It’s often been said, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” At SaaStock, we say – why choose? SaaStock19 ensures you get to tick both boxes; powerful knowledge and incredible connection.
A key feature of our schedule with regard to this is our Startup Program. Starting on Monday, October 14th with a day of workshops, mentoring and pitch practices and then a busy schedule during the two main days of SaaStock, startups get a dose of all the right ingredients to evolve and thrive. None of this would be possible without our Global startup Program Partner Zendesk, as as a wide range of other partners. These Ambassadors play a crucial role in helping participating Startups wring every conceivable piece of value out of the two-day event.
In this article, we’ll run through the twelve companies who have kindly come on board to act as Ambassadors to 2019’s lucky cohort of fresh talent.
70 Ventures
This Lithuanian revenue accelerator are on the hunt for the most promising B2B entrepreneurs. With 11 years of extensive experience in the sector, they offer a milestone-based three-tiered program, investing anywhere from €20-400k to startups from pre-seed to seed stage. Their modus operandi is revenue growth, helping startups to build top-notch data-driven sales teams, delivering predictable ongoing income. With an enviable list of advisors, they’re in a very strong position to be adding their expertise to our Startup Program, helping to ensure the companies taking part to unlock every ounce of value.
Appvizer
When it comes to software selection, it’s a jungle out there. Luckily Appvizer are on hand, with metaphorical machetes and bug spray, ready to help you beat a path to the perfect third party stack. Their BtoB application database covers 506 categories, such as CRM, payroll and accounting software, referencing more than 10,000 software packages and programs. In short, there’s not much they don’t know about the SaaS products on offer today. We’re delighted to have them joining us at SaaStock, where we know they’ll be a fantastic addition to the Ambassador line up for this year’s Startup Program.
Made with Love
Batting out of Belgium, Made With Love truly live up to their name; reveling in building wonderfully functional digital products, for companies in dire need. They’re happiest with their sleeves rolled up, elbow-deep in the very heart of a business, and pride themselves on finding the solutions their clients need, as opposed to the ones they think they want. Offering product management and technical consulting in addition to their software engineering, they’re a very strong element of our Ambassador crew for 2019.
Bvalue
Joining us from Poland, Bvalue is a venture capital firm investing in entrepreneurs that push the limits of possibility. Typically investing in early-stage founders, they boast a broad portfolio that centers around B2B solutions (SaaS and tech), diversified by a handful of standout companies in more traditional sectors. With a number of successful exits under their belt, there’s a strong focus on companies from the CEE region, especially within Poland and Ukraine. Their investment ticket rests between $300k to $1m. They have an absolutely fantastic reputation as highly active partners, and we’re really looking forward to them getting involved with all of our startup program participants.
Startup Sesame
Startup Sesame operate the global network of tech events, with over 35 partners and 100+ organizers involved around the world. Their expertise lies in match making corporate partners and businesses with the very best ROI that the event space has to offer; getting startups in front of audiences that will help them grow exponentially, and securing top-notch speaking opportunities for their stable of experts and mentors. With that kind of background, it’s hard to think of a better match for our Startup Program Ambassadors.
Rocketspace
Founded in 2011 in San Francisco, RocketSpace is a global ecosystem of people and ideas that provide the “rocket fuel” to help the world’s top innovators bring the future to market. Having worked with over 2,000 high-growth tech startups and 170 corporate brands from around the globe (Spotify, AT&T and Leap Motion to name but a few), they unite corporate innovators, startups and investors across a holistic platform, fueling collective growth for the entire innovation ecosystem.
Founders Factory
Incubator and accelerator, Founders Factory receives a minority stake in each startup in exchange for IP, £150,000 seed round and 12 months of operational support. When it comes to differentiation; each founder runs their own cohort, with a bespoke program executed by a dedicated and specially assembled team. The stats are impressive; in 3.5 years their startup portfolio has gone on to raise over $200m in funding externally. They’ve seen 200 portfolio pilots completed between their startups and corporate partners, with over 30% of those pilots have lead to enterprise contracts. All in all, you couldn’t be in better hands as Startup Program participant in Dublin this year.
Ventech
Based out of China and Europe, VC firm Ventech has a seed program ready to invest in very young and disruptive companies (between €100K and €250K) but their sweet spot is Series A companies with an initial investment between €2M and €5M. Sector agnostic, they’ll consider everything within the digital economy, but express a strong preference for companies with strong underlying technology. With 65 successful exits in 20 years, Ventech are taking no prisoners. The firm always seeks to be a lead investor, especially in Series A rounds, and take a board seat. We’re very excited to see what they’ll bring to this year’s Startup Program.
Playfair Capital
Playfair Capital is a fund that focuses on backing founders building technology that changes the way people live and work. As one of London’s leading seed-stage investors, they’ve been helping ambitious and exceptional entrepreneurs build leading tech businesses for the past six years, and remain true to their “angel DNA” – replicating the values of the investor who initially got them off the ground. With a strong founder focus, they’re keen to share more than just capital; their wide-ranging experience of operating and scaling businesses is second to none and we’re sure it will be well-applied in their Ambassador role at this year’s SaaStock19.
Flashpoint
With offices in Israel, Hungary, Poland, Latvia, and Russia, Flashpoint primarily looks to invest in B2B SaaS solutions in the initial revenue stage. Founded in 2012, they manage both debt and equity funds, and subscribe to a “skin in the game” philosophy, with
Flashpoint’s team’s personal money invested in their funds (their team, in fact, forming their largest limited partner.) With this hardworking and hands-on approach, they exemplify the kind of Ambassadors we hope to see supporting our Startup Program.
Holtzbrinck
Hailing from Germany, Holtzbrinct have over a €1B in assets under management and have funded 165 companies since their establishment in 2000. As the corporate venture arm of the Holtzbrinck Publishing Group, they believe in the disruptive potential of the Internet, and invest accordingly, counting Delivery Hero, HelloFresh, Flixbus, SumUp and Scalable Capital amongst their successful portfolio. Mainly targeting European startups at Seed or early stages. Their typical involvement starts with an initial investment in the € 200K – € 5M range and can grow up to a total investment of € 50M over several rounds and stages of maturity. We’re looking forward to the ambition and vision they’ll be bringing to our Startup Program in Dublin this year.
360Labs
Joining us all the way from Silicon Valley, the Californian 360Labs are a business incubator with one thing on their collective mind; success. Offering an “under one roof” solution to startups ready to hit the big time, they provide a place to work, support to build and funding to launch. With flexible memberships and unlimited access to premium services, this one stop shop approach places a real emphasis on the benefit of the community, and we’re sure this attitude will translate perfectly to the vision and goals of our own Startup Program in Dublin later in the month.
Representatives from many of these organisations will be around at SaaStock, either judging during the Pitch competition, delivering workshops or simply walking around and soaking in the atmosphere. Be sure to look out for them and grab them for a chat. While you are at it, grab a ticket for SaaStock19, if you haven’t already.
