Fundraising Summer Camp 2025

Online Live Program: July 1st – 29th 2025

Fundraising Summer Camp 2025

Investor-ready in just 4 weeks – with a clear plan, strategy, and confidence.

Like every summer, I work closely with a small group of highly motivated founders to develop everything you need to become truly investor-ready.

To join the (online!) Camp and get all the details directly from me, simply register for one of the group briefing calls happening in June.

Warm regards,
Dr. Florian Kandler
a.k.a. The Pitch Doctor

Deutsches Fundraising Camp besuchen

„Learning from Florian in the 2023 Camp about how investors think was incredibly valuable—especially for us first-time founders with no prior experience dealing with investors.“

„We’re still using the outreach emails we created together during the Camp – how to structure the message, how to approach an investor. That was super helpful.“

„The program is incredibly valuable—especially for startups that haven’t secured major funding yet.“

„I really appreciated how the expectations around timeline and process were set realistically. It clearly shows how much experience Florian brings to the table.“

„I found the practical checklist incredibly helpful: here are your steps, here’s how to prepare for fundraising, here’s everything you need. It made it easy to work through everything methodically—like, ‘Got this: check. Next step: check.’ And so on.“

„It was incredibly helpful to get a feel for things before starting investor conversations—what investors are really looking for, what matters to them, how they think, what they care about, and how to speak with them. Florian helped us understand all of that during the Camp.“

Secure your invitation in time:

DAYS

HRS

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Schedule / Timing

Get your invitation now to join the briefing and secure your chance at a spot in the Fundraising Camp:

[Now] — Secure your invitation: Reserve your spot by signing up for one of the two upcoming briefing calls right here on this page.
[June] — Briefing Calls: Join one of the June briefing calls (see “Secure your invitation”). That’s where we’ll get to know each other, and I’ll walk you through exactly what to expect in the Fundraising Camp, how previous Summer and Winter Camps went, and answer any questions you and the other participants may have. You can then decide whether you'd like to join the Camp.
[until June 30 // while spots last] — Participant Selection: Founders who participated in a Briefing Call can now register for the Fundraising Summer Camp 2025.
[July 1–29, 2025] — Fundraising Summer Camp: Each week, we’ll work on and refine another key building block of your professional investor outreach. For program details, see below.
[until December 2025] — Ongoing Support: You’ll continue to have access to the community and to me for support and feedback as you put your fundraising plans into action successfully.

What you'll achieve in the Fundraising Camp

Here I share the proven strategies and methods that helped two of my own startups raise over €3 million from Austrian, German, and US angels and VCs—and that I’ve since used to help countless founders build their own personalized fundraising masterplans. This way, you too will be able to approach investors professionally and efficiently starting in February, negotiate at eye level, and apply tried-and-tested deal-making tactics.

BEFORE the Camp:

You might recognize some of these feelings:

Unsure whether you’re “ready” or attractive enough for investors
Unclear about which investors are the right fit and can truly add value for you
Unsure what investors are looking for and what they expect from you
Not sure how much your startup is worth
Insecure about the right timing to approach investors
Unclear on how to craft your materials in a way that resonates with investors
The fear of being at the mercy of investors’ knowledge advantage
Unsure how to best reach out to and approach investors
Worried about embarrassing yourself with a weak pitch
You have too few investor contacts to easily land meetings
It takes a long time and feels exhausting to get in front of investors
The time spent on fundraising holds you back from growing your business
The feeling of being treated unfairly by investors
The fear of being at a disadvantage during negotiations
You lack the experience to negotiate in a way that gets you a fair deal

AFTER the Camp:

You have confidence and clarity

You approach investors confidently and professionally and negotiate on equal footing
Investors can’t talk you into a bad deal anymore
You have a master plan that helps you fundraise efficiently and successfully—at the right time
You’ve built a robust contact list with plenty of well-matched investors for your outreach
You have emails and scripts that let you reach out to investors professionally and persuasively
You have a meeting strategy for those all-important first conversations with investors
You’ve optimized and professionalized your pitch materials
You have insider knowledge of how investors think—and how to deal with them effectively
You know how to build valuable, trust-based relationships in every investor conversation—connections that will support you in this and all future startups
You negotiate a deal that truly works for you—and you don’t settle for unfair terms

Who is the Summer Camp for?

