Ladymates

Startups need women and women need startups.

We’re overhauling gender diversity in startups because it’s about damn time.

Come join Ladymates, a community of courageous, clever and powerful women who are hungry to tackle the world’s greatest challenges and are roaring to get started. We’ve got something for everyone.

Which offering is right for you

Which one are you?
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Want to land a job in a startup

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Working in a startup

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Women in leadership

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Founding a startup

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Investing in startups

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Students

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Partner with us

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Apply to be a coach

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Ladymates

/ˈleÉȘdimeÉȘts/
Noun: ladymate; plural noun: ladymates
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Noun: A woman who possesses the inner belief that she was made for greatness. She is courageous, clever and powerful and envisions a world where her career brings inspiration, impact and safety. 

Plural noun: The thriving and magnetic collective of women (past, present and future) who have come through Startmate. These women are comrades; driven to grow, learn and build each other up. They are hungry to tackle the world’s greatest challenges and will do it together. 

Origin: The word “Ladymates” was first coined in a meeting amongst the women of the Startmate team. They wanted a space to gather, share personal and professional challenges, offer advice and have a yarn. Every month, these women meet, learn, grow and VIBE. It is a safe space where they come together authentically and honestly.

“Ladymates” is a community of mateship, growth, and support. Its strength lies in the collective of intelligent, passionate and driven women who make it whole. It is a vehicle for change and will soon become the most powerful community of women in ANZ’s startup ecosystem. 

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Register for Startmate International Women’s Day

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Meet some of the incredible women in the Startmate community

Why Ladymates?

We’re removing hurdles, clearing pathways and destabilising gender inequality as we know it.

In time, women will succeed not in spite of their gender, but because of it. That means thousands of women will be choosing and landing their dream role in startups. Women will be getting equal promotions to their male counterparts. They’ll be emerging as leaders into diverse leadership teams where there are no gender hurdles and they have strong relationships with other women in leadership positions. ‘Female founders’ are quite simply: Founders. Founders who are wildly successful in solving the world’s biggest problems, making an impact on a global level and there is no longer a funding gap.

This translates to an industry-wide gender revolution, where the tech industry in ANZ is the gold standard for diversity, equity and inclusion across all industries. Australia and New Zealand will be countries where women are leading more impactful and fulfilling lives, and are at the forefront of driving meaningful change in society.

On a global scale, Australia and New Zealand are cited as the best places in the world to build a startup, and the diversity of the teams and founders have been a driving force to achieve that. ANZ are known as the underdogs that moved the needle for diversity in tech and are the poster girls for what great looks like. This has translated to the most successful solutions to the world’s biggest challenges being built right here in ANZ by some of the world’s most ambitious women. 

Come join the revolution.

Are you a wildly ambitious founder and pre Series A fundraise?
‍The Accelerator is for you.

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We're industry agnostic.

‍We've invested in companies spanning an insanely diverse range of industries. From ed-tech, health-tech, prop-tech and climate-tech to space-tech, fin-tech and legal-tech.

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You're never too early.

‍67% of Accelerator companies had no revenue when they appliedand every cohort has had at least one company that is idea-stage and pre-MVP.

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We strive for equal representation.

‍Diversity builds smarter solutions. Since 2021, 40% of our companies have 1 or more women co-founders.

Ladymates exists to give women the best chance at success in their careers.

Every woman is born with the inner-belief that they were made for greatness. Because we are. But somewhere along the way, the system failed us. Our voices were interrupted, salaries slashed, passed up for promotions, ambition stifled.

Ladymates is the place women come to unlock potential and unleash that inner belief.

Startmate x
‍ International Women’s Day

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Friday, 8 Mar 2024, 5pm–9pm AEST

It’s official. 2024 is the year of the Woman. We have set some lofty goals that will shake up gender diversity in startups for the better. We are building ANZ’s largest community of powerful women. 

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Think of this event as the opening ceremony. 

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Workshops, panel discussions, drinks, and LADYMATES coming together in one place to build each other up, facilitate connections and VIBE.

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Register interest

We’ve got something for everyone.

Women Fellowship

The Women Fellowship is designed to demystify the world of startups and empower more women to pursue a career they love. In 8 weeks we'll share the endless and inspiring opportunities available in tech, how to transfer the skills you have into a new role, build your confidence, and provide actionable steps to go after the job you deserve. Think 1:1 coaching, workshops with startup leaders, community events and more. This is for women with little or no startup experience who are actively looking to land a job in startups or VCs. 

Learn more

Ladymates Leadership

Ladymates leadership is designed to empower emerging leaders as they grow in their company. Currently, women are the minority in leadership positions -how do you navigate board meetings, assert your influence and make an impact as a leader, navigate the ever changing day-to-day challenges? We’re removing the bottlenecks, providing exclusive membership for emerging leaders to meet and learn from women who have walked the path before.

