involve the local community even more.

An Inspiration for All

Writing about Guimarães also makes me reflect on how these examples can inspire other cities and even individuals. While municipalities, universities, and incubators play a crucial role, an ecosystem also depends on citizens who believe in the value of coming together, sharing ideas, and building collectively.

If there is one thing that events like Techstars Startup Week Guimarães teach us, it is that the future is not written alone. It requires an active community, willing to take risks, make mistakes, and start again. This is how a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem is built.

I believe that Guimarães has all the conditions to be a success story and, more than that, a model for other medium-sized cities in Portugal. The future of national entrepreneurship may very well pass through here: not only through the large hubs, but also through cities that find their greatest strength in balancing tradition and innovation.