“European startups are asked to run a marathon with their shoelaces tied”

For many European startups, the US is seen as the ultimate market to scale into. Since we often frame competitiveness in terms of Europe versus the US, I wanted to hear the perspective on the 28th Regime from a founder now operating in the US.

Goedele "G" Mangelaars is the founder and CEO of Pink Notebook, a travel venture built on the belief that trip planning shouldn't have to start with fixed dates. Instead, her company helps travellers secure the best offers across destinations, accommodations, activities, and transportation — with greater flexibility and inspiration.

Having seen first-hand how the US ecosystem enables innovation, she is a strong advocate for Europe adopting a 28th Regime to create a more unified and competitive environment for founders. I spoke to her to learn more. 

Europe has the talent, the US has the infrastructure

Originally from the Netherlands and now based in New York, Mangelaars brings extensive international experience in strategy, partnerships, and marketing across the travel and technology sectors.  About 85 to 90 per cent of Mangelaars is spent in the US, where her startup Pink Notebook is headquartered.

Her investors are split between the US and Europe — "I have one American investor and two European ones who also invest in US companies", she explained.

When it comes to the US vs Europe, Mangelaars' perspective comes as no surprise. She contends that the US is built for startups:

"You eat, sleep, breathe entrepreneurship in places like New York or San Francisco. The infrastructure is designed to help companies start and scale.

In Europe, the entrepreneurial spirit is definitely there — citizens are highly educated and incredibly entrepreneurial — but the environment is slower, more fragmented, and often bogged down in bureaucracy."

"European startups are asked to run a marathon with their shoelaces tied"

When it comes to investment, Mangelaars believes that Europe is playing a completely different ballgame to the US:

"In Europe, even at pre-seed, investors often want detailed user data — attrition rates, user metrics—before they'll even consider investing. 

In the US, it's more of a people play. If you can sit across from an investor and convince them you'll 10x their fund, they'll back you."

Mangelaars contends that on the founder side,  "European startups are often asked to run a marathon with their shoelaces tied."

"They get smaller rounds, which makes it harder to take risks, test theses, and experiment.  Bigger rounds in the US give founders more room to try things out."

From hours to weeks: the startup incorporation lottery across Europe

Starting a company in Europe can mean anything from a few hours online in Estonia to several weeks of notary visits in Germany — while in the US, you can set up a Delaware C-Corp in 1–5 days.

Some European countries do it well — in Estonia, through its e-Residency program, you can incorporate a company online in as little as a few hours to a day. In the UK, forming a private limited company can be done online in 24 hours. In Ukraine, startup formation can be done entirely online in minutes using the Dia platform, even during wartime.  But in Spain and Italy, it can take a couple of weeks.

And in places like Germany, incorporation requires a notary – this is also the case in the Netherlands —, bank account setup, and registration with the commercial register and can take several weeks. Even logistics like opening a startup bank account can be a daunting task in Europe.

According to Mangelaars, opening a corporate bank account in the Netherlands took two weeks.  "In the US, it took two hours at Chase—even without a Social Security number, just with a visa and a passport. Those little differences add up, they take founders away from critical work, and they make Europe less competitive."

Europe is "committeed to death"

Mangelaars and I share the opinion that Europe is obsessed with meetings and committees.

She contends that while Europe's strength is its consultative approach — "every voice is heard, legislation is carefully crafted, and that creates stability. " But it also means things move very slowly.

"Startups don't have the luxury of waiting years for decisions. At some point, the EU has to take a risk. Even if the 28th Regime isn't exactly ironed out on all counts, being 80 per cent right and moving quickly is better than standing still."

Although many Europeans still view the US as the ultimate destination—"the ecosystem, the infrastructure, and the opportunities are stronger there, so many still want to spend a few years in the States before coming back," says Mangelaars — she notes a growing trend in startup circles of Americans heading the other way, often joining scale-ups rather than founding their own companies: 

"Portugal has been popular because of its visas. I've also seen more people interested in the UK post-Brexit."

"'Just try it'"

Mangelaars has advice for anyone in Europe looking to form a startup:

"Just try it. Start small. Test your idea in the scrappiest, cheapest way possible. 

The best advice I ever got — from an Italian founder — was to find the simplest way to get user feedback.

For us, it was to build an email list, ask people about their next dream trip, and then handcraft an itinerary.  It doesn't have to be perfect. Ship something, learn from it, and keep going."

Europe's hubs will survive, but without the 28th Regime, scaling will suffer.

Mangelaars urges Europeans pushing for the 28th Regime to keep going.

"I believe deeply in rewriting the rules for startups in Europe. If legislation takes years, then founders themselves need to build networks—mentor, share contacts, make introductions."

She also contends that European founders who've scaled to the US should give back:

"Mentor others, share investor contacts, review MVPs. If we can't move legislation, the best thing we can give is our time.

Saying "I believe in European startups" isn't enough if you're not actually helping."

Ultimately, Mangelaars believes that if the 28th Regime doesn't succeed, Europe will still have strong hubs — London, Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris, Lisbon, Barcelona. 

"We want Europe to thrive, we can't just wait for Brussels. We need to make it happen ourselves. But the landscape will remain fractured.

Startups won't be able to scale across borders easily, and investors will continue to face obstacles in cross-border deals. 

That's the real loss—not the hubs themselves, but the ability to grow and invest seamlessly across Europe."