Building a successful startup in Peru is hard enough. You don’t need to try to do it all alone. There are many free resources available and people willing to help you on your journey.
Whether you are a founder or investor, you will need all the help you can get. Seeking out help (especially equity free help!) won’t take away the merit from the founding team and will increase your probability of success. It shows you are open to learning and putting together the best group of people possible to lead your startup.
If you look at the pitch deck or cap table of many successful startups in Peru you will see they have had help along the way. Most are beneficiaries of the StartupPeru program. Many have passed through one (or more) accelerator programs. Almost all of them have multiple investors who have jumped on board at different moments in time.
Co-founders, team members, mentors, investors, and ecosystem allies love to brag about being a small part of your startup’s story. It’s okay. Free press and referrals are great.
If you are able to achieve an exit one day, you will take home more money the more equity you retain, but you don’t get extra credit for doing it all by yourself. You may even meet some great friends along the way.