You’re in the right place if you’re in one of the following 3 situations

You’re getting started soon: You know you want to raise from investors and are preparing to fully focus on outreach. In the Summer Camp, you’ll get all the building blocks to launch your fundraising in the spring—professionally, efficiently, and with the best chances of success.
You’re still unsure: You want to find out how attractive your business is to investors—and whether raising money is actually the right path for you. In the Summer Camp, you’ll gain clarity on your preferences and learn a process to gauge investor interest quickly and without risking embarrassment.
You’re already in the middle of it: You’ve pitched to a few investors, but haven’t yet received the kind of offer you’re hoping for. In the Summer Camp, you’ll uncover exactly where and how to improve your investor outreach and boost your chances of success—starting right away.

Thank you for your great input—not just on pitching, but also on other more tactical and strategic questions. Incredibly valuable and straight to the point.

The Fundraising Workshop with Florian Kandler is a yearly highlight for participants in our aws first program. Here are a few quotes from founders: "Florian has a wealth of experience and openly shares his knowledge, which is incredibly helpful." "A fantastic trainer – great workshop full of insights and valuable learnings." "Very helpful, as it was presented from an expert’s perspective. You rarely get this kind of insight into how investors think. He also addressed individual questions in a very targeted way." We’re happy to have Florian as a long-standing part of our program and can highly recommend him at any time.

„Florian’s PBN strategy (Personal Business Newsletter) was a fantastic practical fundraising tip. I now use it regularly with investors for my startup.“

„The Camp helped me a lot last year, and I still believe—without a doubt—that joining was absolutely the right and important decision.“

„It was incredibly helpful to get a feel for things before starting investor conversations—what investors care about, what drives them, how they think, what matters to them, and how to speak with them.“

Florian also teaches fundraising at:

Florian unterrichtet Fundraising u.a. auch bei:

Program - July 1st - 29th

Proven 4-step program with input & implementation:
4× Thursdays: Interactive live sessions with input from me, peer exchange & Q&A
4× Tuesdays: Personalized feedback on your implementation, hands-on input, Q&A, and founder exchange

Kickoff (July 1): Meet the other participants, connect, exchange ideas, and take care of logistics. Plus, a chance to meet alumni from previous Fundraising Camps.

Participant introductions
Getting to know the startups and their fundraising goals for the Camp
Peer networking and exchange
Organizational briefing
Networking with alumni from previous Fundraising Camps

Week 1: Defining & fine-tuning your fundraising goals and plans

Validate how much funding your business truly needs from investors
How to plan ahead for equity, valuation, and investment amounts across your first three funding rounds
How many shares investors typically want—and how many you should actually give
How to determine the right valuation for your company
How to align your funding needs with your business roadmap
How investors perceive and assess you
Which types of investors are the best fit for your specific funding deal
When is the best (and worst) time for your startup to approach investors
Your roadmap for future fundraising rounds
Reflecting on your goals, expectations, and (potential) misconceptions
The strategic choice of the right investors
Clarity on your expectations and requirements for investors
Understanding the differences between various types of investors
Insight into the two major „clusters“ of business angels—and which one fits you and your business better
The 2 phases of fundraising
Clarity on when to transition from
Phase 1 to Phase 2—and what to keep in mind before and after that shift

Week 2: Building and expanding your investor list, funnel management, and finding the right investors

Where to find the right investors for your startup
How to manage them in an “investor list” (aka target list)
My personal target list template—the one I used myself
Best practices for working with a target list document
How many investors your list should include
The key information you must gather for each investor in your list to reach out effectively
What really matters in your investor list: practical tips for data enrichment, prioritization, organization, and tracking
Data sources, lists, and databases for investor research (VCs and business angels)
Additional methods for finding enough well-matched investors
Funnel management
How to spot and avoid risky or problematic investors early on

Week 3: Professional investor outreach & optimizing your fundraising materials

The #1 tactic to land the most—and best—meetings with investors
Classic mistakes when making first contact with investors—and how to do it better
The crucial (!) difference in investor outreach between Phase 1 and Phase 2 of your fundraising process
How to get more investor meetings through „intros“ (warm introductions)—and why it’s by far the best approach
Cold outreach strategies
Practical templates for: cold outreach emails, intro requests, and warm emails
The “unspoken rules” of investor psychology—and how to use them to your advantage
Pros and cons of in-person vs. virtual first meetings
What different types of investors expect from you—and what they want to hear in a pitch or conversation
How to turn your investor target list into actual meetings
How many investors you should reach out to in order to maximize your chances (including benchmarks)
The “complete set” of materials you’ll need for your fundraising
The key tactical principles for creating strong pitch documents—plus dos and don’ts
The “PBN Strategy” (a Florian Kandler trademark)
The 3 core marketing principles to support your fundraising process
How to leverage your existing network to get in front of the right investors
One dangerous communication mistake to avoid when doing PR/self-marketing during your fundraising
The 3 key themes to focus on when marketing yourself and your startup to investors
How to quickly figure out—before and during meetings—whether an investor is a good fit
What questions you should be asking your investors

