As startups are in the initial stages of business, they will be researching the market and designing a product or service they hope will fit the market, be desirable to customers and go on to sell well. Once this has already been achieved and a product or service is no longer in the prototype stage but is actually being brought by customers, then this is a clear marker for when you are no longer a startup.

If we consider the definition of a startup as an enterprise in the early, fledgling stages of business, it goes without saying that the scale of the company must be modest – even if they have huge ambitions. If the scale of your business is sizable, it’s a clear sign that you can no longer be defined as a startup.

Scale is determined using indicators such as revenue, number of employees and the age of a business. There is no definitive figure for any of these elements which will tell you are no longer a startup, but it should be fairly clear once your scale has surpassed that of a startup.

Another metric which can determine whether or not a company is still eligible for startup status is that of profitability. This doesn’t just refer to revenue minus expenses, but also refers to efficiency and investment returns. It can therefore be narrowed down to net income. When this becomes a significant figure, it’s probably time to lose the startup label.

Another clear indication that it’s time to renounce the startup title is when the business begins to become more bureaucratic. This means that you are now using official and formal channels of communication and have standardized and efficiently organized your processes and operating procedures.

In practice, this may mean you now have a dedicated accounts team, an appointed marketing and branding team and are no longer working with just a small group of individuals focused on ideation. Instead, things are running like a well-oiled machine, and you are not experimenting with organization.

In other words, creative experimentation and innovation are perhaps still part of the business process but have taken a back seat to standardized, organized bureaucracy.