What’s Working, What’s Not: A Look Inside Startup Atlantic’s Peer-to-Peer Event

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Startup Atlantic’s first virtual Peer-to-Peer event on March 26th brought together regional founders and ecosystem builders for an afternoon of discussion on topics like fundraising, founder resources, customer acquisition, and EDI support. With 121 registrants and 47 attendees across the Atlantic, the event provided valuable insights and brainstorming for startup success in 2025 and beyond.

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Attendees included CEOs, founders, advisors, managers, and specialists from various fields like tech, finance, law, and economic development.

Key Takeaways

1. Funding is Getting Tougher – Angel networks are limited, and investors are more risk-averse. Founders must explore alternative funding sources and validate their businesses early.
2. Bootstrapping & Sales Matter More Than Ever – Investors prefer startups with revenue traction. Early sales efforts and customer validation are key to securing funding.
3. EDI Awareness & Inclusion Need Work – Many underrepresented founders don’t know about available resources, and funding criteria may unintentionally exclude them.
4. Resource Gaps and Redundancies Exist Across Stages – Early-stage startups need MVP funding and industry-specific support, while scaling businesses lack later-stage resources. However, duplication of programming is seen frequently and is time consuming for founders. 
5. Mentorship Needs an Upgrade – There’s a need for more specialized mentors in legal, financial, and sector-specific areas. Mentor networks should be expanded and diversified, and qualifications should be managed. Once founders find a relevant mentor, it can be game-changing for their business. 

Atlantic Ecosystem Collaborative Actions:

1. Expand Early-Stage Funding – Create new grant programs, seed investments, and MVP-stage funding pools to support pre-revenue startups.
2. Strengthen Investor Engagement – Build more structured investor-founder connections (e.g., private virtual pitch sessions) and regional investment groups.
3. Scale Up Mentorship Programs – Recruit experienced founders and industry experts to provide hands-on, specialized mentorship.
4. Boost Sales & Marketing Support – Provide founder-led sales training and create customer-matching programs to help startups find early adopters.
5. Improve EDI Outreach & Support – Increase awareness of funding programs for diverse founders and ensure investment criteria are inclusive.

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‍Summary of Breakout Rooms 

‍Breakout Room #1: Fundraising in 2025 – What’s changing with AI, politics, and investment trends?

Facilitators: Ray Fitzpatrick (Profitual) / Kory Henn (RBCx)
Notetaker / Question Asker: Nada Rabie (Envision Saint John)

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‍Key Discussions & Insights:

• AI’s Influence on Investment: Investors are increasingly using AI for due diligence, making data-driven evaluations more common. Founders should be ready for deeper assessments.
  
• Economic & Political Factors: Uncertainty in global markets and political shifts are making investors more risk-averse, leading to stricter funding criteria.
  
• Angel Investment Trends: Angel networks in Atlantic Canada are slowing down, with many shifting focus to later-stage startups instead of early-stage risk.
  
• Alternative Funding Sources: As traditional funding tightens, founders are exploring grants, government incentives, and alternative financing models.
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Gaps & Next Steps:

• Improve financial literacy for founders with workshops on financial modeling, investor relations, and grant applications.
  
• Strengthen regional investor engagement to help connect startups with local funding opportunities.
  
• Expand early-stage funding options through accelerators and government-backed seed programs to fill the gap left by declining angel investment.
  

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Breakout Room #2: Founder Resources - What's helping your success, and where are we still falling short?

Facilitators: Houlie Duque (HomeschoolToGo) & James Greey (Vifta)
Notetaker: Lindsay Murray (Startup Atlantic / Foresight Canada) 

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Key Discussions & Insights:

• Valuable Resources: Founders appreciate incubators and accelerators like Propel, Genesis, and Summer Institute. Pitch competitions help with networking and exposure, and personalized mentorship is particularly impactful.
• Collaboration & Gaps: Many programs repeat early-stage content, but there’s a lack of hands-on technical support and later-stage resources. Engagement fatigue is an issue, with the same mentors often overwhelmed.
• Funding Challenges: Securing funding is difficult due to limited investor access in Atlantic Canada. Founders struggle with pre-accelerator MVP funding and sector-specific support, especially in life sciences.
• Market & Mentorship Issues: Founders need more structured investor connections (e.g., private virtual pitches), better local supplier networks, and mentors with real financial/legal expertise.
• Ecosystem Growth: There’s momentum in building stronger founder connections (e.g., McInnes Institute, Startup Atlantic). Formalized angel investment groups and reinvestment strategies could improve sustainability.

