Accelerator programs aren’t scarce but getting into the ones you really want can be hard. So when we were selected to join four other startups in LABS by ARM, we freaked out in a good way.
Looking back, the program was a great way to learn from other fast-growing businesses, improve our operations and make priceless connections.
LABS by ARM ended in a big way on June 25 with a virtual demo day — basically a public presentation to potential investors, tech enthusiasts, friends and the general public.
Here’s how it all went down.
Getting Ready
Without a deck of slides, there’s no demo day pitch. Just ask Eke, Rise’s founder and CEO, and the rest of the team. They put in a ton of work polishing slides for our pitch days before the event. The whole point was to present Rise as the answer to limited access to global investments. Easy, right? Yup, easier said than done.
The Big Day
We had 15 minutes to say “We are connecting more Africans to the best investments around the world.” But beyond saying it, we had to show how.
Eke was the anchorperson, we don’t envy him, and he did pretty well using data to show how we’ve brought global investments closer to home since we launched in November and launched Rise publicly in January.
The best part? Rise now has more than 30,000 users, which is proof that people care about investing in dollars. Nothing feels better than having a business model validated by thousands of people.
In closing, Eke showed off our growth plan for the rest of the year, including our work on a new product as well as potential partnerships.
Off The Stage
Potential users and investors were really keen to ask us questions after the pitch, so we spent quite a bit of time answering them. It was all very exciting, and we’ve been amazed at the strong interest we’ve seen since the demo day.
Thanks to LABS by ARM for the massive support and love to everyone who showed up online to root for us.
Together, we’ll keep going up!
Love,
Your friends at Rise.
