Startup Theatre Podcast

Mar 05 2025 82 ep. 64 mins 7

Startup Theatre Podcast artwork

Exploring the wins, challenges, & lessons from startups. Honest conversations, real insights, and everything in between. Troy Hammond & Serge van Dam, with deep roots in the startup ecosystem in New Zealand and beyond, explore the world of startups, tech, markets, and media. They break down industry trends, uncover the realities of scaling companies, and share expert insights through candid conversations. Each episode features top founders, operators, investors, and innovators, offering lessons, perspectives, and stories from the frontlines of business and technology.

Copy RSS

Subscribe on Podcast Addict

Rowan Simpson: The Man Behind NZ’s Most Successful Startups

Mar 05 2025 126 mins

Rowan Simpson has been at the heart of New Zealand's most successful technology companies. As a founding team member at Trade Me and Xero, he witnessed firsthand how great companies are built through consistent execution. His subsequent investments and hands-on work with ventures like Vend and Timely have helped shape a generation of high-growth companies.If you’re the kind of pe

PAM, My AI product takes care of your mental load 🤖🫶🏻

Sep 04 2024 67 mins

⁠Nicole Retter⁠ is the sole Founder and CEO of ⁠PAM⁠. 🤖 ⁠PAM⁠ stands for "Personal Admin Manager" and is your Family's own Digital PA 👩🏽‍💻 Nicole has been a marketer for 20 years, working in big ad agencies, and digital agencies delivering festivals, and guiding sole traders. 🚀 Her specialty is supporting Start-ups and SME’s, and due to

How Beastie Boys lead me to co-founding Xero and now Upstock 🚀

Aug 28 2024 88 mins

Philip Fierlinger co-founded Xero, playing a major role as Head of Design, leading Xero to become a disruptive platform and an iconic global brand. Now he is the co-founder of Upstock, a B2B e-commerce & logistics platform transforming the food & beverage industry. His early career highlights include work for Beastie Boys and General Magic. In this episode Philip goes de

My tech will get you into your first home faster 🏠

Aug 21 2024 75 mins

In this episode, we chat with Derek Handley Derek is an entrepreneur known for co-founding alongside Sir Richard Branson The B Team - a global collective advocating economic systems change to protect our natural environment and secure a safe, sustainable, and equitable future for all Before The B Team, Derek was one of the first young Kiwi entrepreneurs to build a global start-up

Global tech success and I have some unfinished business

Aug 15 2024 65 mins

Will Palmer is a seasoned entrepreneur with a successful track record in tech, co-founding Movio, Cupla, and DevRamp. As Movio's CEO, he led its growth to dual listings on the NZ and Australian stock exchanges before exiting to build two entirely different businesses. Consumer app start up Cupla and the developer tool, DevRamp. With the massive success of Movio, we talk with

90% of startups FAIL. Only 3% of our portfolio have failed 🤯

Aug 07 2024 70 mins

For 8 years, Oxygen Advisors has stood behind over 100 New Zealand startups. Amazingly, only 3% of their startup portfolio have not survived and we wanted to know why. In this episode we chat with Matt Dold the founder and Mike Mandis the Co-CEO. As the founder and Director at Oxygen Advisors, Matt has been at the forefront of empowering start-ups and high-growth businesses acro

Business is not boring with Simon Pound

Aug 01 2024 68 mins

Simon Pound is Managing Partner - Ventures for Previously Unavailable. Simon leads up Venture Studio and Brand Fund activity for Previously, and is host of the entrepreneur-focussed Business is Boring podcast for The Spinoff. Prior to PU, Simon led global brand, creative and communications for Vend, and he loves working with startups on brand and positioning strategy and execution

Making a documentary about Richie McCaw led me to a tech start-up

Jul 24 2024 68 mins

Coachmate is a purpose-led tech startup on a mission to help kids stay in sports. Research has shown that kids who remain in sports have better mental and physical outcomes throughout their lives. Enter Michelle Walshe is no stranger to sports after directing sports legends like Venus Williams, Kevin Durant, and Richie McCaw's feature films. Michelle is also the co-founder of

Over half of NZ’s internet users are using TikTok 🤯

Jul 17 2024 67 mins

TikTok has arrived and set up an office in New Zealand and we wanted to hear about it. In this episode we chat with TikTok’s NZ country manager. Carsten Grueber is a seasoned leader in the digital marketing and advertising industry, currently serving as the Country Manager for Advertising Partnerships at TikTok in New Zealand. In this role, Carsten has been pivotal in establis

I have Aphantasia. The inability to visualise & I’m a VC!

Jul 11 2024 57 mins

Lance Wiggs has over 10 years of experience as a venture capitalist and considerable experience helping to start, grow, turn around, and exit companies as a consultant, investor, co-founder, and director. He is a principal with Punakaiki Fund and Climate VC Fund, and has invested in well over 40 companies. In this episode, we discuss the importance of making good decisions in bus