Founders and Funding

Philip Smith
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Founders & Investors discuss how to fund your startup's journey. Sponsored by Perfutil Technologies & Leyton.

  1. Ep 26 - Sanket Agarwal - Co Founder of Fleek

    Jun 17

    Ep 26 - Sanket Agarwal - Co Founder of Fleek

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip Smith speaks with Sanket Agarwal, Co-Founder of Fleek. Sanket shares the story behind Fleek, a marketplace solving the inventory problem for the secondhand fashion supply chain, an idea that began while helping his mother-in-law grow her own resale business. He talks about going through Y Combinator, raising funding from Andreessen Horowitz and HV Capital, and why strategic investors who understand your industry matter more than the size of the cheque. They also discuss the difference between building a venture-scale business and bootstrapping, why founding teams of two tend to outperform solo founders, and why loving what you do has to come before the fundamentals.

    20 min
  2. Ep 25 - Sean Mullaney - Founder & CEO of Seapoint

    Jun 10

    Ep 25 - Sean Mullaney - Founder & CEO of Seapoint

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip speaks with Sean Mullaney, Founder & CEO of Seapoint. Sean shares the story behind Seapoint, an all-in-one financial platform built specifically for startup founders who are drowning in spreadsheets, scattered receipts and fragmented bank accounts. He talks about raising a $3 million pre-seed and a $7.5 million seed round, why he built a network of 40 angel investors not just for capital but as brand ambassadors, and why the first year of building was never about revenue. They also discuss what investors are really backing at the earliest stages, why category-leading product love matters more than ARR, and how to run a fundraise like a process rather than waiting for inbound.

    18 min
  3. Ep 24 - Daria Berman - Co-Founder & CEO of FUSS

    Jun 5

    Ep 24 - Daria Berman - Co-Founder & CEO of FUSS

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip Smith speaks with Daria Berman, CEO and Co-Founder of Fuss. Daria shares the story behind Fuss, a mobile app and social platform helping people spend more meaningful time offline by solving two very real problems, cognitive overload and loneliness. She talks about what it was like to fundraise in London as a first-time founder with no network, why chasing institutional VC funding almost cost her everything, and how finding angel investors and the UK's SEIS scheme changed the game for her. They also discuss what it really takes to keep going through the uncertainty of early stage building, why the best way to attract investment is to not need it, and why having a financial safety net matters more than most founders admit.

    22 min
  4. Ep 23 - Aleksandrina Ikonomova - Exited Founder & Angel Investor

    May 27

    Ep 23 - Aleksandrina Ikonomova - Exited Founder & Angel Investor

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip speaks with Aleksandrina Ikonomova, exited founder, startup mentor and angel investor. Aleksandrina brings a rare combination of perspectives to the conversation, she has built and exited her own companies, works with VC portfolio startups on turning around underperformance, and invests her own capital into early stage founders. She shares what she really looks for when investing, why the best founders are defined by their relationship with the problem they are solving, and what it actually takes to survive the emotional and operational demands of building a startup. They also discuss when fundraising makes sense and when it doesn't, why being coachable is not always the compliment people think it is, and what ruthless execution really looks like in practice.

    20 min
  5. Ep 22 - Niall Moran - Fractional CTO & Startup Advisor

    May 13

    Ep 22 - Niall Moran - Fractional CTO & Startup Advisor

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip Smith speaks with Niall Moran, Fractional CTO and Startup Advisor. Niall brings over 20 years of experience across software development, go-to-market strategy, and startup advisory, having worked with the likes of Google and Microsoft before going out on his own. He shares what it really looks like to build in the age of AI, why defensibility has completely changed for startups, and the most common mistakes he sees founders make when taking an MVP to market. They also discuss why getting sticky customers matters more than revenue or funding right now, and what technical due diligence actually means for an early stage startup.

    20 min
  6. Ep 21 - Darragh Gaffney - Business Lead Ireland at Leyton

    May 6

    Ep 21 - Darragh Gaffney - Business Lead Ireland at Leyton

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip Smith speaks with Darragh Gaffney, Business Lead Ireland at Leyton. Darragh shares how Leyton helps startups and scaling companies unlock funding they didn't know was available to them, particularly through Ireland's R&D tax credit scheme. He talks about the importance of choosing the right funding mechanism at the right time, why good governance and documentation matter more than founders realise, and what separates the startups that scale from those that stall. They also discuss delegation, laser focus on commercial priorities, and why chasing the wrong money can cost you more than it gives you.

    23 min
  7. Ep 20 - Ross Keating - Co-Founder of Overpath

    Apr 29

    Ep 20 - Ross Keating - Co-Founder of Overpath

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip Smith speaks with Ross Keating, Co-Founder of Overpath. Ross shares the story behind Overpath, an AI-powered revenue execution platform built to help sales reps work smarter without switching between tools. He talks about raising a VC-led pre-seed round, why speed of execution matters more than ever in AI, and what it really takes to build a founding team that investors will back. They also discuss the difference between bootstrapping and venture funding, and why distribution might be the most important thing an early-stage startup can build.

    20 min
  8. Ep 19 - Damien Mulley - Start-Up Programme Manager at UCC

    Apr 23

    Ep 19 - Damien Mulley - Start-Up Programme Manager at UCC

    In this episode of the Founders & Funding Podcast, Philip Smith speaks with Damien Mulley, Start-Up Programme Manager at UCC Innovation. Damien shares what it really looks like to support early-stage founders coming straight out of university, the funding routes available to student startups, and what separates the founders who make progress from those who stay stuck. They discuss the importance of getting paying customers early, how to pitch to investors, and why communication might be the most underrated skill in any founding team.

    22 min
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About

Founders & Investors discuss how to fund your startup's journey. Sponsored by Perfutil Technologies & Leyton.

Information

  • Creator
    Philip Smith
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    26
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Philip Smith
  • Show Website
    Founders and Funding