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Essential Reading

Startmate Accelerator Investment Terms 101

By

Nora Schertwitis Nora Schertwitis

Startmate invests AUD $120,000 into each startup. If you haven’t raised before: we invest at a $1.5M post-money SAFE valuation cap. If you have: we match the terms and valuation of your previous raise (min. $250k from VCs or angels, fully closed). ✅ You choose: our SAFE or your priced round ✅ At least one co-founder must be full-time. No fine print. Just support, capital, and momentum.

More Articles

Articles

How to measure and manage your life goals

By

How many times have you promised yourself that you’ll sort out your finances, exercise, sleep or diet when things aren’t so busy?

February 15, 2022

Behind the scenes at Startmate

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

In this Q&A, Phoebe speaks about intentional culture, team structure, policy, learning and development budgets and the cultural initiatives on the horizon. This is your behind the scenes peek at what it’s really like to work at Startmate.

November 18, 2021

Why talented women need startups, and why startups need talented women

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Send the women in your life who are wasting their time in rigid, boring or soul-sucking roles to our Women Fellowship page.

How Brianna Fitzpatrick created her dream job at Mr Yum

By

Brianna Fitzpatrick is one of Mr Yum's fresh hires, working in a new role she designed for herself.

Welcome to Startmate City

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

One of our 10-year goals is to build a 1-million-person technology city in Australia or New Zealand that attracts ambition, ignites innovation, boosts quality of life and fosters human connection.

August 21, 2021

WTF does an Operations Lead do?

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

“Operations is probably one of the most misunderstood startup roles”, says Dovetail’s Business Operations and Finance Lead Kanav Bhama. But it’s also one of the most far-reaching and exciting roles on offer.

WTF does a Chief of Staff do?

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

What are the day-to-day responsibilities of a chief of staff? And how do you move into this role? I put these questions to Harrison.ai’s Thuy Thai and Forage's Anna Prell.

The best investors come from “the most unlikely of backgrounds”, says Blackbird’s Sam Wong

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

And if you take a closer look at Silicon Valley and other mature technology ecosystems today, you’ll find most VC investors come from founder and operator backgrounds.

September 17, 2021

Startup red flags: What to look out for during the interview process

By

An interview is as much of an opportunity for you to assess a startup as it is for the team to assess you. So, what red flags should you look out for and how can you spot them?

From 0 to 50,000: Wild Hearts host Mason Yates’ five podcasting tips

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Blackbird Associate Mason Yates has amassed more than 50,000 listens since launching Wild Hearts in 2020.

Media 3.0 will be boom time for mediatech and emerging content creators alike

By

Lauren Capelin Lauren Capelin

Over the next decade, there is an incredible opportunity for the next generation of media companies to rise in parallel with the success of startups across the region.

“You’ve got the job!”: Steph Skevington’s journey from lawyer to founder (and everything in between)

By

What if we realise that a traditional 9-5 career path isn’t for us? What if we're hungry for something more?

“Helping my father walk”: How Anvil and Kimberly Bañez are redefining the limits of human capability

By

Dennisson Technologies is "creating a muscle that you can wear on your body" which can move up to 900 times its weight.

October 17, 2022

Why Lockpick Games Founder Tash Jamieson thinks video games are key to helping every student reach their full potential

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

When Tash Jamieson made it her mission to make studying fun for her stepson Drake, she had no idea she was building the first iteration of edtech startup Lockpick Games.

What May Samali’s journey can teach you about building your dream life through courage, hard work and introspection

By

It is easy to look at May Samali's professional achievements and attribute them to talent, luck or a great life plan. But it's years of consistent hard work, effort in the face of fear, failure and honest introspection that's helped her get to where she is today.

February 14, 2022

August 2021 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

September 1, 2021

Four tips for aspiring startup marketers

By

Many amazing founder stories have been told, and we love them all. But what about startup marketer stories?

How Oli Clive-Griffin became a software engineer at Halter without a degree

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

“I didn't go to university because I just didn't know what I wanted to study there. It was the best choice I’ve ever made, even if the motivation might’ve been more rebelliousness or indecision than insight.”

