FOUNDERS MESH | First Edition | Amsterdam Chapter

On July 28^th, the first edition of Founders Mesh took Amsterdam by storm. Organized by Fashion Potluck, this event promises to become the new connecting bond for the city’s start-up ecosystem.

Inspired by the vibrant San Francisco start-up scene, Founders Mesh is an engaging experience for founders of tech-driven startups and scaleups. Created as more than just a networking event, this initiative was organized by Fashion Potluck – the first womxn-focused social media in the western world. Its goal? To proactively encourage founders to exchange experiences, showcase their business and goals, and potentially get in touch with investors. 

With a laid-back ambiance, the first edition of Founders Mesh set the tone for what seems to be the beginning of one of Amsterdam’s most trendy and valuable events in the startup space. 

The evening successfully gathered a diverse and curated crowd of founders, investors, and business facilitators. With the cool and casual setting of Bar Jones as their background, these entrepreneurs were introduced to an atmosphere of support culture, innovation, and knowledge sharing. The speakeasy proved to be the perfect scenario for an immersive experience where breaking the ice was definitely not a problem. 

After a couple of hours of engaging conversation to the sound of a private Dj, the pitching sessions became everyone’s focal point. Some of the most promising companies in Amsterdam had the opportunity to present and promote their added-value identity in an exhilarating yet supportive set-up. With a fast-paced cadence, eight founders shared their companies’ core values, history, and strong points. In less than an hour, the audience heard the pitches of:

- Melissa Wijngaarden from Impactbytes;
 - Zsofia Kollar from Human Material Loop;
 - Pallav Jha from HOMECOOKD;
 - Anastasia Soloveva from Athena Founder;
 - Dereck Lombela from JAT –Technologies; 
 - Charlotte Zhu from TripCell; 
 - Yulia Nikitina from Venu Concept;
 - and, Buster Franken from FruitPunch. 

All of the attendees were able to support every company with an immediate contribution through a QR code. These symbolic in-the-moment donations played the role of encouraging gestures and, hopefully, funded many coffee breaks through the subsequent week!

Last but not least, the first edition of Founders Mesh would have not been possible without the support of its amazing sponsors. Qobuz and Startup Amsterdam joined efforts with Fashion Potluck to put together the first of many more events to come. In fact, a second edition will take place on September 15^th. With Bar Jones as their host once more, the organization promises to deliver the same exciting and valuable experience. 

Meet Our Sponsors:

Qobuz is a streaming and downloading service for music lovers and audiophiles. With more than 80 million tracks available, this platform stands out for its high sound quality and for being the worldwide leader in 24-Bit Hi-Res downloads. Find out more here.