Week 4: Investor meetings, process management, round structuring, and negotiation

The #1 strategic goal when meeting an investor for the first time
How to open the meeting in a convincing and engaging way
How to manage time effectively during the meeting
What else you need to bring beyond your pitch deck, backup slides, and Q&A responses
How to keep the conversation on equal footing
Tactics and psychological triggers to keep the investor’s attention and interest high
How to wrap up a first meeting professionally
What you absolutely must do after that first meeting
How to manage the full process—from outreach to closing—in a way that maximizes control and success
The 3 most important types of clauses in your term sheet and what they actually mean
Negotiation tips—and which clauses are truly worth negotiating hard
Real-life negotiation examples from my own startup deals with business angels and VCs

The Pitch Doctor is the official pitch coach for:

Founders

What coaching clients say about Florian and his work with them

5 thanks for: 1. THANK YOU for your absolute clarity. You manage to bring order to the chaos in my head. 2. THANK YOU for your insider tips on how to emotionally round off a pitch. 3. THANK YOU for always taking time for me no matter when or where, making me feel like no question is ever a bother. 4. THANK YOU for the amazing phrasing and brilliant wordplays – since then, I’m no longer afraid and know how to respond professionally to tough questions! 5. THANK YOU for providing ongoing support even after the sessions. A Pitch Doctor with great foresight, wisdom, and a heart in the right place!

Gloria Hiltmair

Founder, Seitenbunt

Florian’s tips helped me tremendously and gave my pitch the final polish it needed. It’s always great to get feedback from someone outside the company, as company blindness tends to increase and you become aware of things you would never have noticed. Very competent, very friendly, and super fast with feedback. I can only recommend Florian to everyone!

Andreas Höllmüller

MD, Tastery

Florian’s feedback on our Helpsole pitch was incredibly valuable. We were able to improve significantly! Thank you so much for your time and support!

What can you say... simply amazing. Straight to the point and objective. Motivating while addressing mistakes. Clear and understandable improvement suggestions. And all in record time. Thank you, Florian.

Thank you for your great input—not only on pitching but also on other tactical and strategic questions. Incredibly valuable and spot-on advice.

I had already worked with two pitch coaches before meeting Florian. Yet he still found several areas where we could improve. He seems to have a special knack for wording and is always there when you need quick feedback. THANK YOU, FLORIAN!

Florian Kandler is very authentic and an excellent trainer in this field. He has a quick grasp of things and gets straight to the point. He provides brilliant tips and tricks and prepares you really well. I highly recommend him and am impressed because his feedback is always constructive, giving you the best chance to be well prepared! 👌

For a major presentation of my company, I asked Florian for feedback. He quickly provided structured and spot-on valuable tips to sharpen my message where it mattered and make it easy for outsiders to understand!

Accelerators

What program managers of accelerators say about booking Florian’s workshops

"Florian runs his 'Fundraising Secrets' workshop every year for our Elevate Accelerator founders. Thanks to his own fundraising experience, this workshop is highly practical and provides our teams with concrete help to prepare professionally for investor outreach. Participants are also excited by Florian’s stories and lessons from pitching for millions to investors himself. Florian’s workshop consistently ranks among the highest-rated by our founders. We wholeheartedly recommend his valuable expertise."

Valentin Aschermann

Partner & Head of Startup Services, TheVentury (Elevate Accelerator)

"Florian’s 'Fundraising Secrets' workshop has been one of the highest-rated workshops in our i2c Accelerator at TU Wien since 2017. What resonates especially well with participants are the practical tips and methods Florian shares from his own fundraising experience. His workshops are always engaging and entertaining. We’re glad to have Florian on board and can wholeheartedly recommend him as a fundraising expert."

