Russian start-up moving to Lithuania for attractive low prices and taxes

The personnel selection start-up Skillaz established in Russia has received EUR 160,000 initial investment and is relocating from their home country to Lithuania.

Gregor Dudash, one of the founders of the company, told Verslo žinios that the financial injection came from one Russian investor operating in Europe.

‘This is a private investor from Russia, who has already invested in a few businesses in Europe, but a confidentiality agreement prevents me from disclosing the party’s identity’, Mr Dudash explained.

Skillaz is developing an online widget for personnel selection professionals and employment managers. After placing a job advertisement, some key questions may be added for a candidate to answer with the help of an application in the form a video, audio recording or a test.

‘For example, if you are a very large company recruiting around 100 people a year, you can receive a large amount of CVs. We’ll charge for viewing each video; the more you watch the lower the price. We will also provide an unlimited access option’, the manager said.

According to developers, the proposed application will considerably shorten the employee recruitment process, because you can get more information in advance and invite fewer people for the final interview. It is expected that the solution will be most interesting to large companies for whom employee search is a constant time-consuming process.

Migrating to Lithuania

‘I am currently in Moscow, where we are based, but I am arranging documents for relocation, so I am almost in Lithuania. We want to be one of the best Russian companies coming to the European market through Lithuania. We have visited Lithuania many times and decided that it is an excellent country for further work’, the manager said.

According to Mr Dudash, the move from Russia was prompted by the country’s political and economic situation and a market which is too small for their creative solution. Over the next three months, Mr Dudash and the other co-founderhould move to Lithuania and in the following three months they will be followed by a team of three specialists. The manager says that they will establish their main office in Lithuania and then recruit local specialists.
‘We will continue to grow by recruiting local staff, because we will need product developers and sales and marketing specialists. Lithuanians have good English language skills, and there is also high quality of life and rather low taxes here’, Mr Dudash commented on the decision to relocate the business and his future business plans.

Objective – Europe

Mr Dudash’s aim is to enter the markets of the United Kingdom, Germany and France, which are favourable in terms of their size and potential number of users.
‘Russia is our initial market where we are testing the product, but the English version is coming soon because our main markets are the United Kingdom, Germany and France –  that is, the most important countries in personnel selection after the US’, Mr Dudash explained.

In a few months’ time the solution should also be available in Lithuania, when the product is fully adapted to the market and will be translated into the local language. Simultaneously, it is expected that after the initial injection the so-called series A (first) investment in the amount of about EUR 5 million will follow.

‘We’ll also look for investments from funds. Lithuania has a strong relationship with UK venture capitalists. We hope to receive series A funding for development in Europe. It may not necessarily be from Lithuania, but we expect it in the coming years’, the manager said.

Mr Dudash also says that the start-up expects to reap its profit in a year’s time and that they are getting ready for it, because ‘this isn’t the type of business like Uber where one can get only investment without generating profit’.

Source: Verslo žinios