Elodie Trojanowski has taken the reins of the BeAngels network in Luxembourg. The entrepreneur is determined to bring together the most comprehensive community of investors willing to invest in startups.
This includes the organisation of monthly events that members based in Luxembourg can enjoy remotely… except in a few days, when for the first time, the BeAngels team organises an in-person event in Luxembourg. A perfect opportunity to build relationships and show the interest of investors for Luxembourg startups and vice versa.
You have just taken the lead of the Luxembourg branch of BeAngels, what are your first impressions on the network in general, and on the Luxembourg network created during the last months?
The BeAngels community in Luxembourg counts today about 50 members. Profiles range from managers of large entities to entrepreneurs and more traditional investors. What they all have in common is a boundless curiosity, an extraordinary enthusiasm and a lot of goodwill.
In the space of a few months, BeAngels has taken an important place in the innovation ecosystem in the Grand Duchy thanks to its professionalism, its expertise, its innovative investment services and the involvement of the team members, here and in Brussels.
What are your missions and objectives?
As for my mission, as Chapter Lead Luxembourg I am in charge of representing BeAngels in the Grand-Duchy, ensuring the operations of the national network by circulating information to our current members and members about to join us. Concerning my objectives, we unfortunately note an under-representation of women among our investors (only 1% of our Luxembourg members are women). We therefore wish to work to remedy this imbalance.
The BeAngels network works as a BAC, can you explain this approach and what an investor can expect from it?
BAC is the acronym for Business Angels Club. It is a group of up to 20 people from different backgrounds who want to become a business angel but have little or no experience in this field. This is one of the options to start investing as a business angel at BeAngels, for those who want to approach it in a collegial way by “learning and doing”.
Once a month (at the end of each pitch session of the investment forums), members get together to debrief the startups of the evening. The group is led by a coach who helps analyse the projects. A BAC decides to invest in three startups per year. Decisions to invest are made by a simple majority.
The entry fee is €15K. Of this amount, €13K will be invested in capital in three different projects. The remaining €2K covers the “BeAngels Academy” training fees and access to online training sessions, as well as coaching and the setting up of a dedicated investment vehicle.
The next group will launch in February 2023. An information session is organised on Thursday 24 November at 5:30 pm at Edmond de Rothschild’s offices at Cloche d’Or, which will host our monthly forum.
Every month you organise an Investment Forum. How can a startup pitch there? How is the event organised?
Startups wishing to pitch are required to submit their application on the BeAngels platform. The startup is then invited to pitch in front of a selection committee made up of a dozen diversified investor members (linked or not to BeAngels, private/public investors, entrepreneurs or corporates).
The committee meets every two weeks. The pitch is done via Zoom and lasts 7 minutes. If the startup is selected, it will have the chance to present its project in front of the network members during one of the monthly forums. BeAngels members have the opportunity to discover investment opportunities based in Luxembourg, Belgium, or in the North of France.
The November “global” event will be organised for the first time in Luxembourg. Who can participate? And how?
The November forum will indeed take place in Luxembourg, in the prestigious Cloche d’Or premises of our sponsor, Edmond De Rothschild, whom we warmly thank. On this occasion, members of the BeAngels network in Belgium will come to Luxembourg. It will be a great opportunity to meet the Brussels team (Claire Munck, CEO of BeAngels will honour us with her presence) and to allow members from all countries to get to know one another better. The event is open to anyone who is already a Business Angel or who wants to become a member.
A session of 5 pitches will precede a cocktail reception. Everyone can send their request to participate via the following link.
