Building a startup rarely feels like a neat, linear journey. It is messy, iterative, and full of loops. Still, understanding the typical stages of a startup can help you see where you are, what to focus on next, and which type of support will move you forward.

In this article, we walk through six common startup stages. For each stage, we look at what usually happens, the questions you should be asking, and the kinds of support that make a difference.

If you are building a startup in the Basel Area, you will also see how our Launch service offerings can support you at each step, especially if you have a scalable venture in science and tech.

Every venture is different, but many startups move through some version of these six stages:

• Stage 1: Idea and problem exploration
• Stage 2: Validation and pre-seed
• Stage 3: Build and early customers (seed)
• Stage 4: Early growth and scaling foundations
• Stage 5: Scale-up
• Stage 6: Maturity, exit or renewal

You are at the very beginning. You have one or more ideas, and a sense of a problem you want to solve, but nothing is fixed yet. You might still be employed or working on your idea in your spare time. Activities at this stage usually include:

• Talking to potential users and customers.
• Framing and reframing the problem.
• Sketching early concepts or mockups.
• Ensuring a good problem-solution fit.
• Testing your own motivation and risk appetite.

At this stage, you benefit most from:

• Honest feedback from peers and mentors.
• Exposure to real customers and industry experts.
• Early training on topics such as value propositions, business models, and basic financials.
• Light-touch validation of whether your idea fits existing support programs.

If you are an aspiring startup founder in the Basel Area, you do not have to explore this stage alone:

• Our VentureConnect program is often the right entry point for entrepreneurs at stages 1 to 3. It helps you refine your idea, understand your options and connect with the right people and programs for your next steps.
• If your idea is in healthtech or techbio, the DayOne community and accelerator activities can help you test the problem with patients, healthcare professionals and industry stakeholders.
• If you are exploring a biotech venture, you can start to learn what it takes to build an investable company by engaging with BaseLaunch, which supports breakthrough biopharma ventures in the Basel Area.

You have narrowed down a problem and a target user group. Now you are focused on validating whether your idea has real potential. Typical activities include:

• Conducting structured customer interviews or surveys.
• Building and testing simple prototypes or minimum viable products (MVPs).
• Estimating market size and pricing options.
• Exploring early funding options such as grants, friends and family or pre-seed capital.

You will gain speed and confidence if you have:

• Access to mentors who understand your sector and its constraints.
• Structured coaching on validation techniques and lean experimentation.
• Connections to early adopters and pilot partners.
• Guidance on next funding steps and how to position your startup for pre-seed or seed rounds.

In the Basel Area, validation becomes more powerful when you plug into the local startup and industry ecosystem.

• VentureConnect can support you with coaching and connections as you test your idea and decide how to move forward.
• If you are working on healthtech or techbio solutions at the interface with pharma R&D, the DayOne Accelerator is designed to support high potential, early-stage ventures at this point in their journey.
• The Digital Accelerator Basel supports early-stage tech startups that want to transform the local industry and have a clear link to the Basel region.
• In the Jura region, innovators and SMEs can access acceleration and expertise through dedicated regional programs such as the InnoJura Accelerator, which connect industrial innovation with the manufacturing strengths of the Jura.
• Finally, FoodHealth aims to promote high-tech innovations from sustainable agricultural technologies to health-promoting nutritional solutions.

You have validated the core of your idea and are now building a real product or service. You are moving from “does anyone care” to “can we deliver this reliably and start to grow”. Activities often include:

• Building a more complete product or platform.
• Running pilots or proof of concepts with early customers.
• Bringing in first employees or formal co-founders.
• Raising a seed round or significant non-dilutive funding.

The right support can help you avoid expensive mistakes:

• Experienced mentors in your specific industry or technology.
• Access to testbeds, clinical or industrial environments for pilots.
• Guidance on legal, regulatory, intellectual property and quality topics.
• Investor introductions and feedback on your funding strategy.

The Basel Area is built for startups at this stage, especially in life sciences, healthtech and industrial innovation.

• The DayOne Accelerator supports high potential early stage healthtech and techbio ventures that are ready to co-develop and test their solutions with industry and healthcare partners.
• BaseLaunch works with promising biopharma ventures providing expertise, funding, and access to the Basel Area Life Sciences Supercluster network.
• The Digital Accelerator Basel helps early-stage tech startups validate solutions with regional partners and move toward market readiness.
• If you are not sure which path fits your startup best, VentureConnect remains your entry point to talk through your options and connect with the right program or partner.

You have a working product and paying customers. Now you need to turn early traction into reliable growth. Key activities include:

• Professionalizing sales and customer success.
• Strengthening your core team and leadership.
• Refining your unit economics and business model.
• Expanding into new markets or customer segments.

At this point, targeted support is valuable:

• Access to experienced operators and sector experts.
• Support in building strategic partnerships with key industry players.
• Introductions to investors who understand your sector and growth profile.
• Guidance on how to scale in or from the Basel Area into European and global markets.

Basel Area Business & Innovation and its partners can support you as you lay down your scaling foundations:

• If you are a healthtech or techbio venture graduating from programs such as DayOne or BaseLaunch, you remain embedded in a network of industry partners, investors and service providers in the Basel Area Life Sciences Supercluster.
• Growth-stage startups in tech and industrial innovation can access networks, events and corporate partners across the Basel Area to test new products and secure reference customers.
• You can tap into Basel’s cross-border position to access talent, customers and partners in Switzerland, Germany and France from one highly connected base.

>You are now a scale-up rather than a classic startup. You have product market fit, a growing team and a need to expand operations, markets or both. Activities include:

• Entering new countries or regions.
• Building strong leadership and governance structures.
• Adding new product lines or services.
• Raising larger funding rounds to support expansion.

Scale-ups benefit from:

• Location advice and support for setting up new sites or functions.
• Connections to international partners, clusters and investors.
• Access to specialized talent pools in science, technology and operations.

Many scale-ups choose the Basel Area as a base for European growth or as a location for research and development, manufacturing or commercial hubs.

• The Basel Area Life Sciences Supercluster site shows how companies at every stage of growth use the region’s talent, ecosystem, location and lifestyle as a multiplier for growth.
• We can support you with insights into setting up new operations in the region, from R&D and manufacturing to commercial teams, and can connect you with partners, service providers and local authorities.

You have built a mature business. At this point, you may be considering:

• International expansion beyond your current footprint.
• Strategic partnerships, acquisitions or mergers.
• Preparing for an exit such as a trade sale or public offering.
• Spinning out new ventures or products.

At this point, support often looks more strategic:

• Neutral advice on location strategy and expansion.
• Access to corporate partners and innovation initiatives.
• Support in exploring spin offs and collaborations with startups.

The Basel Area is home to both global life sciences leaders and agile mid-sized innovators. For mature companies and later stage scale-ups, the region can be a platform to:

• Explore collaborations with startups and scale-ups through programs and initiatives that connect established companies with new ventures.
• Set up innovation units, labs or pilot projects close to a dense life sciences and industrial ecosystem.
• Engage with the wider Basel Area Life Sciences Supercluster to keep a pulse on emerging science and technology.

If this article helped you recognize your current stage, the next step is to translate that insight into action.

At any stage of your startup journey, if you already know that you want to build in the Basel Area and would like to discuss your options, you can reach out to us for a conversation about your next steps.