Stéphane Paillard
Covering European fundraising, first-time fund managers, and the founders behind the rounds. Previously built event and community products across the French tech ecosystem; now runs Sesamers and hosts the Sesame Summit.
Latest from Stéphane
313 articles
What percentage of startups fail? What the data actually says
The "90% of startups fail" figure is untraceable - here is what the BLS and Dealroom data actually show, and why high attrition is…
Startup grants in Europe: the non-dilutive funding guide
The EIC Accelerator, national agencies and the long tail of European grant money - how to interleave grants with a raise, and the hidden…
The tradeshow booth playbook: exhibiting without burning the budget
When a booth is the right call, the 2.5x budget rule, design and staffing discipline, and why counting conversations instead of badge scans is…
Startup dilution explained: what three rounds really cost founders
A worked example of what pre-seed, seed and Series A really do to founder ownership - plus the three traps that make dilution cost…
How to work Slush: the founder’s playbook
Slush rewards preparation more than any event in Europe - here is the eight-week timeline, the matchmaking tactics, the Helsinki specifics and the mistakes…
SAFE vs convertible note vs BSA-AIR: startup instruments explained
How SAFEs, convertible notes and France's BSA-AIR actually work - caps and discounts with a worked example, the stacking trap, and the questions to…
What is Series A funding? What it takes to raise one in Europe
Series A investors buy a demonstrated growth machine, not promise - here is what European A rounds look like, what diligence interrogates, and what…
Web Summit vs Slush: which is worth your badge?
Web Summit and Slush both land in November and could not be more different - we compare scale, investor density, cost and logistics on…
The best events for fundraising in Europe, ranked by investor density
We rank Europe's flagship startup events by investor density - computed from each event's own published figures - and explain why that number beats…
How to raise a pre-seed round in Europe
The mechanical guide to raising pre-seed in Europe: when to start, what to prepare, how to build the investor list, and how to close…