Accelerators finish,
founders carry on
Introducing Growth Pods:
Help your founders maintain momentum and access expert support post-programme
What is a Growth Pod?
A small group of early stage founders, meeting regularly and facilitated by one of our expert Growth Pod leads.
It’s the perfect opportunity for founders to get support with putting in to practice the knowledge and skills they’ve picked up on an accelerator.
Led by an experienced founder
Each Growth Pod is coached by a Growth Pod Lead - a founder one or two steps further down the road - providing invaluable access to knowledge, network and lived experience.
Flexible format
Growth Pods programmes run for 3-6 months, meeting weekly or fortnightly for an hour, with up to ten participants. The focus is set by the founders based on their priorities.
Peer to peer and expert support
The founder path is tough but it doesn’t need to be travelled alone. Founders sharing expertise, accountability, contacts, success and failures creates a powerful foundation for success.
Testimonials
Maya Al Mezal
“An amazing opportunity to network in a small, supportive group and connect with businesses at a similar stage. The follow-up resources and advice provide realistic insights for refining business models, scaling effectively, and turning ideas into action.”
Cien Solon
“IfWeRaise’s Growth Pod has been a game-changer for me. As a small startup, I find it tough not having a full board, but this community has filled that gap… offering not just strategic guidance but real support. These guys provide a network that truly understands the journey and it makes all the difference.”
Our Growth Pod recipe
Our Growth Pods are designed to create maximum momentum by enabling founders to plan and execute better
Our Pod Leads
Experienced founders
We carefully select for relevant founder experience of solving similar challenges and alignment with our values.
Real expertise
Our Growth Pod Leads have both lived experience and teachable frameworks to help founders grow their business.
Backed by a community
Every Growth Pod Lead is themselves supported and coached in our Growth Pod Lead community of practice, hosted IfWeRaise founders Hattie Willis and Tim Deeson.
Our guest experts
It takes a village to raise a startup and there is often no single right answer to a question! Our guest experts include investors, experienced founders, subject matter experts.
Each month we bring in a relevant guest expert to share their expertise and expand the Growth Pod’s network.
IfWeRaise network
We’re proud to host an early stage community that is committed to paying it forward, whether it’s angel investor speed dating event or growth experts we’ve got it covered.
IfWeRaise Resource Library
Our online reference material and e-learning library is there to provide ongoing support for founders outside of Growth Pod discussions.
Resources include
- 5 self-serve online courses covering topics including fundraising strategy, customer development and marketing
- Webinar Library exclusive IfWeRaise sessions with some of the leading thinkers in the UK startup ecosystem
- Resource Bank consisting of more than 100 curated links to the most useful tools, articles and suppliers
- Ideal Customer Profile template and mapping methods
- Marketing channel selection and starter tools
- Financial Forecasting templates and exercises
- Exclusive online mixers with leading angel investors, venture capital investors and exited founders
Andy Ayim
Andy is the founder of The Angel Investing School and an experienced angel investor.
He was the Managing Director of Backstage Capital, and has held product leadership roles in companies such as Investec Bank and WorldFirst, acquired for $700m.
Andrea Sinclair:
2022 Angel of the Year (UKBAA)
Andrea took her decade of experience of tech startups into investing, focusing on female founders and impact investments
Marcus Exall
Exited founder turned angel investor, Marcus has made 25+ investments with $1bn+ raised by companies he’s backed.
What are the minimum and maximum number of participants?
What is the lead time to set a Growth Pod up?
Is a Growth Pod sector or business model specific? Can we tailor it?
Can we tie into other support we provide founders?
What platform do the Growth Pods run on?
Are Growth Pods run in-person or online?
Can we add on a…?
Can we subsidise founders instead of fully funding?
What does an example schedule look like?
How can we measure impact?
Testimonial
Aoife Spillane
“Through my IfWeRaise Growth Pod, they've helped me find clarity when everything felt overwhelming, offering practical guidance and unwavering support. Their ability to break down complex challenges into actionable steps, combined with their genuine dedication to founder success, makes them invaluable allies in the early-stage business journey.”
Growth Pods
From ÂŁ300 per founder per month
Benefits include:
Go further together
Help your founders build knowledge and network in a supportive group, facilitated by an experienced startup coach.
