20th May 2009 - Exits and Fund Raising - Tales & Insights

Purchase Tickets to our next event at here. Become a monthly subscriber to Northern StartUp 2.0 here

This newsletter covers:

1. Next event: Exits and Fund Raising - Tales & Insights on 20th May at Horwath Clark Whitehill, Manchester from 6pm to 9pm and beyond
2. Northern StartUp 2.0 Membership
3. Tech Mission London on 8th June 2009 - Bebo Founder, Michael Birch will be taking part.
4. Forthcoming events
5. Branded Proposition from Horwath Clark Whitehill
6. Free software from Microsoft - BizSpark Programme
7. Futuresonic 2009
8. Contact Details
9. Our Partners

1. Next Event: Exits and Fund Raising - Tales & Insights on 20th May at Horwath Clark Whitehill, Manchester from 6pm to 9pm and beyond

Purchase Tickets to our next event at here.

Exits and Fund Raising are two classic areas that most tech businesses need to pay attention to, and review on an on-going basis. Whilst some companies raise cash pre-revenue, others raise cash for growth. How would you prepare your company for funding? Having achieved set targets, how would you prepare your company for exit? What are the investor sentiments on cashing in during each round of funding? Our panel addressing these issues include, Ajaz Ahmed (Founder of Freeserve with £1.6 billion exit) and Manoj Patel (raised $1m for his tech startup Lanxoma). Visit the event page on regular basis to discover more speakers as we confirm their availability.

Wanted

a. StartUp4Slaughter - Grab the 4th StartUp4Slaughter session of the year at £60+VAT, which allows two employees from the presenting company to attend. An unique session that allow a tech entrepreneur to present his or her company to the audience highlighting the biggest issue faced at the time. Through rapid Q&A, audience and the panel attempts to provide solutions to resolve the issue faced by the tech entrepreneur. Past sessions featured, Lisa Scales of TalentOnView, Ash Mokhberi of DistinctID and Lisa Layzell of ThinSpace. Let Manoj know if you wish to take this slot.

b. Sponsors - Do contact Manoj if you wish to sponsor this event. Past event sponsors include Microsoft BizSpark, H2O Networks, Equity Fingerprint and Drop Jaw Ventures

c. Speakers and Panelists - Do contact Manoj if you wish to be a panelist and/or speaker. We love to hear from tech entrepreneurs who have recently secured funding or exited.

2. Membership

Membership to StartUp 2.0 is £10+VAT per month, based on minimum period of 12 months. Then you pay £15+VAT to attend any event. Click here to start your membership

It has been 30 months since the very first StartUp 2.0 event was held in Manchester, providing for the first time, a compelling platform for tech entrepreneurs, investors, deal makers and service providers to meet in an informal setting and exchange ideas and make deals. One company that was formed out of these events is my own tech startup, edocr.com. There are many other compelling stories of value add. Growing number of successful entrepreneurs and investors from the North, London and the USA continue to share their knowledge and experience with the StartUp 2.0 community which have grown from 0 to well over 1400 over the 30 months period. Media such as Crain's Manchester Business, Manchester Evening News and The North West Business Insider covers our activities on regular basis. Make sure you are a central part of this ecosystem driving forward innovation and enterprise.

Membership benefits include:

a. Service Discounts: We have negotiated a deal with chartered accountants Horwath Clark Whitehill, details of which are given below. We are working on similar deals with other key service providers, including legal firms.

b. Product Deals: We have negotiated a deal with Microsoft, details of which are given below. We are also in the process of negotiating a deal with established CRM and accounts software to ensure Northern StartUps have access to the right platforms for growth. As usual, edocr.com would be the first company to trial and use any of the products and services (in most cases).

c. Digital Content: We will soon start adding content that will only be available to members

d. Training and Workshops: Watch the space. Discounts available to members.

3. Tech Mission London 2009 - 8th June 2009

Breaking News...Michael Birch, Founder of Bebo has decided to fly in a day before his planned visit to be part of the Tech Mission London

We have organised a Tech Mission to London on the 8th June 2009 to coincide with Being Digital Event taking place from 9th June, organised by our friends, Mashup Events. Please tune to event page for more information. Costs for taking part:

a. Members

Cost for pitching at Dragon's Lair and workshop: £80+VAT for two people
Cost for pitching at Dragon's Lair : £60+VAT for two people
Cost for attending Dragon's Lair: £15+VAT per person

b. Non Members - StartUps

Cost for pitching at Dragon's Lair and workshop: £100+VAT for two people
Cost for pitching at Dragon's Lair: £75+VAT for two people
Cost for attending Dragon's Lair: £25+VAT per person

c. Non Members - Non StartUps

Cost for attending Dragon's Lair and Workshop: £75+VAT per person (capped)
Cost for attending Workshop: £50+VAT per person (capped)
Cost for attending Dragon's Lair: £30+VAT per person

If you wish to take part, do contact Manoj immediately. Sponsorship opportunities are available.

4. Forthcoming Events

a. 20th May - Manchester - Exits and Fund Raising - Tales & Insights
b. 8th June - London - Tech Mission London 2009
c. 26th June - Manchester - Web 2.0 Commercialisation Models and Value Added Services
d. 15th July - Manchester - SME 2.0 and SaaS - maintaining competitive cost advantage

We are exploring holding quarterly events in London and other cities such as Newcastle Upon Tyne and Bristol/Cardiff

5. Accountancy Services from Horwath Clark Whitehill

This service is only available to Members. The Manchester office of UK Top 20 accountancy and business advisory firm, Horwath Clark Whitehill, has partnered with Northern StartUp 2.0 to offer its Members exclusive access to tax and accountancy services at specially discounted prices to its normal rates. Members will have access to a menu of financial services ranging from accounts & tax return preparation through to management accounts preparation, financial forecasting, tax planning etc. Prices will range from just over £100 per month for the 'Bronze' service aimed at smaller tech business through to just under £400 per month for the 'Platinum' service aimed at more established tech businesses. As Horwath Clark Whitehill already provides tax and accountancy services to businesses of all sizes from start-ups through to listed companies, Members will have the flexibility and ease of being able to add further services from Horwath Clark Whitehill's indepth resources as and when needed over the lifecycle of the business - in a nutshell, Northern StartUp 2.0 Members will have access to a 'one-stop shop' for all business advisory and financial requirements from day one.

Do get in touch if you wish to tap into this excellent service

6. Microsoft BizSprak

This service is only available to Members. If your company is less than 3 years old with annual revenues below $1 million, you can now have unlimited access to Microsoft Technologies. Please visit here for more details. First few companies to sign up to this programme includes edocr.com and ThinSpace.

7. Futursonic 2009 and other news

Manoj will be speaking at the Futursonic 2009 Event on the 15th May. Make sure you attend this interactive session.

8. Contact Details

E: manoj@ranaweera.name
T: +44 7769734491
Follow me at http://www.twitter.com/manojranaweera

9. Our Partners

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Contact us today if you wish to become a partner