May 1st: Founder News: Any Lego Lovers here? NYC Events, Fundraising Tools & Launch updates.

Who are we? NYC's in-person founder community. Get involved! Attend an event / join the community. Support us. Volunteer or sponsor a newsletter or event 🚀

Hi Everyone,

A few airmiles later, the newsletter returns, and so does Spring 🌸.

Since the last issue, another 25 founders have joined, we had an AMAZING happy hour, met a load of Scottish founders, during Tartan Week, are in the midst of Fin-Tech Week, and I became a sock model (yes, you read that right) all for a special cause. Shout out to community member Josh Turner of Stand for Socks for his hard work here.

But what else has been going on? Unsurprisingly, a lot!

💬 Conversations across Slack / WhatsApp chats since last time included...

• Opportunities to promote your launches

• Crowdsourcing help with PR (there's been a LOT of talk here)!

• An impromptu popup for Latin founders

• Offers of app-building help, and so much more!

So let's dive in to say hi to some of these lovely new faces, and catch us all up on what's been going on, and what's coming up.

And I'll see you next time.

Tori 🚀

ps Get May 9th in the diary, for our Coworking Lego day and Happy Hour double header!

🌟 Knowledge Shop Meetups🌟

Tues 9th May

Coworking Day "The Lego Edition".

1. Lego strategy/problem solving session, facilitated by Brandon Wetzstein of In8Create

2.  Sales 1:1's - Need sales advice? Dan Morris of Mindracer Consulting is joining to give free sessions for folks looking to boost revenue.

3. Private/quiet areas for scheduled calls/meetings.

4. Happy Hour. Ticket includes all of the above, and access to the happy hour after

RSVP

Tues 9th May.

Happy Hour. Perfect if you can't come join the coworking day. Head over after work, and meet new and familiar faces.

1. Receive personalised intro's with other attendees! Opt-in to be connected with fellow founders who have mutual interests. (bye bye walking into a room full of strangers)!

2. Beer, wine, soft drinks included whilst stocks last

RSVP

🤗 Welcome to the 'hood 🤗

A big 👋 and hello to some of our newer members, including...

• Andres Cano, of Pygma - a next-gen cross-border startup accelerator

• Sam B, exploring ideas in the IT, Security and Automation space.

• Evan Beland, multi-time tech founder, now helping others build their apps and teams.

• Osman Koycu , of Innovation Box. Product expert, and multi-time founder.

• George Lorenzo, of Workforce Monitor. Publishing content around workforce and its relationship to education (you can even sign up for their newsletter 📰).

Want to be featured next time? Make sure to say hi in the Slack intro's section, or fill in the newsletter content form

🎉 Just Launched 🎉

Massive congrats to Caressa Valdueza of ChessMeet - the social network for chess players. They have a brand new Android App! Download it now, and then send over any feedback - and I hope, have a game or two of Chess as well.

🛠 Resources (keep these safe) 🛠

Fundraising:

• VC Sheet. Where founders go first for their upcoming raise.

• Need a pitch deck? A nice Twitter thread with recommendations for pitch deck design services.

• 5 Grants every Black female entrepreneur should have on their radar.

Business Building:

• Sales Tax 101 podcast. When to start worrying about it and when not to. Especially useful for B2B Saas founders.

🗽 NYC-wide Events 🗽

Tues 2nd May

• 10am. Brex x Republic x TheVentureCity | Founder / Investor Breakfast. Brexfast Club is an event series for Founders and Investors, with the goal of building meaningful relationships. RSVP

• 5pm. Startup Train. Join Lightspeed (an impact-focused organization) and local entrepreneurs, side hustlers and technologists, to discuss entrepreneurship, the ins & outs of business, & technology! RSVP

Wed 3rd May

• 10.30am. How to Validate Your MVP. RSVP

• 5.00pm. AAPI Founders, Investors & Leaders. Hosted by Hans, Robin and Marcello (GGV Capital), Melody (NextView), Bryan and Amy (Asian Hustle Network), Joey (Yamibuy) and Fei and Michael (Fenwick & West). RSVP

• 6.00pm. RegTech Conquers Moral Hazard. Join us at Rise (Barclays Innovation hub), in partnership with Women in RegTech New York (WIRTNY) as we discuss our latest Insights Report. RSVP

• 6:00pm. Tech: NYC Happy hour. Perfect for founders, operators and investors. RSVP

• 6:00pm. Tips for Startups on how to build engaging communities, by Union Square Ventures. RSVP

• 6:30pm. Chris Hladczuk built an audience of over 200k! Join the Salley team for this fireside chat, and hear him spill the tea on how to build a high-quality audience in the blink of an eye. RSVP

Thurs 4th May 

• 5.00pm. Contrary Research's GP Kyle Harrison, joins CEO, Co-Founder of Memora Health - Manav Sevak and Vineeta Agarwala of Andreessen Horowitz for an intimate fireside chat around the founder journey. RSVP 

• 6pm. Founders vs Kids. Is your pitch kidproof? Kids are the best judges! They have no filter, are straightforward, and require founders to simplify their ideas to the core. RSVP

• 6pm. Take the Leap! Happy Hour for Aspiring Founders. Perfect for junior folks with tech backgrounds, seriously considering giving up their day job, to build the next big thing! Hosted by Entrepreneur First. RSVP

Tues 9th May

• 9.30am. 🌟Founders Coworking with Lego 🌟 Brainstorm, collaborate and build (literally and metaphorically) alongside fellow founders from across NYC. Always quiet areas for calls, and opportunities for heads down / individual work. RSVP

• 5.00pm.🌟 NYC Startups Happy Hour 🌟 Calling all founders from across NYC. Meetup, compare stories and network with peers over a drink (included). And opt-in to receive personalised intro's with attendees who have like-minded interests (especially handy if you hate walking into a room full of strangers). RSVP

Wed 10th May

• 6pm. Startup Soiree! Hosted by Techstars Atlanta Powered by J.P. Morgan and La French Tech NYC. Where investors and founders connect over a drink RSVP

• 6.30pm. May Tech Rooftop Mixer. Waitlist open, and perfect for builders, change-makers, and leaders gathering in NYC. RSVP

Tues 16th May

• 6pm. Generative AI Lightening Talks. A night of networking, learning, and exchanging ideas with fellow founders, operators, and AI enthusiasts in the field. RSVP

Mon 23rd May

• 5.30pm. Early Stage Investors & Startups Fair. Meet 15 early stage NYC-based funds in a "college-fair" style setting. Founders can walk around, and meet rep's from each firm. RSVP

Fri 26th May and beyond

• 4.30pm. Third Nature Summer Camp Weekend. All the playful energy of Adult Summer Camp, mixed with personal growth-focused workshops, surrounded by a diverse group of entrepreneurs, creators, wellness enthusiasts, and deep thinkers. RSVP