How
we invest
We typically invest up to $500k in pre-seed or seed rounds.
We are super collaborative and enjoy investing alongside other great investors both in Australia and around the world.
We are sector agnostic but looking for the best surfers riding the biggest waves — outlier founders, building in big markets.
We are early stage specialists — we focus on solving the challenges of 0–1.
It’s never too early. We’re comfortable backing companies very early, often pre-revenue.
Why
FOUNDERS WORK WITH US
We are founders and we behave like founders — with passion, enthusiasm and belief.
We are flexible on valuation and ownership. We think what’s best for the founder is best for us.
We offer active and collaborative support focussed on the earliest stages of building a business — such as hiring, fundraising and getting to product market fit.
We have a high Helpfulness to Cheque Size ratio (H:CS)
We’re building a unique community of founders who want to contribute.
We are an global team with a global network.
We feel fortunate to be here and absolutely LOVE what we do.
What
WE LOOK FOR
Outlier Founders
First and foremost, we back people. We look for outlier founders who have proven hustle, a compelling, global vision, the hunger and drive to build a billion dollar business and the capability to sell their vision to employees, partners and future investors.
Differentiated Product
We look for products that are solving real and meaningful problems, with passionate first customers and that have the potential to be orders of magnitude better than their nearest competitor. This could be demonstrated through sticky initial customers, accessing an underserved market or through a compelling and non-consensus product insight.
Big Markets
Our focus is sector agnostic but with a bias towards big markets that have either billions of potential customers or billions of dollars in accessible revenue capacity.
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"Elli, Ben, and Markus have truly gone above and beyond in making introductions to customers and partners in the US, as well as connecting us with other founders in their network. This has been incredibly impactful in helping us establish a footprint and gain momentum in the US market. We're thrilled to have Side Stage as a partner and deeply value the support they've provided MagicBrief to date."
"Elli, Ben, Markus, Harrison, and the wider SSV team have been more than just investors—they’ve been an extension of our team. There’s something incredibly valuable about having a group of former founders backing you, not just with capital but with real, hands-on support. From demystifying investor terminology to making crucial introductions to customers, partners, and investors, they’ve been there for every step of our early journey. Their experience, network, and willingness to roll up their sleeves have made a tangible difference in shaping Elita Genetics. They were the first to ‘get it’ backing us before we were us."
"The Australian market is absolutely key for us, so we needed a partner on the cap table with deep market experience, well networked, and generous with their time and expertise. Elli, Ben and Markus have been outstanding. First, they helped us identify and meet other high-value Australian investors to join the round. Next, they introduced us to a PR firm with strong media connections to support our formal launch - resulting in media coverage in top tier publications. Most recently, they introduced us to some mining industry financiers that provided a new perspective on our offering and helped us sharpen our value proposition. In these and many other ways, the Side Stage Ventures team is proving to be one of our most strategic and valuable investors."
“Ben & the Side Stage team were one of the most helpful and supportive investors on our cap table. They backed us early on and then hustled as if they were part of our founding team. I can't recommend them highly enough”
“Markus was there from the beginning and was incredibly supportive at each step of the journey. They saw our vision early, and backed us even before we’d really started building”
“The whole team at Side Stage is world class. As most of them are founders themselves they have a founder first mentality, which is refreshing. Fundraising with people who have walked the path led to a great outcome.”
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“Markus backed us on day one and has been a key supporter and backer of Go1 throughout our journey. We value the relationship we have built with him greatly.”
“Side Stage have been great partners, bringing a wealth of experience and connections. They backed us early and have continued to support our company.”
“They’re wonderful investors and we’re really really lucky to have them on our cap table”
Elli Hanson is a Principal Investor at Side Stage Ventures. Previously, she was Global Director of Design Strategy at Ogilvy Worldwide and Co-Founder of Flaus (Electric Flosser). As an Industrial Designer by trade, Elli’s investment interests are focused on human-centred design in the age of AI, with a specialty in product design, consumer, brand and marketing technologies. When not hands-on with founders, Elli loves unplanned international travel and doing home renovation projects with her partner and their two Husky pups.
