LUNCH & LEARN | INVESTOR PANEL - INSIDE EARLY-STAGE INVESTMENT

About this Event

Are you a female founder navigating the investment landscape and wondering what it really takes to secure funding?

Join us for an exclusive Lunch & Learn Investor Panel featuring three powerhouse women in investment:

🔹 Carolyn Breeze – CEO at Scalare Partners
🔹 Emily Macfarlane – Senior Campaign Lead at Birchal
🔹 Chelsea Newell – General Partner at Scale Investors

This is your chance to get behind-the-scenes insights into the funding process and ask the questions you've always wanted to:
💡 What traction are investors looking for?
💡 Do solo female founders stand a chance?
💡 How do financial projections influence investment decisions?
💡 Can I get investment if my technology isn’t fully developed?
💡 Do investors take SAFE notes?
💡 What’s the step-by-step process for securing investment?
💡 How can I set myself up for success?

Whether you're preparing to raise, exploring your options, or simply curious about the investor mindset, this session will provide invaluable clarity and guidance from leading voices in early-stage investment.

🎟 Seats are limited – secure your spot now!

About the Investors

Carolyn Breeze from Scalare Partners

Carolyn is an accomplished commercial leader with over 20 years’ experience driving digital innovation and commercial teams across a broad range of business environments. With her willingness to share her leadership and commercial expertise, she is also a sought-after public speaker and thought leader in the tech industry.

Scalare Partners is more than an investor — they have built an ecosystem designed to help founders scale faster and smarter. From early-stage investment to hands-on support, they tailor their approach to each founder’s journey.Their programs, including Ascend and Tech Ready Women, provide structured pathways to solve real challenges, while initiatives like the Australian Tech Competition connect founders with top mentors and industry recognition. Through this ecosystem, they help turn ambitious ideas into high-growth companies.

Chelsea Newell from Scale Investors

Chelsea has 10+ years experience on buy-side and sell-side investor relations and management. As the first Investment Manager at Scale Investors, she has screened thousands of deals over her tenure, securing investment into more than 30 of them and completing more than 75 early stage deals.

Scale Investors is on a mission to maximise investor returns by investing into the best women led startups across ANZ, having been in market for over 10 years and starting as an angel syndicate. Scale Investors is now raising our first $100m venture fund to continue to invest and capture the incredible arbitrage opportunity that exists when investing in gender-diverse teams.

Scale invests in seed-stage startups; to date having invested $20m across 48 startups.

Emily Macfarlane from Birchal

Emily Macfarlane is the leader of the Campaign Management team at Birchal, Australia's leading equity crowdfunding platform, where she supports founders in raising capital and engaging their communities. With a deep passion for helping startups scale, Emily has played a key role in guiding over 100 businesses through successful funding rounds.

Emily is the host of Funded Futures, a podcast presented by Birchal that explores the stories behind Australia’s most innovative and high-growth companies. Through insightful conversations with founders, investors, and industry experts, she uncovers the strategies and challenges of building venture-backed businesses.

Birchal is Australia’s leading equity crowdfunding platform, making it easier for everyday investors to back the brands they love. Since its launch, Birchal has facilitated over $225 million in investment for hundreds of Australian businesses. With a mission to democratise investment and empower founders, Birchal provides the tools, expertise, and regulatory framework to help businesses raise capital while building a loyal investor community.

Event details

📅 Thursday, 13 March 2025

⌚ AEDT 12.30 PM - 1.30 PM

💻 Online | 👥 Limited spots

🎟️ FREE

TRW Investment Ready Program

The TRW Investment Ready Program is designed to equip founders with the knowledge, connections, and confidence needed to successfully raise capital. This five-month program (6 weeks of intensive weekly workshops + 4 months of monthly advisory) offers learning and mentoring sessions tailored to address the specific challenges women face in securing funding, including grants, equity investments, proof of concept partnerships and loan finance.

We have now two cohorts available! The Queensland cohort and the National cohort and applications close soon!

Participants of the National cohort will have the opportunity to receive $50,000 in cash and support services from Scalare Partners to help scale their business.

For more information and to apply, head to our website.