#3. Lean Into Your Founder USP
Edition #3 of Friday Funding Chats explores your founder USP and how it can unlock new pots of funding your business. Plus, Santander's X award is back and bigger than ever!
Welcome to Friday Funding Chats, your weekly accountability buddy in your small business funding journey. Every Friday we deliver top fund picks and tips to your inbox, saving you time and making your funding journey an empowering one.
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Whats in this edition:
💸 5 Top opportunities as chosen by me.
💸 Lean into your founder USP
💸 Edie’s Net Zero awards close soon
💸 Intentional Networking event
This Weeks Top Opportunities
Award Ebay For Business Sellers Awards - Open to ebay sellers, apply for a variety of categories to win £10k
Award Santander X UK Awards are back, this time with three prizes for various business stages. You could win up to £30k for your business following a pitching competition.
Grant Endangered Crafts Fund - Did you know there is a red list of endangered crafts in the UK?! If you are involved in them and are in the South East, you could get £2000 to support your work.
Grant Greenwich Penninsula Community Fund - The Fund will support community projects directly delivered within the Greenwich Peninsula ward boundary. Awards vary but max. is £20,000
Award Enterprise Nation x Adobe - each month until 28th Aug, Adobe are offering a business £1k plus 3 months of free Adobe access and a mentoring session to create your marketing strategy.
These Top Opportunities were lifted from the Funding Opportunities Database, a unique listing of over 40 grants, awards, accelerators and other funding opportunities for your small business (with a focus on creatives and social & environmental impact). For full access to the database, upgrade for just £4 a month. Plus get Friday Funding Chats Live, and interviews with founders who have funded.
Lean into your USP
Let’s face it. The entrepreneurial landscape has never looked more diverse. While some sectors (cough-tech-cough) remain pretty white and male dominated, the emergence of diverse funding portfolios, targeted grants and support programmes have meant that people in underrepresented groups now feel more visible.
But let’s not beat about the bush. It’s still not equal, less than 2% of VC funding goes to women founders, and if you’re a WOC, the number is even lower! Thats why I am a huge fan of grants, funds and programmes that are purely for POC, people with neurodiversity or disabilities, parents, students etc. The list goes on. Not to mention grants for local people, businesses and communities and entrepreneurs working to make a specific impact.
When I work with brands, I always urge them to lean into their USP. What makes them unique as a founder , what makes their business or goals and values unique. All mixed together, you become a bit of a unicorn. Take me for example. I identify as a straight, white, cis woman, currently in remission from a chronic condition, with caring responsibilities. I have a direct impact on underrepresented founders, I work with London and South London businesses, and I have social and environmental impact goals.
I regularly keep a look out for funding pots available to female founders, I look out for anything in my local area (Be that Bromley, Lewisham or Greater London), I look out for anything attached to Net Zero or the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and anything linked to local impact or underrepresented communities (the people I serve). So instead of risking my time applying for more generic entrepreneurial prices or grants, I niche down and apply for the ones I am really eligible for.
Today, why don’t you sit and write a list of all the things that make you you. You may shy away from some (I don’t regularly check that box that says ‘I have a disability or chronic condition’ but sometimes I feel it makes me applicable), you may be proud of others. But believe it or not, if you identify as female, you are in an under represented group! So lean into this. You aren’t asking for special favours, you are putting your best foot forward and going for the money you are more likely to get.
Sharmadean Reid put it more eloquently when she said ‘play games you can win’ in her excellent book, New Methods for Women. So go ahead, get on the field, choose a position you like and start making some goal kicks!
Question: What is VC?
Answer: VC stands for Venture Capital. Like Angels, VC’s purchase shares in businesses in return for dividends - a chunk of the profits. They generally invest in highly scalable businesses, and wield big cheques, £100,000 and upwards. Like Angels (see Edition #2 for this definition) they are tough to spot in the wild, warm introductions are the way to go here.
Funding News:
Let’s celebrate the communities wins, and learn where the money is so we can go and get it.
Edie has extended its Net Zero Awards deadline to 18th June. Don't miss your chance to gain recognition for your leadership in the transition towards a low-carbon future.
Cartier Women’s Initiative Impact Awards Ceremony
DEFRA Announces £13.6m grants for food redistribution charities. DEFRA says the grants will help redistribute an estimated 19,000 tonnes of food from farms to homeless shelters, food banks and charities.
Vogue Business now offers a Business Funding tracker (disclaimer - I’ve not tried it myself so if anyone wants to give me feedback I’d love that).
Business Of Beauty announces the winners of their global beauty awards in California. My faves Manasi 7 and Akt are in there.
Reekom, a French textile reconditioning startup, raises $4.9m investment to create a new mechanised industrial centre in La Courneuve, Seine-Saint-Denis, allowing them to triple their monthly processing capacity to 100,000 items by 2028.
Luxury accessories membership platform Vivrelle closes a $62m Series C round.
Question: What’s Series C Funding?
Answer: Equity investment into businesses is done in stages or ‘series’ based on the size and milestones of the business. The entry point is Pre Seed (ideas stage), Seed, Series A, B, C etc. Generally after this point, business will go public (known as IPO) or get sold. As with the Vivrelle example above, at Series C, businesses are raising millions of dollars from groups of Venture Capitalists.
Events:
Let’s make money moves this month. Network with intention and learn from those who have done it.
Tex+ 2025 Showcase - Join us for the TEX+ 2025 Showcase Private View with Prize & Awards , an exclusive event celebrating the best in UK textile graduates.
16th July, @ Chelsea College of Art
Investor Outreach Playbook: Fundraising Like the 1% - Want to learn how to cold email your way to success? Join Eva Dobrzanska and Rare Founders
23rd June, 9.30-2pm @ Bloomsbury Way, London
Grow With Intent - Business Drop in Clinic with Advisors - Pop in for advice, guidance and meaningful connections. All designed to help you move forward with confidence.
27th June, 10-4pm @ Santander Work Cafe, London
First Pitch - First Cheque, 12 months on - friend of The WIP Genia Mineeva is speaking on the panel for this Hotbed/Stripe collaborative panel.
18th June, 6.30-8.30 @ Bishopsgate, London
Before You Go
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🎓 Do you have a small business community who could benefit from our knowledge and support? Reach out today to find out about our workshops, speaking and consultancy services. lucy@thewip.work
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