Ben is a General Partner & Co-Founder at Side Stage Ventures. Ben was previously the Co-Founder of Platoon, a platform for creative talent that helped launched the careers of global artists such as Billie Eilish & Jorja Smith and was acquired by Apple in 2018. Prior to that, Ben was an investor at UK-based venture fund, LocalGlobe. When not helping founders create and scale transformative companies, Ben can usually be found chasing his two toddlers around the park.
Harrison Wright is an Associate at Side Stage Ventures, where he looks after operations and investments. Joining the lean team back in 2023, Harrison is obsessed with finding founders that can wear many different hats and make a little go a long way. Before joining Side Stage, Harrison worked as an Investment Analyst at BridgeLane Capital. When not speaking with amazing founders, he can be found running or soaking in the sun at Manly Beach.
Markus is a General Partner & Co-Founder of Side Stage Ventures. He has more than 18 years of experience in investing in a variety of asset classes, including venture capital, agriculture, real estate, and equity markets. Markus’ VC track record includes finding and backing some of Australia’s best venture capital investments, such as Go1, Airtasker, and amaysim. Markus was also a Co-Founder of Tank Stream Ventures and various startups. When not looking for the next great founder Markus can be seen honing his golf skills as his new passion project.
team
in australia
around the world
Ethos
Founders First
We always remember that we back founders. It is their business and we are part of the support team. We behave like founders — with passion, enthusiasm and belief — and we know that what is best for founders is best for us.
The Right Thing
We do the right thing even when no-one is looking. We build conviction and then have 100% trust in our team and our founders and we expect the same in return. We are a team, not just a collection of individuals. We take responsibility & share the wins and the mistakes together.
Safe Spaces
We create safe spaces for our founders, teammates and LP’s. We thrive on debate, we challenge our team and our founders directly and with honesty, but always caring deeply. No question is a stupid question and vigorous debate and disagreement is encouraged.
Force for Good
We believe that entrepreneurship is a force for good in the world. We back entrepreneurs who are changing the world — for the better. This might be through the core problem they are solving (such as Climate change or Health) but could equally be in the way they build and hire a diverse team or create opportunities for others.
Long-term games
Venture is a long game. We play long term games with long term people. We plan to be here for decades and we want to work with and invest in people who will be here too. We recognise the trust that our founders & LP’s place in us as long term partners and we don’t take this responsibility lightly.
Bias to Action
Done is better than perfect. Speed matters. We leave everything on the field. We are proactive, move fast and take the initiative. We like to GSD.
Crazy ideas change the world
Many of the world’s most impactful ideas sounded crazy at first. It’s so easy to attack new ideas and be right. The hard thing is to challenge, support, nurture and stake our reputations on new ideas.
ethos
We always remember that we back founders. It is their business and we are part of the support team. We behave like founders — with passion, enthusiasm and belief — and we know that what is best for founders is best for us.
We do the right thing even when no-one is looking. We build conviction and then have 100% trust in our team and our founders and we expect the same in return. We are a team, not just a collection of individuals. We take responsibility & share the wins and the mistakes together.
We create safe spaces for our founders, teammates and LP’s. We thrive on debate, we challenge our team and our founders directly and with honesty, but always caring deeply. No question is a stupid question and vigorous debate and disagreement is encouraged.
We believe that entrepreneurship is a force for good in the world. We back entrepreneurs who are changing the world — for the better. This might be through the core problem they are solving (such as Climate change or Health) but could equally be in the way they build and hire a diverse team or create opportunities for others.
Venture is a long game. We play long term games with long term people. We plan to be here for decades and we want to work with and invest in people who will be here too. We recognise the trust that our founders & LP’s place in us as long term partners and we don’t take this responsibility lightly.
Done is better than perfect. Speed matters. We leave everything on the field. We are proactive, move fast and take the initiative. We like to GSD.
Many of the world’s most impactful ideas sounded crazy at first. It’s so easy to attack new ideas and be right. The hard thing is to challenge, support, nurture and stake our reputations on new ideas.