With No Class Sizes, No Timelines, and Lifetime Access to World-Class Network, Expa Accelerator Raises the Bar for Collaboration and Support for Pre-Seed Startup Founders
Expa – a global network of startup founders supporting entrepreneurs through expertise, access, and funding – announced that the application process is open for its Accelerator program. Expa Accelerator is designed to prepare entrepreneurs and passionate pre-seed founders to pursue their Seed and Series A with funding and support through mentorship, education, and introductions to Expa’s worldwide network of partners, experts, talent and investors.
Alumni of Expa Accelerator have gone on to create highly successful companies including Sleeper, Radar, and Statespace, each moving from initial concept within the Expa Accelerator program to raising over $1B in funding.
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“Since the inception of Expa, the goal has been to discover strong founding teams who are passionate about building new and innovative products and provide them with all the necessary elements to scale,” said Garrett Camp, Founder, Expa. “As founders ourselves, we understand the challenges and opportunities that companies face during the pre-seed investment process. Expa helps companies navigate these waters with customized support, flexible funding terms, and access to a best-in-class network.”
The accelerator program is an extension of the firm’s mission of supporting early-stage companies and their drive to see their innovations come to life. With each of the founders and partners of the firm being successful founders themselves, Expa’s hands-on, partnership driven approach has resulted in the growth and development of game-changing companies including Current, Convoy and Beacon during their seed stage.
“Expa Accelerator was created by builders for builders with a ‘founders-first’ mindset to provide customized support to the startups we invest in. We firmly believe that impactful companies emerge when founders are provided with the right funding and guidance they need to realize their vision,” said Lisa Besserman, Managing Director, Expa.
Across Expa offerings, companies in the Expa network exceed industry benchmarks progressing from seed funding rounds to Series A. According to Crunchbase data, Expa-backed seed companies have an 80%+ success rate in raising Series A funding compared to an industry average of 42%.
Expa Accelerator prioritizes meeting startup founders where they are. The program provides startups accepted into the program with $250K or $400K in funding, hands-on support and access to a dedicated team, and frequent 1:1 coaching sessions with a range of experienced specialists and operators. Rather than creating a standard curriculum for all startups, Expa has designed its accelerator to be hyper-flexible and completely curated around a startup’s needs. The industry-agnostic, tailored program invests in a wide range of promising companies disrupting sectors from aerospace to fintech. Expa accepts Accelerator applications on a rolling basis, which mirrors the dynamic lifecycle of a startup and allows founders to apply at a time that best suits their business.
“Working and developing within Expa Accelerator means world class expertise is literally a phone call away. Direct access to Expa’s wealth of knowledge is invaluable to founders just finding their footing,” said Daniel Domachowski, Co-founder and CEO, Circus. “During our time in the program, I have witnessed Expa’s leadership team’s commitment to the ‘founders-first” mentality. It was an easy decision to go with Expa. We were offered better terms, better help, and I wasn’t talking with yet another ex-banker, but instead someone who had been in my shoes before.”
The goal of Expa Accelerator is to help companies build and ship ideas more efficiently. By working with fewer companies, taking a hands-on approach, and avoiding the trappings of other event-driven programs, support and expertise from Expa does not end after the session ends. Expa Accelerator alumni become an integral part of the process by joining the extended family of entrepreneurs and advisors receiving ongoing fundraising support and guidance on product and business direction.
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Expa Accelerator alumni celebrated the announcement, including Radar, Dovetale and Statespace:
- “Expa was the first investor to believe in Radar and helped us go from zero to one. Their hands-on guidance during our first year helped us better define our customer, product and go-to-market strategy,” said Coby Berman, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer, Radar.
- “In an increasingly competitive and confusing landscape of financing options, what initially attracted me to the Expa team was their unique approach to partnering with founders. Many investors lead with the same ideas, but the entire Expa team makes you feel like you are a part of a special journey with unconditional support from some of the most successful people in the world. I don’t think we would be the same company we are today without Expa and I am grateful to continue working with them,” said Mike Schmidt, Founder, Dovetale.
- “Working with Expa is refreshing and invaluable. The team is made up of people who have ‘been there.’ They are creators and founders who know the messiness involved in getting ideas off the ground from their own firsthand experience. The insight they brought to the table helped us see around corners and avoid common early stage mistakes. They also understand gaming and worked with us to define a brand that stands out in the crowd,” said Wayne Mackey, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Statespace.
