Tom Horsey: From arriving in Spain with no job to investing in 100+ startups

A story of execution, failure, and building things that last

In this episode of The Nomu Hour, we talk with Tom Horsey — entrepreneur, investor, and one of the most active business angels in Southern Europe.His journey from arriving in Spain as an 18-year-old English teacher to leading Eoniq Fund is full of lessons on risk, resilience, and the real meaning of execution.

The three defining moments that shaped his path

Tom often points to three early experiences that forged his entrepreneurial mindset:

1. Losing the fear of starting from scratchAt 18, with no job and limited Spanish, he began giving private English lessons in Seville. That was his first taste of entrepreneurship — and the realization that when opportunities don’t exist, you create them.

2. Discovering the limits of corporate lifeDuring an internship at a major multinational, he realized he didn’t want to be “a drop of water in a lake.” That moment killed his desire to climb the corporate ladder.

3. Finding the intersection between technology and the marketBack in the mid-90s, Tom helped run one of Spain’s first online ad campaigns — when “digital marketing” barely existed. From that moment on, he stayed in that sweet spot between tech and human connection.

From the first digital ads to investing in startups

After his early success in advertising, Tom founded several companies across sectors like mobile content, renewable energy, and digital marketing.Some thrived, others failed — and those failures taught him the power of diversification. Instead of building one big company, he built many small ones.

That approach naturally evolved into angel investing and later into managing his own fund.Today, Tom leads Eoniq Fund, supporting early-stage founders across Europe with a pragmatic and human approach to innovation.

Entrepreneurship in Spain: risk, culture, and evolution

Tom has witnessed firsthand how the Spanish startup ecosystem has matured in the past decade:better access to funding, more training, and the rise of accelerators like Lanzadera.

Still, he believes the cultural fear of failure remains one of the country’s biggest barriers.

He calls founders “heroes,” especially in countries where bureaucracy and cultural stigma make entrepreneurship harder. Every failure, he says, contributes to collective progress — by creating knowledge, jobs, or innovation that others can build on.

Execution beats ideas — every time

When asked what he looks for in a startup, Tom’s answer is immediate:

The idea isn’t the treasure; execution is.A team that can adapt, iterate, and execute consistently will always outperform one with a “perfect” idea and poor delivery.

That belief resonates deeply with the Iterate & Iterate framework by Nomu Labs, which helps startups launch an MVP in just 28 days and evolve it through biweekly iterations based on real feedback.The philosophy is simple: launch fast, learn fast, and improve faster.

Perfection doesn’t scale — impact does

One of Tom’s strongest points in this conversation is his take on perfectionism.He believes many founders waste precious time building the “perfect product” before testing it in the market.

This mindset aligns perfectly with how Nomu Labs builds: agile, data-driven, and focused on creating products that adapt to the real world.In an era where technology changes every quarter, iteration is more valuable than perfection.

Looking ahead: clean tech and sustainable innovation

These days, Tom’s work focuses on two main areas:

• Eoniq Mediterranean Seed II — a new investment vehicle continuing his mission to back early-stage tech founders.

• Clean climate technologies, focusing on natural refrigerants and sustainable HVAC solutions to reduce environmental and health impact.

Still, his attitude remains the same as when he arrived in Spain decades ago: pick and shovel — steady effort over time.

Closing thoughts: failure as part of the process

This episode of The Nomu Hour captures the essence of what it means to be an entrepreneur today: to take risks, learn constantly, and keep building even after setbacks.Tom Horsey’s story reminds us that success isn’t linear — it’s a sequence of iterations, lessons, and pivots.

As he puts it: “Every project leaves a mark, even the ones that fail.”For founders, investors, and innovators alike, it’s a reminder that execution — not ideas — is what truly shapes the future.

Resources mentioned

• Tom Horsey – LinkedIn

• Eoniq Fund – Early-stage European fund

• Lanzadera – Startup accelerator

• Iterate & Iterate – Nomu Labs framework

• Listen to The Nomu Hour on Spotify