Bote: A human connection makes all the difference.

The business

What is BOTE

BOTE is solving an age-old problem of keeping track of small children in crowded areas. Once a lost child in a busy marketplace himself, the founder of BOTE, Raafat Hantoush, wanted to do something about the limited solutions parents have to keep track of their children beyond a physical leash. Luckily today, technology paves the way for more dignified ways to not lose young humans.

BOTE was born when Raafat decided to leverage his extensive experience in tech and entrepreneurship to start a business that harnesses the power of IoT to help parents keep track of their children. His business is developing a smart gadget for children (a chip that is inserted into shoe insoles) that notifies parents via a smartphone if they get separated.

The obstacle

On the startup competition circuit

Raafat is one of the hardest-working entrepreneurs in Germany, determined to leave no stone unturned in terms of opportunities, he entered various startup competitions. These competitions offer not only funds for startups but also access to support and expertise without having to give away equity.

Raafat enjoyed a lot of success in the startup competitions he entered, not only gaining exposure for his fledgling company but also a nice little cash boost.

Although startup competitions offer a lot of advantages they are also quite time-consuming. Coupled with the demands of business operations and product development, it’s a lot for a founder to have on his or her plate.

Germany’s bureaucracy isn’t founder-friendly

As Raafat’s story shows, being a startup founder who is turning a business idea into reality involves many moving parts and doesn’t leave you with a lot of time to deal with bureaucracy.

But, Germany serves up the double whammy: one of the most complicated bureaucratic systems in the world coupled with big consequences if the rules are not followed exactly. There’s just no escaping red tape in Germany.

The way

A human touch matters

As an engineer turned entrepreneur in a country he’s not a native of, Raafat has taken full advantage of firma.de’s personal consultation service. Whenever he needs guidance about a particular bureaucratic matter he can organise a call and get just that with someone that speaks English.

Startup life in Germany is hard with heavy regulations to contend with but with firma.de, help and advice are never more than a phone call away. Having this single point of contact means that international entrepreneurs such as Raafat never have to spend hours researching things on the internet, nor worry about language barriers.

Services tailored for lean startups

When it comes to navigating business bureaucracy most of the time all you need is the right knowledge. However, often the only easily accessible people with this knowledge are business consultants, lawyers or tax advisers. This can be a problem because they charge professional rates regardless of what service they provide.

firma.de is run by German entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs. We’ve helped literally thousands of companies get started in Germany – and we’ve seen it all. Most lawyers/tax advisers/consultants haven’t had this kind of lived experience, but because of their titles still charge eye-watering hourly rates. This is why firma.de services are a much more founder-friendly alternative.

As an international founder of a lean startup, Raafat has benefited from having an English-speaking expert talk him through all the bureaucracy that doesn’t charge lawyer/tax adviser hourly rates.

Going from strength to strength

Along the way, BOTE has joined forces with many strong partners that range from big companies to government departments, creating a solid foundation to develop its product. The sky’s the limit for this Berlin-based startup!