Why Resources Matter More Than You Think
Most female founders approach resource-gathering reactively. They search Google when they hit a specific problem: “How do I register a company in Portugal?” or “Where do I find a tech co-founder?” This reactive search burns time and often leads to outdated or irrelevant information.
The best-scaling female founders operate differently. They map the complete resource landscape early: funding programs, mentor networks, legal tools, educational content, peer communities. This pre-emptive approach has concrete advantages.
Female founders with mapped-out resources close seed rounds 35% faster than those discovering programs ad-hoc. They hire stronger teams because they know which communities to source talent. They make better business decisions because they access quality mentorship proactively rather than hiring coaches reactively.
This guide catalogs the most valuable resources for female founders building in Europe, organized by stage and need.
Community Networks and Peer Support
Pan-European Networks
The Next Women
The Next Women is Europe’s most established female founder network, with 15,000+ members across 30+ countries. The organization focuses on three pillars: community connection, funding access, and global expansion support.
Value for early-stage founders: Quarterly events and workshops, peer mentorship, investor introductions. Access to 15,000 female entrepreneurs means you’re never the only person tackling a specific challenge. You’ll find founders who solved the exact problem you’re facing.
Investment and pricing: Events vary in price (€50-€500 depending on format). Premium community membership available but most value accessible to free members.
Action step: Join free and attend one regional event. Build three relationships with founders at your stage or slightly ahead of you.
European Female Founders (EFF)
European Female Founders operates the European Female Founders Network (EFFN), coordinating female founder support across all EU countries. The network differs from The Next Women by emphasizing cross-border opportunities and structural ecosystem change.
Value for early-stage founders: Introductions to female angel investors, cross-border expansion support, participation in policy advocacy. If you’re building with cross-European ambitions, EFF’s network provides intros to investors in each country.
Investment and pricing: Most programs free. Premium programs (€500-€2,000) include intensive mentorship and investor access.
Action step: Request cross-border investor introductions for your specific sector. Join the policy advocacy program if you’re interested in contributing back.
Female Founders (Vienna-Based)
Female Founders operates accelerators (Berlin, Vienna) and maintains an ambassador network across 11 European countries. The network emphasizes investment readiness and founder development.
Value for early-stage founders: Investment readiness cohorts (GROW F program), ambassador connections in your region, mentorship access. The organization treats founder education as core, not peripheral.
Investment and pricing: GROW F program €500-€1,500 depending on format. Community access free.
Action step: Apply to GROW F if you’re pre-seed seeking funding. Join ambassador community events if you’re in regions with active ambassadors (France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, UK, Netherlands, Sweden, Czech Republic, Poland, Italy, Spain).
Sector-Specific Communities
Women in AI Europe
If you’re building AI products, Women in AI Europe connects female founders, researchers, and operators in the AI space. The network emphasizes technical skill-building and leadership visibility.
Value: Technical mentorship, visibility through speaking opportunities, investor introductions to AI-focused funds.
When to join: If you’re building AI products or positioning AI as core to your business model.
Tech Queens Network
For tech founders broadly, Tech Queens connects female tech leaders across Europe. The community emphasizes operational excellence and founder well-being.
Value: Peer mentorship, leadership coaching, operations guidance, opportunity sharing.
When to join: If you’re a tech founder needing operational mentorship beyond just fundraising.
Local City Communities
Berlin: Female Founders Berlin Meetup (500+ female founders in Berlin), co-working spaces like EDGE (female-founder-friendly), Berlin Startup Hub events
London: The Dots, Bump Club (female-founder-specific co-working and events), Women in Tech UK
Amsterdam: Startup Amsterdam (diverse programming), female founder co-working at spaces like A4
Stockholm: Stockholm Startup Hub, Nordic female founder networks, Norrsken community
Paris: Station F (world’s largest startup campus, explicit female founder programming)
Lisbon: Lisbon Startup Hub, co-working communities at Selina, Heden
Funding and Capital Resources
Grant and Non-Dilutive Capital
Beyond the flagship programs discussed in Pillar 1, dozens of smaller grants exist:
Cartier Women’s Initiative: Awards up to €100,000 to impact-driven female entrepreneurs. Annual competition. Emphasis on social and environmental impact.
Grow Her Money: Provides funding and business support to female entrepreneurs, particularly supporting underrepresented backgrounds.
SheEO: Global network providing non-dilutive capital and community support to female entrepreneurs. SheEO activators (members who pool capital) collectively back female-founded companies.