February 28, 2022

WTF does a Head of Talent do?

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

What are the day-to-day responsibilities of someone in talent acquisition? How do you break into this space? I put these questions to EVP’s Head of Talent Fred Callaghan.

February 28, 2022

How Huey Books is transforming book-finding and reading for children everywhere

By

A whopping 60% of children aged 6-17 are becoming infrequent readers — and Meena Tharmarajah is fighting this statistic head-on.

October 17, 2022

Smooth as Butter: How Cassie Bell and Steph Skevington are making insurance cool

By

Revolutionary insurance startup Butter is the brainchild of two powerhouse, reformed lawyers who were thrown together by fate and bonded over red wine, broken laptops and a very archaic industry.

September 13, 2022

How Bec Rozencwajg landed a job as LaunchVic's Alice Anderson Fund Investment Manager

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

When re-entering the workforce after maternity leave, Bec Rozencwajg found herself seeking a role with a tangible, positive impact.

February 28, 2022

How Stephanie Hall confronted imposter syndrome and seized her dream opportunity in sextech

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Stephanie Hall has long been a thrill-seeking, socially conscious generalist. So it makes sense she spent the first part of her career suing dolphin hunters, the second part calling for climate action and the third in sextech.

August 24, 2021

Startmate 2021 Wrap + 2022 Plan

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

A year in review.

December 23, 2021

How syndicates benefit founders, investors and the ecosystem to boot

By

Syndicates can benefit founders who are unable to secure much-needed capital at their earliest stages and angel investors who may not be able to access the cap table directly.

September 13, 2021

Niki Scevak on the best thing young people can do for their futures

By

According to Blackbird's Niki Scevak, the secret to succeeding professionally and attaining long-term wealth is maximising your rate of learning.

How Jessica Dove London’s drive to help her son is revolutionising access to healthcare, and giving power back to patients

By

It’s not uncommon to see founders solving problems they’ve faced themselves. Jessica Dove London is doing just that – and founding stories don’t get much more personal, emotional and passion-fuelled than hers.

How to build and scale a customer-first product

By

Founders from Linktree, Mr Yum, EntryLevel, Heaps Normal, Dovetail, MyGigsters and more share their hard-won customer-centricity insights.

How Steppen got into the Accelerator (after being rejected)

By

In this article, Steppen Founder Cara Davies reflects on both of her Startmate Accelerator applications.

Startmate's Summer22 Accelerator cohort is one to watch

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

From art licensing and plastic waste transformation to chemical procurement and social fitness for Gen Z, Startmate’s Summer22 Accelerator cohort is one of our most impressive yet.

How I overcame procrastination and started publishing

By

This story is dedicated to all the other storytellers out there with words that deserve to see the light of day.

February 14, 2022

"Find your mirror": Everything Kirrily Davis learnt from Facebook's Director of Marketing Science Helen Crossley

By

"In our last session, I asked Helen how I could repay her for what she taught me and she said ‘pay it forward’. So here I am."

January 31, 2022

Arming the rebels: How Storipress is changing the face of publishing

By

Alex Pan and the Storipress founding team are on a mission to build the future of culture.

October 17, 2022

From challenging social norms to pursuing your vision: Learning from Nutromics Co-Founder Hitesh Mehta

By

Hitesh Mehta has a vision to create a better and more equitable healthcare system, and offers valuable insight into the value of persistence when it comes to chasing your dreams.

February 28, 2022

February 2022 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

February 28, 2022

How Maddi Ingham landed her dream job as Chief of Staff at ChefPrep

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Thanks to some encouragement from friends, the Women Fellowship and the power of LinkedIn, Maddi Ingham has a dream role at ChefPrep.

February 17, 2022

How world-class athlete Christie Jenkins trained her way into venture capital

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Learning to invest in startups is just like training as an elite athlete, says Christie Jenkins.

January 25, 2022

Matt Allen is on a mission to help founders hold onto their equity

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Tractor Ventures Co-Founder Matt Allen is on a mission to help founders hold onto as much of their equity as they want to, for as long as they like.

