Josefin Landgård Joins our Collective

She’s been part of Atomico’s angel program. Josefin’s latest venture, Mantle, is a modern self-care company focusing on CBD (cannabidiol) oil’s many advantages. In addition to all of this, Josefin is an active angel investor and board director. Having competed professionally in both skiing and golf, her ability to give guidance and coaching to entrepreneurs may be second to none:

“Having made the journeys I have, both as a founder/operator and athlete gives me a unique perspective on how to go for your dreams. In essence, it’s about breaking things into pieces small enough to chew. On a more practical level, I think I have learned important lessons that I’ll be happy to pass on to the next generation of founders.” - Josefin Landgård

Strengthening our position in Sweden

We've ramped up our presence in Sweden heavily in the past half-year, since Sara Rywe joined the team full-time in January 2020. Although travel mostly ceased due to COVID-19, our team has made efforts to stay connected to the ecosystem by attending online pitch events and low-key, virtual after-work events.

“On average, 35% of the deals we see are Swedish. We’re impressed by the level of professionalism in the Swedish startup ecosystem, no doubt in large part thanks to founders and operators alike from successes like Klarna, Spotify, and Kry starting new things and giving back to the ecosystem. Having strong support structures such as Sting, SSE Business Lab, SUP46, Chalmers Ventures, and Antler in place does not hurt either. Josefin — with her unique startup experience — will be an amazing addition to our already strong Collective.” - Sara Rywe, Investor, byFounders

In terms of investment focus, byFounders is agnostic, investing in early-stage tech companies. Its sweet spot is seed rounds, and by tech is inferred a software-driven business model. Counting 29 companies to date, its Portfolio spans healthtech, insurtech, proptech, edtech, and much more. Its prioritization of diversity, not only in terms of its Portfolio, Collective, and team but also in critically looking at the gender composition of its deal flow, resonated with Josefin:

“I think there are loads of great founders that excite me, but of course, more diversity is on my wish list. I believe in diverse teams. When evaluating businesses, I focus mostly on what the team is made of, as the right team is paramount to success — more so than any other factor.”

The byFounders Collective

Upon establishing the fund in 2017, our managing partners Eric Lagier and Tommy Andersen wanted to provide “smart money.” A kind of capital that was less accessible for early-stage startups in the Nordics at the time.

The Collective enables byFounders to deliver on its promise to founders: providing operational support and access to those who have been on the entrepreneurial journey before, and their networks. Role models who are eager to give back to the communities that fostered them.

This sense of community eventually made Josefin take the leap and join the ranks of the byFounders Collective.

“I love the idea of byFounders, and I think they are awesome people. I like how they bring knowledgeable people together, finding creative ways to give to their portfolio companies. Also, it seems like they have a lot of fun!”

Our Collective now comprises 61 individuals who have been through the journey of founding, scaling, and exiting companies and are ready to share with the next generation of tech founders.

“Members of the byFounders Collective help us find great companies and evaluate these while working actively with our portfolio companies. They benefit from experienced founders’ competences, experience, and networks. When relevant, members of the Collective can take on board seats on behalf of the fund. Many of them are even active angel investors and sometimes invest in parallel with us.” - Eric Lagier, Managing Partner, byFounders