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Daniel Sawko
Co-Founder & CEO, shipshape.vc
In this conversation, Daniel Sawko discusses the challenges of traditional fundraising for startups and how his innovative investment search engine aims to streamline the process. He shares insights on the importance of finding the right investors, the evolution of their business model, and the significance of data-driven insights in the fundraising landscape.
Equity is a complex product — stop selling it like B2C. Spray-and-pray outreach presents investors a yes/no on something that takes time to build conviction in; fundraising is an enterprise sale of quality over quantity.
Research the fund's life cycle. A fund that isn't deploying can waste months of your time — Shipshape prioritizes funds with activity in the last six months and recent raises, a lesson that nearly killed his own company.
Specialists price you better. Investors who understand your niche discount you less and add more — and geography matters: a £500K round in Wales costs 22% dilution versus 13% in London.
Free for founders by design. Companies using the engine have raised over $1.5 billion; economic development bodies fund the model, so the people building the future keep their equity and their time.
