It is a solution which could be used by as many as 210,000 Croats.
New Croatian startup Winglio offers a solution to an important problem that just in Croatia affects more than 210,000 citizens who are self-employed. These are freelancers who have a problem with legally issuing invoices for their services or products, reports Poslovni.hr on September 29, 2016.
Winglio has opened specialized companies in Ireland and Malaysia through which it offers to help users to collect their debts. Slavko Pleš, the founder and owner of Winglio, in just one year created a profitable business with six employees. He says that they have customers not only in Croatia, but also in twenty countries around the world, including major western countries such as Germany, Italy and Great Britain.
“This is a problem faced by many in the European Union, especially when they need to issue an invoice for a project. Instead of establishing their own company and struggling with the paperwork, we offer them ‘rent-a-company’ services”, says Pleš. He adds that freelancers who use their services only have to file a tax income statement once a year.
Matija Raos, president of the Croatian Society of Independent Professionals, says that problems faced by freelancers, or as he calls them independent professionals, are so numerous that his association is almost like a trade union. “We have almost 2,600 members which makes us a large organization of citizens who are themselves both employers and employees, but the state institutions are not trying to solve our problems, and therefore private initiatives like Winglio are interesting to us”, says Raos.
He adds that Eurostat announced that in Croatia there were more than 210,000 people working as freelancers. Some of them work through special one-off contracts, while some are forced to open so-called “simple companies” or “trade and crafts” businesses. “Paradox in Croatia is that the state provides support for self-employment, but then it does not recognize the self-employed as legal entities which can issue invoices and focus on what they love to do, except in rare exceptions as in the case of artists”, says Raos. “Nobody is taking into account the fact that successful freelancers can earn more if they work for foreigners and in that way increase our exports”, says Raos.
Pleš says that, despite being open to cooperation with all freelancers, they cannot accept cooperation with everyone. He explains that in Ireland and Malaysia there are professions which are regulated and require special licenses, such as banking and other activities.