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Gaps & Next Steps:

• Funding for MVP & Pre-Accelerator Stage – Founders struggle to get early-stage funding before they qualify for accelerators.
• Access to Investors – Limited investor networks in Atlantic Canada, making it harder to raise capital.
• Validation for Funding Applications – Existing accelerators could be leveraged more to help founders secure funding.
• Sector-Specific Support – Life sciences and other industries outside the mainstream lack dedicated funding and mentorship.
• Mentor Expertise Gaps – Some mentors lack firsthand experience with critical business areas like accounting and legal matters. Difficult to find a mentor with relevant experience or unsure where to look. 
• Late-Stage Expansion Support – More resources are needed for businesses that have traction and want to scale.
• Stronger Local Supply Chains – Founders struggle to source materials for the development of their products and services locally, forcing them to look internationally.

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Breakout Room #3: Customer Aquisition & Founder-Led Sales - How are you growing your customer base in 2025?

Facilitators: Dan Doiron / Matt George (Axis Accelerator)
Notetaker: Kady Leard (ECO Canada)

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Key Discussions & Insights:

• Founder-Led Sales is Essential for Early Growth:
  
  • Investors prefer founders who actively engage in sales.
  • Startups that spend time with at least 100 potential customers early on pivot less and build stronger products.
    
    
• Finding the Right Early Customers:
  
  • A "Lead Growth Customer" (an industry influencer or early adopter) can help startups validate pricing and open doors to new clients.
  • Thoughtful and open LGC relationships can advance value based pricing efforts.
  • Involving customers in product development increases buy-in and reduces R&D risk.
    
    
• Pricing Based on Customer Value:
  
  • Instead of setting arbitrary prices, founders should ask customers what they think the product is worth.
    
    
• B2B vs. Government Sales:
  
  • Government sales require understanding procurement policies and identifying innovation-friendly departments.
  • B2B sales benefit from targeting well-connected industry leaders who can champion the product.

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Gaps & Next Steps:

• Angel networks are drying up across Atlantic Canada. Early stage risk capital is declining in the Atlantic region - likely due to greater perceived risks, like longer times to exit.
• "The best money is customer money" bootstrap when you can  - it allows you to build deep customer relationships, retain as much of the company as you can, and build for the future
• Talking to customers as much as possible, and as often as possible, is the key to understanding a problem that is growing, and the customers willingness and ability to pay to have that problem solved. Market research simply cannot compete with talking to customers.
• Founders should identify and nurture a Lead Growth Customer - a unique customer set that has the ability to advance product innovation, inform value based pricing, and influence growth
• Invest in Sales and Marketing! Investors want to know that you are focused on how to  make money from your product - not just creating the product

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Breakout Room #4: Evaluating EDI Supports in the Atlantic Ecosystem - What's working, what's missing, And what's next?

Facilitator: Dan Oshodin (Tribe Network)
Notetaker: Niraj Shukla (Springboard Atlantic)

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Key Discussions & Insights:

• Lack of Awareness of EDI Resources: Many underrepresented founders don’t know about available funding and support programs.
• Funding Challenges for Diverse Founders: Some investment programs unintentionally exclude certain groups due to selection biases.
• Building Stronger Partnerships: Collaboration between government, investors, and startup programs could improve funding and mentorship opportunities.
• Scaling Diverse-Led Startups: Founders from underrepresented backgrounds often struggle to scale due to lack of access to capital and industry connections

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Gaps & Next Steps:

• Increase outreach to underrepresented founders to raise awareness of available funding and mentorship programs.
• Encourage investors and grant providers to review funding criteria to ensure they are inclusive.
• Develop EDI-focused accelerator programs tailored to the needs of diverse founders.
• Build more linkages between diverse SMEs and startup founders and further downstream partners.

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