From Idea to Amazing: Launching Founders Live Nordics - Naimul Abd
In this LinkedIn Pulse post, our Founders Live Nordics leader, Naimul Abd, shares his story of growing the region's cities into one of our premier event experiences in the world - and in such a short time (and with style - you should see these venues!).
Exemplary work that has already impacted so many, founder and fan alike.
ALSO - read all the way through for some great tips on pitching!
Founders Live Nordics launch event in Stockholm on 6th April, 2023
Join the World's Fastest Expanding Pitching Community in the Nordics
by Naimul Abd - Serial Ecosystem Builder | Entrepreneur & Early-Stage Investor
Founders Live is the the world's fastest expanding pitching community with a global footprint across 110+ cities. In a short span of a few months this year, we have already made an indelible mark in the Nordic startup and tech ecosystem.
I still remember the excitement of setting up the our first Founders Live Nordics event in Stockholm with Stockholm City Lead earlier in April this year. The first event is always a challenge. There are a million things that can go wrong: you are putting the event-tech to the first live-test, it's the first time founders from Nordics will be on stage, we will be using a very specific pitching format and hope that startup founders will be able to tell a strong story in 99 seconds to the startup and tech community, the special effects developed by the A/V team - how will they synch-in with the pitches and create a memorable experience ... and so on! In the end ... it was clock-work perfection!
My trademark stressed-look before setting up an event - making sure that everything goes as planned with a complex inter-weaving of tech tools, discussion feeds, and live chats.
Founders Live in Nordics: Tracking the Roots
Founded by Nick Hughes, the Founder & CEO of Founders Live, our global innovation platform and entrepreneurial community is on a mission to inspire, educate, and entertain entrepreneurs worldwide. Founders Live's events feature 99-second pitch competitions, nurturing local founders and fostering creativity and entrepreneurial activity.
Late last year, I had a discussion with Nick about starting Founders Live in Stockholm. When two expansion-thinking ecosystem leaders meet, magic happens. Soon, our discussion jumped from Stockholm to the Nordics as a region. Nick also joined my Nordic Pitch Battle 2022 summit to talk about his Nordics plans. (A big thanks to Taqi Sleel for putting us together in the first place - you are a rockstar Taqi).
Fast forward: tomorrow we are holding our fourth pitching evening in Stockholm. Helsinki and Copenhagen have already hosted two packed events each this year and are doing amazing close-of-the year events. And teams in Tallinn, Helsingborg, and Reykjavik are gearing up for their first events. A big thanks to our ever amazing team of City Directors: Tegan Spinner (Copenhagen), Mila Taskinen (Helsinki), Mehkar Sheikh (Stockholm), Jaanika Umalas (Tallinn), Ahmed Alomda (Skåne), Emiliya Ivanova-Nikolova (Reykjavik). The teams are expanding as well, in Stockholm we are pleased to welcome Cathy Xiao Chen and Kerstin Larson.
In matter of months, we've built a buzzing presence in the Nordics, and it's a source of immense pride for me as the Regional Director Nordics. We are now looking to expand to Oslo and several other Nordic citiess.
Founders Live Nordics has had packed in-person pitching events in Stockholm (The Park Södra), Helsinki (Maria 01), and Copenhagen (Talent Garden) and a series of new cities are starting including Tallinn, Reykjavik, and Helsinborg - thanks to amazing team of ecosystem builders and entrepreneurs.
Winners in Nordics in 2023 (so far)
Sandra Challma - Cognes (Stockholm, April 2023)
Dorte Caroline Knudsen - all.u.me (Copenhagen, May 2023)
Viktor Orlov - Asapty (Helsinki, May 2023)
Alexander Allin - Trales (Stockholm, June 2023)
Devonté Jones - Avolve Nordic (Helsinki, September 2023)
Patrick Bates - CoHo (Copenhagen, September 2023)
Carin Skoghagen Gunnstam - BONI (Stockholm, September 2023)
So What's the Secret Sauce of Pitching?
Simplicity.
The world is complex, we are surrounded by enormous clutter, and the time you can hold someone's attention and interest is extremely limited - your pitch is all about simplicity.
Founders Live's unique 99-second pitch format forces startups to distill their essence. By focusing on the core message, entrepreneurs achieve clarity.
When pitching, remember:
Start with a story, not the pitch deck.
Aim for clarity rather than overwhelming with information in slides.
Adapt your pitch to your audience to make a meaningful connection with just that audience.
Stay focused on one-clear advantage your startup has over everyone else in the space that you are entering.
Exude confidence when presenting your vision, product, metrics, and team - demonstrating your unwavering belief and passion in your own startup's potential is your winning ticket.
Reach Out
Founders Live Nordics is expanding. If you want to start Founders Live in your city, please reach out to me for a quick meeting and tell me WHY you are the best person to start Founders Live in your city. Also, if you would like to pitch at one of our upcoming events, DM me and fill out a short application here.
Naimul Abd is the Regional Director Nordics for the Founders Live. As one of the most active ecosystem builders in the region, he is also Regional Director Nordics for world's largest startup community (Startup Grind) and Regional Director Nordics for the world's largest pre-seed accelerator (Founder Institute). He is on a mission accelerate the Nordic ecosystem as the Founder of Nutty Ventures and is building world's largest brand-enabled impact ecosystem as the Founder of Brim. He helps CEOs / Founders / Leadership Teams from around the world unlock their superpowers through his acceleration blueprint Parallel Momentum.