September 9, 2021

Spotlight on women in leadership: Simone Barakat, Chief of Staff @ Number 8 Bio

By

Phoebe Pincus Phoebe Pincus

Meet Simone Barakat, Chief of Staff @ Number 8 Bio!

August 20, 2024

Investment notes: Storipress

By

We're proud to invest in Storipress as part of our Winter22 Accelerator cohort. Here's why.

September 26, 2022

The four things Jithesh Ramesh wishes he knew as a young designer

By

Jithesh Ramesh has worked at Atlassian, Airwallex and Mastt, to name but a few, and has a wealth of insights to share.

Why medtech founder Lauren Barber’s unflinching honesty makes her an inspiration for aspiring women founders

By

'In a world where female founders constantly portrayed as ‘girl bosses’, I found it was hard to get authentic insights into what the journey entails for ‘regular’ women. Then I met Lauren Barber.'

January 31, 2022

Culture Amp Co-Founder Rod Hamilton reflects on the startup’s first product, sale, Geek-Up, enterprise customer and funding round

By

Sascha Kerbert Sascha Kerbert

From Culture Amp’s origin story and first product to long-standing focus on community and decision to bootstrap, there are insights galore in this AMA with Rod Hamilton.

November 15, 2021

Investment notes: Andromeda

By

We're proud to invest in Andromeda as part of our Winter22 Accelerator cohort. Here's why.

September 26, 2022

Investment notes: Aquila

By

We're proud to invest in Aquila as part of our Winter22 Accelerator cohort. Here's why.

September 26, 2022

Meet our Winter22 Accelerator cohort

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

If we were to nominate a theme for our Winter22 cohort, it would be ‘game-changing, fresh thinking’.

How Anna Stockley Davidson is reinvesting in the startup ecosystem

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Anna Stockley Davidson credits US retailer Bonobos’ generous employee share scheme as the catalyst for her angel investing journey.

Angel investor Samuel Sentongo’s mission to affect generational change

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Samuel Sentongo wants “to see a future where black founders and angel investors are participating in the startup ecosystem".

How Great Question Co-Founder Ned Dwyer tests hypotheses, conducts customer interviews and spots trends

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

It’s crucial that early-stage founders prioritise research, work systematically and embrace both validation and invalidation, according to Great Question Co-Founder Ned Dwyer.

January 31, 2022

October 2021 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

November 1, 2021

'I have a way closer connection to the people I'm helping': Eucalyptus' former CTO Davina Adisusila reflects on two years of startup life

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

When Davina Adisusila quit her job at Atlassian and accepted a job at Eucalyptus, she was prepared for and excited about a change...

October 8, 2021

Australia is accelerating on Employee Share Schemes… but we’re still playing catch-up

By

Employee Share Schemes are commonplace in the startup world... but Australia's ESS approach has typically lagged on the global stage.

September 9, 2021

How Emily Casey found her ‘why’ and used a specific skill set to launch What The Health

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Emily Casey has carved out a niche for herself and launched a healthtech venture. Here’s how she got there.

From spreadsheets to AI: How Xylo is fighting species extinction

By

Xylo Systems is a conservation-tech startup fighting species extinction with tech and augmented intelligence.

October 4, 2022

Investment notes: Xylo Systems

By

We're proud to invest in Xylo Systems as part of our Winter22 Accelerator cohort. Here's why.

September 26, 2022

Investment notes: Butter

By

We're proud to invest in Butter as part of our Winter22 Accelerator cohort. Here's why.

September 26, 2022

How to enter a flow state

By

"My deep work schedule allows me to enter a flow state, complete key tasks, and solve challenges with more focus and energy."

Turning an Instagram account into a community of 365,000+ young people: Lessons from The Daily Aus

By

Zara and Sam just wanted to help their friends sound intelligent when they went out on dates. Now, they run a rapidly growing news platform followed by over 365,000 young people.

How to set career growth levels for your team

By

What are the right-fit career growth levels for a startup and when should you implement them? Emer McCann has done her own research

How to actually create a go-to-market strategy

By

When Alisha Geary googled “Go To Market Strategy Template”, Google let her down.

