Tips from founders who raised money
Chatting with WOO Sports co-founder Ytzen Zeilstra

Ytzen was one of the participating startups in Capital Tour XXL (in 2016 and 2017) and met one of his biggest angel investors during the event. We asked him about his tips & tricks on how you can make the right connections with investors.
What’s the most meaningful professional connection you’ve ever made?
“The connection I made with my co-founder Leo Koenig. We met on the beach while we were doing the thing we loved most, kiteboarding. We started WOO Sports because we are both driven by passion, new technology, new challenges, and we push each other to make things happen.’
“When it comes to starting a company with someone, it’s not only about the right skills. It goes much further. ‘What’s this person driven by? What’s his passion? How much does he want to learn and how does he act when times are hard?’ Startups will be at that stage quite a lot.”
What did you think of Capital Tour XXL when you joined it in 2016?
“I joined Capital Tour XXL because I had recently moved back to the Netherlands from Boston and didn’t know the local startup scene very well. I liked that it was set up in small groups and I had some interesting conversations with founders and investors. I actually met an angel investor during the event that two months later invested in the company. I was also invited by another investor to join him for a kiteboarding trip to the Angel Island event during Amsterdam Capital Week. That was a lot of fun too.”
“I believe in small network groups to make meaningful connections. I’m usually not a big fan of massive events. I’ve been to the Web Summit in Portugal and it was way too massive to make meaningful connections. It had too many people and it drove me crazy. A smaller pitch competition at the Dutch Embassy in Lisbon was of much greater value.”
What works when it comes to connecting with investors?
“Investors want to hear authentic stories. A story of how things are founded is just as appealing to them as saying, ‘I’m going to make two billion in so many years’, because that what everybody tells them. What also helped us to raise money was using friends of friends. If you have a real, meaningful and trustworthy connection with somebody who is an investor then they’ll feel confident to introduce you to their friends or business partners.”
“Fake it till you make it” or “Be Yourself”?
“You can’t put BS on the table. You have to stay true to your core and the reason why you founded the company in the first place. But with any startup — or any Kickstarter campaign — you will partially be faking it because you don’t have a product or customers yet. In the beginning there’s nothing more than a good founding team, a brilliant idea, and a shitty pitch deck. With these ingredients you have to sell a massive promise.”
Any other tips for startups?
“As a founder you always have to be able to make new connections. This could mean with the person sitting next to you in the train. You’re not an employee anymore, so you need to be open 24 hours a day for any new meaningful connection. You have to be willing to tell your story at least a few times a day to people you don’t know. ’
“And lastly, I’d say don’t be the eager beaver with regards to fundraising. I sometimes compare fundraising with dating. Don’t run desperately towards them. That’s with investors as well. It doesn’t work out that well if you run to them and overload them with information. Take the time to build a meaningful connection before you enter into a relationship ”
WOO Sports is a company that sells a tiny machine learning device that sticks to your kiteboard, snowboard or wakeboard and measures things like height, airtime, and trick detection.
— -
The first Xlusive Edition of Capital Tour XXL (since 2015) is being held in Amsterdam on Tuesday, September 25th, 2018. This year will be focusing on facilitating more relevant matching between startups and investors. Over 100+ startups will cycle to all kinds of investors that match their business goals and investment status. Tickets are still available here.
Or find more information about the program at: capitaltourxxl.com