National innovation grants: Most EU countries provide innovation grants to early-stage founders. Search “[Your Country] innovation grants female founders” for country-specific opportunities.
Investor Networks and Angel Funding
Female Angel Investor Networks
Angel Academe (UK/Europe): Connects female angel investors with female-founded startups. Provides founder education on pitching and cap table management.
Broadway Angels (UK): Women-focused angel syndicate. Over 100 female angels have invested in 60+ companies collectively raising €20+ million.
ALIBI (Europe): Female-focused angel fund operating across multiple European countries. Explicitly invests in Series A female-founded startups with focus on market expansion.
Rising Tide (Europe): Angel network focusing on female founders across all sectors. Emphasis on international expansion.
Institutional Female-Focused VCs
Backed VC (UK/Europe): While not exclusively female-focused, Backed is exceptionally supportive of female founders and has explicitly stated commitment to female founder investment.
Norrsken22 (Sweden): Growth fund explicitly targeting female and underrepresented founder investment. Provides corporate network access as additional benefit.
Fund F (Europe): €20 million fund supporting female founders from pre-seed through Series A.
Crowdfunding and Alternative Financing
Seedrs: Equity crowdfunding platform (UK-based, operates across Europe). Women founders perform 17% better than male counterparts on platform.
Fundbox: Revenue-based financing. Shows 55% higher approval rates for female founders than male counterparts.
Clearco: RBF platform optimized for unit economics. Approves based on revenue, not founder perception.
Kickstarter and Indiegogo: Rewards-based crowdfunding. Women outperform men 32% on Kickstarter.
Educational Resources and Learning
Structured Programs Beyond Accelerators
Reforge: Online courses in product, growth, and analytics. Specifically valuable for solo technical founders or those without strong product/growth backgrounds.
Maven: Community-led online courses including founder-specific tracks. Peer learning model versus solo learning.
First 1000: Founder education focused on practical business metrics and fundraising readiness. Specifically designed for founders at pre-seed stage.
Founder Institute: Online and offline (physical hub) founder education. Operational focus on building business models and execution.
Books, Guides, and Frameworks
FemaleSwitch Foundation Resources: Violetta Bonenkamp’s platform publishes regular guides on female founder challenges, startup economics, and entrepreneurial psychology.
The Lean Startup: While not female-specific, Lean Startup methodology is foundational for efficient resource use. Female founders particularly benefit from this approach’s emphasis on validation over intuition.
Crossing the Chasm: Market development framework. Essential reading for B2B SaaS founders.
Traction: Business growth framework covering 19 different traction channels. Helps female founders map full customer acquisition landscape rather than defaulting to single channel.
Mentorship and Coaching
Female Founder Mentorship Programs: Structured mentorship matching founders with experienced mentors. Emphasis on strategic challenges (fundraising, product-market fit, scaling).
Betahaus Coaching: Available in multiple European cities, provides founder coaching focused on business model refinement and team building.
Scaling Up: Executive coaching framework applicable to founder challenges. Many female founder coaches trained in Scaling Up methodology.
Legal, Tax, and Operational Resources
Legal Template Libraries
Rocket Lawyer: Online legal document templates including UK company formation, employment contracts, NDA templates.
LawBite: UK-focused legal templates and founder guides. Specifically helpful for cap table management, employment law, and founder disputes.
Gust: Startup legal document library with EU/UK specific templates.
Carta: Digital cap table management and legal document workflow. Essential for tracking equity, options, and funding rounds.
Accounting and Tax Resources
Crunchbase: Startup financial benchmarking. Helps you understand burn rate, runway, and metrics of comparable companies at your stage.
Stripe Atlas: Founder-friendly company formation service with financial guidance. Stripe provides small business guidance alongside company registration assistance.
Xero: Cloud accounting software used by 2+ million small businesses. Particularly valuable for tracking early-stage founder spending and burn rate.
Wave: Free accounting software for small businesses. Ideal for bootstrapped founders with limited accounting budgets.
Country-Specific Resources
France: BPIFRANCE (French innovation agency) provides grants, loans, and equity investment for startups. Create in France startup program supports startup creation.
Germany: Startup Germany provides country resources. BMWK (Federal Ministry) offers funding programs.
Netherlands: Startup.Amsterdam and Dutch Startup Association provide resources and advocacy.
UK: Startup Loans Company provides government-backed loans to early-stage founders.
Spain: AEE (Spanish Entrepreneurs Association) provides resources and advocacy. Spanish government offers innovation tax breaks.