February 14, 2022

Why Rajini Carpenter made the leap from corporate finance to VP of Engineering at Deputy >> CTO of Beforepay Group >> CTO of Carrington Labs

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Rajini Carpenter took an engineering role at Deputy because she wanted to experience the rollercoaster that is startup growth.

October 22, 2021

How Kiara Olrich landed a role as first hire and Head of Operations at Phantm

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

After seven years climbing the management consulting ladder very quickly, Kiara Olrich knew it was time for a change.

September 8, 2021

Validating an idea as an early-stage founder is all about rapid prototyping and testing: Six learnings from Ajay Prakash

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Underlying all of Ajay Prakash’s success (and failure) is a commitment to “rapid prototyping and testing”.

The Ultimate Creative Space: How SplootCode is reshaping the way we learn and use code

By

SplootCode founders Katie Bell and Mattia Fregola are on a mission to make coding simple, widespread and accessible to everyone.

5 reasons why Launch Club will change the game for early stage & aspiring founders

By

Maisy Bennett Maisy Bennett

Why joining Launch Club will be the best thing you do as an aspiring or early stage founder.

December 17, 2023

How Femmi is smashing gender barriers and redefining female fitness globally

By

Lydia and Esther have both been athletes since they were teenagers. Now, they're also the co-founders of female fitness startup Femmi.

October 28, 2022

Andromeda's founders are building robot BFFs to fight the loneliness epidemic

By

In 20 years, humanoid robot companions will be as common as the humble robot vacuum cleaner.

October 17, 2022

Anthony Xiao’s product-led approach to angel investing

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Anthony Xiao's angel investing journey kicked-off when he moved into a Product Manager role at Halter.

What to expect during the Startmate Accelerator

By

Curious about how the Startmate Accelerator works and how to get the most out of it? Cara Davies has you covered.

How to efficiently work through survey feedback

By

Here's how Ryan Walker efficiently works through survey feedback and crafts a story that best highlights key information.

Five internship program tips from Culture Amp

By

Ambitious interns can provide enormous value to the startups they join, says Culture Amp’s Director of Engineering Enablement Paul Hughes.

Why we’re building an MLP, not an MVP

By

No more Minimum Viable Product for us. We're all about building a Minimum Lovable Product for our target users.

All aboard! Introducing Startmate's new Talent Engine

By

Sophia Witherington Sophia Witherington

Our new Talent Engine is a platform for startups wanting to build better teams.

How to find success with the right intern, according to Normal’s Lucy Wark

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Time-poor founders and operators are often hesitant to take on interns. But the right intern can “be a dream”, says Normal Founder Lucy Wark.

February 11, 2022

Adore Beauty, Linktree and Mr Yum: Why customer centricity gives startups a competitive advantage

By

Customer centricity means putting the customer at the centre of everything a business does. It involves building a deep understanding and empathy with a select group of customers, promoting customer loyalty.

February 1, 2022

How angel investing gives Gopi Sara the taste of early-stage startup life he craves

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Gopi Sara is a self-confessed ‘aspiring startup founder without an idea’, but he says angel investing offers him the taste of early-stage startup life he craves.

January 31, 2022

How Mentorloop Co-Founder Lucy Lloyd closed two capital raises without a lead investor

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

When Mentorloop Co-Founders Lucy Lloyd and Heidi Holmes embarked on their first capital raise, they planned to find a lead investor. “But that’s not how it worked out.”

September 28, 2021

How Tsamara Ramadhanti fell in love with tech and landed a role as UX Designer at Law on Earth

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Tsamara Ramadhanti comes from a family of accountants, so while tech has always caught her eye, she saw herself studying business and following in her family’s footsteps.

August 18, 2021

How Katrina Hau landed her dream job as Talent and People Experience Partner at Auror

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Katrina Hau's childhood was dominated by a strong feeling of being other, but she credits her formative years for her present-day passion for diversity, equity and inclusion.

Tutero is building the future of personalised STEM education

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Joey Moshinsky, Sonny Moshinsky and Richard Mathieson are on a mission to optimise STEM education.

