In 2024 alone, hundreds of thousands of new companies were created, bringing the total to more than 1.5 million active businesses. At first glance, this suggests dynamism. But a closer look reveals a more structural problem: around half of these companies do not survive beyond three years. This is not just a statistic. It reflects how the system works.

Over the past decade, Portugal has strongly promoted entrepreneurship. Startups, innovation, and ease of company creation have become central themes. This has brought energy into the economy and positioned the country as an attractive place to start something new. But somewhere along the way, quantity started to overshadow quality. It has become relatively easy to create a business, yet it is significantly harder to sustain it, scale it, and turn it into something with real economic impact.

In a country of Portugal’s size, this imbalance becomes even more visible. The business landscape is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises, many of them highly capable, but very few reach meaningful scale. At the same time, a small number of large companies carry a disproportionate share of employment, exports, and GDP contribution. This creates a fragmented economy, where value is generated unevenly and growth potential is often limited. The real question is simple, but uncomfortable. Why do we celebrate starting more than we value growing?

Part of the answer lies in culture. There is still a tendency to view ambition with scepticism. We celebrate the beginning of a journey, but we are less comfortable with those who scale, expand, and dominate markets. Growth is often seen with suspicion rather than as a sign of strength. This cultural barrier has real economic consequences.

If we look at countries like Germany, France or Italy, their strength does not come only from individual excellence, but from their ability to collaborate, consolidate and think long-term. Companies grow through partnerships, acquisitions, and international expansion. They build clusters and ecosystems that reinforce each other. In Portugal, too often, businesses remain isolated, competing at a small scale rather than joining forces to become stronger.

From an investment perspective, this matters significantly. International investors look for scale, execution capacity, and long-term visibility. They invest where companies can grow, consolidate markets and compete globally. When they see a highly fragmented ecosystem with high mortality rates and limited scale, perceived risk increases. And when risk increases, capital becomes more cautious, more selective, and more expensive.

This does not mean there are no success stories. They are, and they stand out precisely because they broke this pattern. Companies that expanded internationally, consolidated sectors, invested in innovation and were not afraid to grow. They show that a different path is possible.

The challenge now is to make that path the rule, not the exception. Less focus on how many companies are created, more focus on how many survive, grow and scale. Less fragmentation, more collaboration. Less fear of ambition, more structured growth.

Portugal has talent, technical capability, and an increasingly strong international position. But unlocking its full potential requires a shift in mindset.

It is not about doing more. It is about doing better. And most importantly, doing it together.