The Danish Startup Ecosystem Guide - Magasin - Side 11
Sponsored: This article is published in collaboration with Antler
It takes an average of 7 years to create a unicorn. Finding good co-founders is key for a startup’s success, says early-stage investor Antler.
Antler: What makes
a good co-founder?
More than half of all startups fail
because the team is not right. That’s
why finding the right team of cofounders is essential, says early-stage
investor Antler.
Michael J. Wiatr, General Partner at Antler, points to three things in particular
that are important when looking for the
right team:
“Find someone you have chemistry and
share basic values with. It’s important
that you are driven by the same vision.
And diversity is a great strength in terms
of demographics, personality, professionalism and competences - your co-founders don’t necessarily have to be the same
type as your best friend,” he explains.
Twice a year, Antler opens up for
applications to become a founder-in-residence. Founders are selected
from among the strongest tech profiles,
commercial specialists and domain experts for a 12-week programme focused
on idea generation, match-making and
Powered by TechSavvy & Heyfunding
networking. The goal is to establish new
startups led by strong teams.
The programme forces entrepreneurs
to talk through some tough issues and
get aligned from the start. Ideas can
change, but we believe that the right
mix of founders can always pivot. It’s
the people we invest in,” says Wiatr.
The founders of Virtuall - a 3D internet infrastructure platform for the
fashion industry - have benefited from
Antler’s approach.
“Through the programme, we tried
collaborating with many different potential co-founders. For us, this meant
that we came together as quite differMichael J. Wiatr
General Partner
at Antler
ent founders across four nationalities
to build what the company is today.
We would never have met each other
by chance,” says Jonas Wallengren,
co-founder and CEO of Virtuall.
A study by CB Insights shows that over
50% of startups in 2018 went bankrupt
because founders were not aligned from
the start for one reason or another. And
that’s why finding the right match is so
important.
“It takes an average of 7 years to create
a unicorn. When you have to work together that long, it’s really important to have
a good partnership. It’s especially when
things are hard and difficult that teams
are tested. That’s when good teams show
their worth,” says Michael J. Wiatr.
Antler
•
Antler is a global multistage investor
with 25 offices across six continents.
The venture fund supports startups
from day zero up to Series C.
•
Antler is the world’s most active
angel/seed-stage investor. With more
than 140 investments in the Nordic
region, the venture fund is also
among the most active here. Over the
past four years, Antler has worked
with more than 900 entrepreneurs in
the Nordics, carefully selected from
more than 16,000 applicants. You
can apply at www.antler.co/apply
11