Join the waitlist

Ladymates Students

We want to see a world where young women actively pursue a career in startups and tech. Currently, tech is not seen as a legitimate or aspirational career pathway. So we’re starting young. We’re activating high school and uni students who will be the next generation of women to join the movement and dream wild and big. These women will pioneer gender diversity in tech and represent the new wave of female founders, investors and operators in startups

Register interest

Ladymates Partners

Want to be a part of the solution? We’d love to have you.

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Ladymates Collective

Ladymates Collective is a curated membership helping women upskill, connect, and grow in their career alongside other rising stars in the ANZ startup ecosystem. You'll gain access to skill-building masterclasses, exclusive social events, peer-driven advisory groups and role-based mentorship to help you thrive in your startup role.

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Ladymates Coaching

If you're interested in building a more diverse ecosystem, and have experience working in a startup, apply to be a Coach. Ladymates Coaching is about supporting women in startups to reach their full potential - from landing their first startup internship as students, first startup jobs as experienced hires, or excelling in leadership. Come help the women who are a few steps behind you. 

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Ladymates Founders

We want more women founders and we want them now. But there are countless hurdles to overcome on the founding journey many of which result in wasted potential and unrealised dreams. From investor bias during fundraising to customer belief. We want to give female founders a tight knit network of role models, peers, and mentors who have faced the same challenges with actionable solutions and support to set you up for success. Startmate Accelerator and Launch Club have dedicated support for women founders and we will continue to build this out to best support you.

Register interest

Check out our
‍track record

  • 50% of companies raise post-accelerator
  • Startups raise an average of $1.8mil. off the back of the accelerator

Join a community that will help you go from idea to IPO

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Hiring

We have over 3000+ of ANZ’s most talented operators in our community. Our incredible Startmate fellows are hungry to join a high-growth startup and ready to support you on your journey.

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Investors

We have built an army of over 250 early stage investors who are inspired by your commitment to changing the world. They are here, ready to be your First Believers, and invest.

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Funding

We invest in you from day one and continue to believe in you forever after. This is a unique fund in ANZ that automatically invests all Startmate pro-rata for our alumni, which means you can go into your fundraising conversations already knowing you have the Startmate pro-rata committed

Frequently asked questions

What you’ll get out of the Accelerator 
  1. Investment: We invest AUD 120k in each company so that all your energy is focused on building your startup.
  2. Founder friends: You’ll be surrounded by a cohort of equally ambitious founders on the same journey.
  3. Pitch perfect: We’ll tear your pitch deck to shreds and by the end of the Accelerator you’ll have a bulletproof deck ready for investors.
  4. Launch your startup to the world: Pitch your startup to an audience of thousands at Demo Day.
  5. A product people want: You’ll spend 12 weeks laser-focused on your customer, how you can improve your product and the results to drive meaningful growth
  6. Mentorship: You’ll be partnered with ANZ’s most successful founders, operators and investors who have skin in the game and will run through brick walls to see you succeed 
  7. SME: We’ll connect you with subject matter experts who can provide tailored industry advice on how to approach your business
  8. Community: You’ll gain access to ANZ’s largest startup community of founders, operators and investors who are ready to support you on your journey.  
  9. World-class talent pool: Within our 2000+ startmate fellowship alumni are the hires you need to take your startup to the next level at your fingertips: pre-vetted, upskilled, and hungry to join a high-growth startup. 
  10. The best platform in ANZ to raise capital: Having the Startmate brand behind you will be a stamp of approval to every potential investor or employee you meet.

How are you thinking about intersectionality?

We appreciate that diversity goes beyond just gender, and gender diversity goes beyond just supporting women. However, if we aim to be everything to everyone, we will be nothing to no one. Instead of lumping everyone who is ‘other’ into one group, we want to build truly beneficial solutions specifically tailored to one underrepresented group at a time. In the long term, we’d like to address other facets of disadvantage as well. In the short term, we will continue to offer scholarships to those who face additional aspects of intersectional disadvantage (around ⅓ of program participants are on a scholarship!).

Why just help women?

We’re a small team trying to make the biggest impact possible, so we’re starting with the biggest pool. Women represent 51% of the ANZ population, so supporting women is the facet of underrepresentation that we have decided to start with. It’s a numbers game, and we’re out to make the biggest impact possible.

Why the term ‘lady’?

We’ve considered the fact that the word “lady” may not sit well with some. But what’s in a name? A name is just a name, what's more important is what we do with it. 

We have the power to redefine words and that’s why we have. Ladymates is one word. You can read the definition and etymology above. Ultimately we believe this name is the most authentic and honest representation of what we’re trying to achieve.

Have you considered
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Possibly! Possibly not. We value feedback and we’re all ears. If you have any feedback, questions, or ideas please share them with us or book a time to chat.