Alexandra Negoescu

Program Manager, TU Wien - Innovation Incubation Center

"Florian’s fundraising workshop is a staple in the 'Founders Lab' of the Vienna Business Agency. He knows how to prepare founders pitching to investors for the first time on the essential aspects. He draws on his experience from his own startups that successfully raised investor funding. His feedback is always 'on point'—participants gain new perspectives on their individual challenges and can apply these learnings across many other areas. Florian makes the critical connections between fundraising, pitching, sales, and building a startup very tangible. In 2020, Florian’s workshop was once again voted the favorite workshop of the program by the participants."

Julia Weber

Program Manager Startup Services, Vienna Business Agency

"Early-stage high-tech startups receive intensive support in our SCALEup Incubation Program’s Startup Camp to turn their founding ideas into scalable business models. Especially in this phase, practical workshops like Florian’s 'Fundraising Secrets' are crucial and highly valued by our founders. How do investors think and act? How can I excite investors about my project? What should I consider in my cap table? With very valuable, hands-on tips and tricks, Florian introduces our founders to the 'art' of fundraising, guiding them toward turning successful investor meetings into investment deals. His workshop is one of the most popular among our founders, not least because of his unique and highly motivating presentation style. We’re thrilled to have Florian on board!”

Brigitte Pfisterer

Program Manager, INiTS Startup Camp

What you can expect from me

My Experience as a Founder

In the Fundraising Summer Camp, I share my firsthand knowledge and experience. This is not abstract theory or “best-of-the-internet” advice, but proven, practical strategies and methods that I’ve personally used to successfully secure investors.

My experience includes:

2 of the 4 companies I founded had investors on board
Over €3 million raised across 3 funding rounds (ranging from small six-figure amounts to over €1 million)
Fundraising experience and dealings with a wide range of investors, specifically:
One of my investors was a German VC fund led by Oliver Samwer, the German e-commerce billionaire (Zalando, Rocket Internet, etc.)
One investor was an Austrian family office managing the wealth of a wealthy family through angel investments
One investor was an American business angel
One investor was an Austrian sovereign wealth fund
For my first funding round over €1 million, I frequently traveled to London and Berlin for investor meetings, in addition to Vienna, quickly learning how things work there
I spent 6 months in Silicon Valley focusing on business development and investor search. There, I learned how the “Champions League” of investors and founders conduct fundraising and brought back a large portion of my knowledge from that experience
In Silicon Valley, I learned from several mentors such as Mark Gainey (Co-founder of the fitness tracking app Strava, and previously founder of an IT company with a major exit)

My experience as part of the investor community

The insights I’ve gained into the world of investors have proven valuable to many of my mentees. These insights come from my initiatives within the founder community, which I’m always happy to share.

My gained insights include:

Speaker at workshops for young business angels on the topic “The founder’s view on angel investment,” where I gained fascinating insights into how newly minted business angels think.
Participant and speaker at business angel conferences where I presented funding trends from my Startup Report, which I’ve published annually since 2015. Networking and late-night conversations revealed what business angels really discuss, opening my eyes to valuable fundraising strategies.
Observer at business angel meetings where experienced angels mentor younger angels. At a conference in Slovenia, where I was a startup coach, I managed to sneak into such a session with my speaker badge and heard in detail how the angels’ business model works.
During interviews and background talks for my book on business angels, I built trusted relationships with angels and gained many insights I have since shared with numerous mentees.
Across more than 300 podcast episodes (200 on Gründer & Zünder, and nearly 200 previously on the Startup Milestones podcast—now partially offline), I hosted many investors, founders, and startup advisors who shared valuable insights.
In 20 detailed interviews with startup lawyers for an event I organized called “Startup Law,” I gathered extensive knowledge on deal structuring and the perspectives and negotiation tactics of investors.

My experience as a startup advisor

For over 7 years, I have been teaching, coaching, and consulting on investor outreach and pitching. In every session, I share 95% of my knowledge with participants, but I also always gain about 5% back. With every consulting project, I learn a few new things that I can then share with you and other founders.

My activities over the past 7 years include:

Strategically and tactically preparing hundreds of founders for their investor meetings on the show “2 Minutes 2 Million” (the Austrian „Shark Tank“ or „Lions Den“)
Leading my workshops “Fundraising Secrets” and “The Perfect Pitch” with hundreds of startup teams at most of the major startup accelerators in Austria, Germany, Italy, and across the Balkans)
Conducting countless one-on-one coaching and consulting sessions with founders from idea stage through growth financing, including founders of relatively well-known startups today such as refurbed and Hydrogrid