October 28, 2022

How to break into product management

By

Calling all aspiring product manager. Here is Student Fellow Vihan Ramanayake's step-by-step guide to breaking into the space.

Why Matt Hollis and Jarrad Seers’ startup kicked off Startmate's Accelerator with paying customers... and emerged with a new name and product

By

They say you won’t recognise your company and product by the end of Startmate’s Accelerator. When my co-founder and I heard first this, we had a little laugh to ourselves...

February 14, 2022

Behind the scenes at Folklore

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

When asked to sum up the Folklore experience in five words, Folklore Chief of Staff Bree Kirkham says bold, ambitious, unconventional, good-humoured and smart.

January 31, 2022

What is Startmate's Athlete Fellowship?

By

Phoebe Pincus Phoebe Pincus

The key difference between what an elite athlete does every day and what an operator in a high-growth startup does every day is largely in the role title.

January 28, 2022

"Don’t worry about your competitors": LiGR Co-Founder Luke McCoy's advice for early-stage startups

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

LiGR Co-Founder Luke McCoy might be playing the sportstech game, but he isn’t worried about his competitors.

October 29, 2021

From Formula 1 to startups: Inside Mechanical Engineer Kyle Forster's search for work-life balance

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Kyle Forster is a PhD-qualified engineer specialising in aerodynamic design and a small business owner... and up until a year ago, was an Aerodynamicist on Mercedes' Formula 1 team.

October 25, 2021

September 2021 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

October 1, 2021

Why Tracie and Mike Thompson laughed in the face of retirement and founded a startup instead

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

When Mike and Tracie sold their consulting business in 2017, they realised they were hungry for a different kind of professional challenge.

September 15, 2021

Everything Student Fellow Izabela Barakovska learnt from Airtasker VP of Design James Nau

By

As a professional creative, Izabela Barakovska was understandably drawn to James Nau’s Student Fellowship talk.

August 31, 2021

How to pull off the impossible, according to Linus Lee

By

Out of all our Student Fellowship sessions, Geena Grant was most excited about Linus Lee’s ‘Crash Course in Pulling Off the Impossible’.

Why grads routinely dismiss startups, and how we can flip the narrative: Learning from Blackbird's Niki Scevak

By

To disrupt the notion of a traditional career pathway, more students need to choose startups as their first option upon graduation.

How Vanessa Iezzi landed her dream role as Head of People at Carted

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Vanessa Iezzi has long been the one her friends turn to for advice. In hindsight, it makes perfect sense she ended up in the people and culture space.

Startmate's 10-year masterplan

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Happy Birthday, Startmate!

December 6, 2020

How Daisy Johnson scored a job as Marketing Coordinator at Baraja

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Daisy Johnson has always gravitated toward the unfamiliar (and has the passport to prove it), so it makes sense she found her way to startupland.

Retracing Tom Richardson’s path from startup enthusiast, to casual advisor, to angel investor

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Tom Richardson might not be “a conventional angel”, but he did just sign a $20,000 cheque to contribute to Mr Yum’s post-seed round.

April 2023 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

March 2023 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

February 2023 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

January 2023 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

February 3, 2023

November 2022 Monthly Update

By

Michael Batko Michael Batko

Dive into Startmate CEO Michael Batko's GBU update to learn what we've been up to this month.

December 3, 2022

How Mentorloop Co-Founder Lucy Lloyd closed two capital raises without a lead investor

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

When Mentorloop Co-Founders Lucy Lloyd and Heidi Holmes embarked on their first capital raise, they planned to find a lead investor. “But that’s not how it worked out.”

September 28, 2021

How syndicates benefit founders, investors and the ecosystem to boot

By

Syndicates can benefit founders who are unable to secure much-needed capital at their earliest stages and angel investors who may not be able to access the cap table directly.

September 13, 2021

Matt Allen is on a mission to help founders hold onto their equity

By

Bronte McHenry Bronte McHenry

Tractor Ventures Co-Founder Matt Allen is on a mission to help founders hold onto as much of their equity as they want to, for as long as they like.

September 9, 2021

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