Come to Wolves Summit tomorrow and meet Bryony where she will be a speaker or just text us at hello@arkleybrinc.vc, and we match you!

We are very happy to welcome Bryony to the team as Partner and Chief Acceleration Officer of Arkley Brinc VC. Previously, she was running Brinc’s IoT Accelerator in Bahrain and served on their global Investment Committee. As a serial startup entrepreneur and enthusiast, she co-founded 3 companies by the age of 30.

Whilst CEO of German innovation hub IXDS Labs, Bryony managed ventures such as ‘HINT’ (digital health IoT) and ‘Fritzing’ (an open-source hardware). Formerly CEO & co-founder of T Dispatch, a fleet management platform for transportation, she helped to raise $2.5 Million and acquired an international client base.

Bryony was featured in the book ‘Dear Female Founder’; a series of letters to inspire the future generation of women entrepreneurs. She has spoken at various startup and tech conferences around the world, such as Web Summit (Dublin), Pirate Summit (Cologne), Mobile World Congress - 4YFN (Barcelona) and Women Power Summit (Bahrain); next you can see her at Wolves Summit 2018 here in Warsaw on 23 - 24 October.

How did you first get involved in the startup world?

My first business was a web development and SEO agency in London, back in 2009. I started out as a copywriter/editor, but naturally gravitated towards a managerial role. An in-house project with my business partner lead to us to co-founding T Dispatch - our first real startup. We quickly raised a pre-seed round, and from there it just snowballed!

What do you like about startup life?

One of the things I love is the variety. No two days are the same and the speed of learning is unparalleled. I have been in charge of sales and business development, PR and marketing, management, investor relations, finance, admin and operations... all at the same time! It never gets boring. The energy and resilience of startup founders really inspires me; the ability to get knocked down and always get back up again is paramount.  

How did you get to know Brinc?

We first crossed paths whilst I was running IXDS Labs in Berlin, because both our companies focused on connected hardware and IoT. We were creating new ventures, Brinc was accelerating and investing into startups. We invited Bay McLaughlin, Brinc co-founder, to speak at IXDS, and he gave a super engaging talk! I was later approached to join the company by Mateusz Soltysiak, Director of Brinc Poland, who I’d known in my professional network since T Dispatch days. My background and skills seemed to be a perfect fit, so I went for it!

Why do you think Arkley and Brinc are such a good match for a joint venture?

Arkley already built its reputation as one of the leading hardware investors in Europe; they betted on the IoT sector long before other European investors, and already have an amazing track record. Arkley also has a great network of partners in Europe, reaching to San Francisco. And all their teams got follow-on funding! Brinc is not only an accelerator, but an end-to-end platform that can support hardware and IoT startups from concept to commercialisation. From building the first prototype, to product development, production and finally distribution. Brinc has spent years cultivating a network of service providers in the Greater Bay in China, so they can help teams navigate the complex world of manufacturing. Arkley Brinc VC is a key player in building an ecosystem to support European IoT startups with much needed capital, and can connect teams with every resource and service provider necessary to go to market.

What have been some highlights in your career so far (aside from joining Arkley Brinc VC)?

I was really happy to get a seed investment ($90,000) from my first ever pitch in front of a crowd back in 2012. Being a featured contributor in the book ‘Dear Female Founder’ was a great moment for me, as I’m a strong advocate for gender diversity at board level and in the tech sector. It was also a great experience to launch the first IoT Accelerator program in the MENA region with Brinc in Bahrain.

And finally, what advice do you have for first time founders who are looking to start a business?

Find a real-life problem to solve in an underserved market. Do your homework, become an expert in your field/industry category and be prepared when you approach investors. Surround yourself with positive, supportive individuals who want to see you succeed; be open to constructive feedback and always assume there is more to learn. Be humble; one of the most common reasons I’ve seen founders fail is because their egos are too big and it ends up creating conflict! You can’t build a business by yourself, so accept your weaknesses and find co-founders or partners who complement your personality and skill set.

Write to us at hello@arkleybrinc.vc if you want to meet Bryony personally!