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“Coffee with Entrepreneurs,” an initiative by the Bankinter Innovation Foundation, features insights from prominent figures in the startup ecosystem. The 2020 season’s final session spotlighted Gerard Olivé, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Antai Venture Builder, a leading figure in Spanish entrepreneurship. Gerard has nearly two decades of experience launching and investing in innovative startups, including well-known companies like Wallapop and Glovo. Antai Venture Builder focuses on creating up to three startups annually across four verticals: marketplaces, digital native brands, fintech/insurtech, and software as a service. These ventures collectively hold a valuation exceeding two billion euros.
Gerard shared Antai’s startup creation process, inspired by Rocket Internet’s model. It begins with identifying global trends, especially in markets like the US, UK, Germany, and Asia, then adapting successful models to Southern Europe and Latin America. Crucially, assembling the right founding team tailored to each startup’s needs is emphasized, using employee referrals, university partnerships, and LinkedIn to attract talent. Due to their deep involvement, Antai carefully selects projects to avoid mistakes and ensure focus.
Looking ahead to 2021, Gerard sees promising opportunities in fintech, insurtech, and edtech, especially within pre-digital regulated markets. He also highlights sustainability-driven sectors such as smart cities and IoT, alongside large, untapped B2B digital platforms. These areas offer fertile ground for innovation and growth in the coming years.
Gerard Olivé, serial entrepreneur, tells us some keys to his success by launching and launching start-ups.
“Coffee with Entrepreneurs”, an initiative of the Bankinter Innovation Foundation, brings you closer to leaders in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, offering you the opportunity to learn from their experiences and careers. In the last session of the 2020 season, we have had Gerard Olivé, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Antai Venture Builder, one of the most successful and admired entrepreneurs in our country.
Gerard launches and invests in innovative start-ups. He studied Audiovisual Communication at the Universitat Ramon Llull. He is the founder of
Gerard has a long history in the creation of digital projects: he has been an entrepreneur for almost two decades, after working as a consultant in the digital environment.
From Antai Venture Builder, they create a maximum of three companies a year, since both Gerard and Miguel are deeply involved in each of them.
They have defined four verticals in which to create companies:
1.- Market places, i.e. digital platforms such as Wallapop or Glovo.
2.- Digital native brands, aimed at mass consumption, such as Marmota, the first startup in the Bed in a Box category in Spain and leader in that market.
3.- Fintech and insurtech, where companies such as Nemuru, a financing platform that connects companies, banks and consumers, have launched.
4.- Software as a service. Such as, for example, Deliberry, to digitize the food channel.
Today, the companies created from Antai Venture Builder have a combined value of more than 2,000 million euros.
What is the process of creating a startup from scratch like?
Gerard tells us that their model is not far from that of Rocket Internet, which inspired them to create Antai. Below, we summarize the process of creating a start-up that Gerard told us:
1.- Identification of the opportunity:
They are keeping a close eye on overseas trends within the four verticals they have, most notably in the US, UK, Germany and, increasingly, in China and other Asian countries.
They analyze the companies that are emerging and those that have the most traction.
For example, in 2013 one of the strongest trends was second-hand and the so-called circular economy, from which Wallapop emerges. Or, in 2015, the most promising trend was immediate delivery, from which Glovo emerges.
2.- Adapt/personalize the opportunity for their markets
When they see that a model is working, they see the characteristics that it should have to succeed in their natural market; southern Europe and Latin America. Due to economies of scale and market sizes, some opportunities may make sense in the US or China, but they are not transferable to Antai’s model. In addition, it is necessary to think about the type of services offered according to the target audience.
3.- Team with which to co-found the start-up
The key point for success is the search for the best human teams. Depending on the start-up to be set up, it is necessary to fix the necessary talent. For each company it is different, since there are very technological, very marketing, or all at the same time: You have to look for the talent that complements you to launch the company.
The search for partners is linked to the needs of the project and what you do not cover.
To find the best human team, they have several initiatives underway that complement each other. Within the house itself, they have a referral program from their own employees that works very well for them (“talent calls talent”). In addition, they have bridges with universities and higher education centers. The triangle is completed by LinkedIn, which Gerard tells us works very well as a channel for attracting talent.
4.- Start-up of the team and the company
Since they are very involved from the beginning, they only have the capacity to set up a maximum of three companies a year. Therefore, they are very careful and selective since the opportunity cost of making mistakes is very high, and the time they dedicate to each project is also very high.
From this point on, a lot of work, a lot of enthusiasm, a lot of focus and being very realistic.
What opportunities does Gerard see for 2021?
Gerard thinks there are great opportunities in markets even with pre-digital regulations. Just as there have been disruptions in regulated markets such as commerce and mobility, he thinks there are great opportunities in Fintech and Insurtech. Personally, he is committed to Edtech.
On the other hand, everything that has to do with climate change and sustainability: from smart cities to the Internet of Things, through the construction market, there will be great opportunities in models that are committed to sustainability.
Finally, Gerard mentions B2B digital platforms, where he recommends looking for sectors that have not yet been digitized and are very large.
