At Startmate, we invest in extraordinary founders who are changing the way we work, live and play, and we’re powered by the most successful entrepreneurs and venture capitalists in Australia.

With the support of Scale Investors and LaunchVic, Startmate is hosting a networking event and panel discussion on The Founder To Leader Journey.

There is no certainty in entrepreneurship, but if your company is successful you will inevitably find yourself in a position of leadership (whether you are prepared for it or not). One of the challenges of building any company from scratch is transitioning from the role of do-it-all ‘founder’, to company leader, supporting staff and company growth from the top.

Hosted by serial entrepreneur and Blackbird Partner Nick Crocker, we will be delving into the personal stories and biggest lessons of three formidable speakers- Ariane Barker (Scale Investors), Rachael Neumann (StartupAUS, Startmate), and Justin Dry (Vinomofo) to bring you everything they've learnt about the Founder to Leader journey.

→ Ariane's background is as an analyst in international investments banking, from New York to Asia. She is now CEO of Scale Investors, an Angel network connecting entrepreneurial women to investment and mentorship.

→ Justin is an entrepreneur, investor, public speaker, co-founder and joint CEO of Vinomofo, one of Australia’s fastest-growing companies.

→ Rachael plays across many parts of the Australian startup ecosystem, as a Mentor with the Startmate Accelerator program, Chair of the StartupAUS board, and a strategic advisor to a number of founders and their early stage companies.

This event will be preceded by the Women's Cocktail Hour from 5:30-6:30. RSVP here.

We look forward to welcoming you to the panel discussion, followed by drinks + networking with the panel and extended Startmate family. RSVP now.

The Startmate Team

Who is Startmate?

Startmate's world-class community of mentors and alumni are scaling businesses from the first dollar to the next billion, and we share that knowledge through our 12-week accelerator program, 1:1 bespoke coaching and in-person events. Startmate encourages ambitious founders to hit their next milestone and offers invaluable resources, advice, and support along the way. Since 2010, we've been welcoming exceptional founders into a community for life as the create groundbreaking businesses of tomorrow.

This event has been enabled thanks to funding from the Australian Federal Government.