Sweden: Vinnova provides grants for innovation and commercialization.
Specific Tools for Female Founder Businesses
Fundraising Tools
PitchBook: Investor database with VC firm details, past investments, partner information. Essential for targeting appropriate investors.
Crunchbase Pro: Investor tracking, company benchmarking, deal tracking.
AngelList: Connect with angel investors, post your company, track investor pipeline. US-focused but increasingly European presence.
Cap Table Management via Carta or Pulley: Transparent cap table management. Many female founders use cap table visibility to increase investor confidence.
Product and Customer Development
Typeform: Survey and feedback collection. Essential for early-stage customer research.
Notion: All-in-one workspace for product planning, customer insights, operating procedures.
Airtable: Database and project management. Used by 2+ million small businesses for customer relationship management.
Marketing and Growth
Canva: Design software for non-designers. Particularly valuable for female founders creating marketing materials independently.
Mailchimp: Email marketing automation. Free tier covers 500 contacts, enabling early-stage customer communication without cost.
SEMrush: SEO and marketing analytics. Helps female founders understand keyword strategies and competitive positioning.
FAQ: Your Resource Questions Answered
Where do I start if I’m a complete beginner?
Join The Next Women or European Female Founders. Attend one event. Connect with 2-3 founders at your stage. Ask them what resources they’ve found most valuable. This peer-to-peer learning is often more relevant than generic resource catalogs.
Which female founder network should I prioritize?
If you’re pre-seed: Female Founders (GROW F program). If you’re building with Series A ambitions: The Next Women. If you’re international: European Female Founders Network.
Are paid resources worth the investment?
Yes, but selectively. Accelerator programs (paid) have concentrated value. Online courses (€200-€1,000) have moderate value if aligned with your specific gap. Coaching (€5,000+) has high value if you find the right coach, but avoid coaches without startup operating experience.
How do I find a mentor as a female founder?
Go to community events (The Next Women, Female Founders) and ask founders who interest you to coffee. If they decline, ask who they’d recommend. Mentorship happens through relationship-building, not formal applications (except through programs like Female Founders that provide structured matching).
Can I access these resources internationally or do I need to be in Europe?
Most pan-European networks serve 20+ countries. US-based resources (Reforge, Founder Institute) are accessible internationally. Local resources (city-specific networks, country-specific grants) require geographic presence or specific citizenship/residency.
Which tools should I use vs. avoid?
Essential tools: Carta (cap table), email (community), spreadsheet (financial tracking).
Avoid until Series A: Enterprise tools (Salesforce), complex marketing platforms, dedicated tax software. Use free or simple alternatives until you have revenue and team justifying complexity.
How do I find female founder peers in my specific sector?
Search LinkedIn for “female founders” + your sector + your region. Join sector-specific Slack communities or Discord servers. Attend sector conferences with explicit diversity focus.
Building Your Personal Resource Map
Rather than trying to use all resources simultaneously, build your personal resource map:
Stage 1 (Pre-launch): Community (The Next Women or EFF) + Educational (Reforge/Maven) + Operational (Notion, Carta setup)
Stage 2 (MVP/Early Traction): Community (add local hub) + Fundraising (start investor research via PitchBook) + Mentorship (identify 2-3 mentors)
Stage 3 (Pre-seed raise): Add accelerator (Female Founders GROW F), formalize legal (LawBite templates), track cap table (Carta)
Stage 4 (Post-seed): Add Series A accelerator (Female Founders Berlin), investor relations (continue outreach), operational scaling (hire COO/CFO)
Conclusion: Resources Amplify Your Advantage
The resource landscape for female founders in Europe has exploded in the last 24 months. Where five years ago female founders operated largely unsupported, today you have access to thousands of mentors, hundreds of programs, and tens of billions in capital specifically allocated to female-founded companies.
The issue isn’t resource scarcity—it’s resource overload. Too many options paralyze decision-making. The antidote is being selective. Choose 2-3 communities, 1-2 mentors, 1 accelerator if stage-appropriate, and a handful of tools that solve immediate problems.
Start with community. Everything else flows from peer relationships. The best resources aren’t formal programs: they’re founders who’ve solved the problem you’re tackling and are willing to share their experience.
Build your resource relationships today. You’ll thank yourself when 18 months in, you’re facing a specific challenge and can call a founder from your community who solved it last quarter.
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About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp’s expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the “gamepreneurship” methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic “without any funding and without any code,” this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call “gamepreneurship”. By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique “play to learn and earn” model.
