Beware the VC danger point; How steward ownership works; Common pitfalls of co-operatively owned startups;
For founders seeking the best alternatives to VC
Hello folks! I’m Esme, the founder of Considered Capital. This is the 20th issue of The Considered Club - a bi-weekly newsletter for founders seeking the best alternatives to VC. The most clicked post from our last issue was the Angel Investor list. If you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read today, join 1002 readers and subscribe today!
On Thursday I finally got to meet lots of you at our first meet up co-organised with some of our brilliant ecosystem allies including Impact Shakers, Bethnal Green Ventures, Village Capital & Djassi Africa.
Thank you to everyone who showed up and shared their experiences and frustrations at the current funding landscape. It was brilliant to meet so many of you!
The past few weeks have shined a new light on the ‘growth at all costs’ agenda that many investors have been pushing for the last 24 months. It’s been a clear reminder for many that Silicon Valley style equity isn't the right choice for 99% of founders and many more funders and founders are considering what alternative options exist.
At Considered Capital, we have witnessed this surge in interest: over 400 have signed up for our free Alternative Funding Directory, 350 signed up for our community events in the last month and we experienced an incredible 50% increase in applications for our Alternative Funding School. I’m please to see this interest in alternatives to VC and excited to share with you all soon what we’re working on for the rest of 2022.
MONEY
Find grants, upcoming accelerators, pitch competitions, & more!
Grants & Challenges
Global Changemakers | awards grants of up $2,500 for projects working towards the SDG’s in North America
Women TechEU | grants of 75 000€ for European female founders working in deep tech
Black Founders Fund | access $100K in equity-free cash for Black-founded startups in Africa
TFF Challenge 2022' | win prizes of up to $30,000+ for solutions that address the question: How do we feed 10 billion people on a hotter planet?
Awards
Young Innovators Award | win grants of £5000 to boost your business
The Next Generation Foresight Practitioners Awards | win prizes of up to $10,000 for change making ideas anywhere in the world
No fee, no equity Accelerators
The Break Fellowship | a 28-day fellowship programme for European Female Founders worth +7,000€
Cambrige Social Venture Incubator | six months of structured support, including monthly training days and regular advisor meetings
Barclays Black Founder Accelerator | access 12 expert-led business strategy masterclasses plus mentoring & networking opportunities
Insights
Sifted | explores steward-ownership and how it can help businesses become a force for good
Kate Raworth | warns about the dangers of VC money for purpose led startups
Start.coop | explains how to build a robust business model for your co-operatively owned startup
Incase you missed it
If you’re new here, catch up on our most popular posts
Just 10 seats left on our funding school; 10 ways to find angel investors;
How to know when to Fundraise; Where to access financing for D2C brands; New $20m Alternative Fund
Thanks for reading!
Esme
Founder, Considered Capital
Want more? I'm here on the other side of this email, so just hit ‘reply’ and ask away!
