How time flies! It seems like only yesterday that we were toying with the idea of starting a podcast. We wondered: does the world need another podcast? Would anyone care? The key was to make it different. There are already what seems like an infinite amount of ‘founder journey’ podcasts, inviting startup founders to tell their story and talk about their startups. And in the PR agency world, a classic is inviting journalists to get their ‘tips for pitching them’. While we love both formats, we decided to create a platform for delivering actionable insights to startup folks and PRs, but from specialists (mostly) rather than founders.
In the last couple of years, we’ve had episodes dedicated to marketing more broadly and very specific area of marketing like affiliate marketing, LinkedIn, podcasting, PR and events. We also spoke with sales experts, VCs and journalists. Every guest that came on ‘our runway’ also unpacked their personal story, which we find extremely important. Although we only started with podcasting recently, and can definitely learn a lot more, we found it important to make it more than an interview and turn it into a conversational format, even with our objective of delivering actionable insights for listeners.
Below are our first 32 guests with a brief summary of who they are and some of the things we talked about. Thanks to them and everyone that listened, listens and will listen. We learned so much along the way and hope that you did/do too. For now (as of July 2025), Runway is going on a summer break, perhaps even a bit longer, as we upgrade our systems and plan the new season. Stay tuned for more from Runway in the next few months!
#1 Robin Wauters, Founder of Tech.eu
Is there a better way to kick off Runway than with one of the OGs of European startup media? After a career in journalism at the likes of The Next Web and TechCrunch, Robin jumped into media entrepreneurship and built Tech.eu into a powerhouse that eventually got acquired by Webrazzi. When asked about media as a business, he answers that there’s no universal blueprint for media success — you’ve got to find your own weird mix of revenue streams. But here’s the kicker: niche trade publications are practically AI-proof because relationships still trump algorithms when it comes to industry connections.
We later turn the conversation to the state of startups in Europe. Robin is passionate about Europe seizing the deep tech opportunity, after missing out on so many others. His new agency, Profoundo, focuses on that side of tech, as the name suggests.
You can follow his newsletter on all things deep tech here and listen to the episode here.
#2 Jake Meth, Founder of Opinioned
Jake is a former Fortune opeds editor who’s now making a career out of getting opinion pieces into top-tier publications with Opinioned. Over the course of his experience both as editor and on the other side, he’s learned that editors care more about your brilliant, original idea than your fancy title or perfectly persuasive pitch.
The golden rule of op-ed pitching? Be relentlessly persistent without being annoying. It’s an art form that separates the pros from the wannabes. Most people give up after one rejection, but Jake knows that landing that perfect piece sometimes takes dozens of attempts.
This, and much more about opeds, in the episode.
#3 Gregory Kennedy, Fractional CMO and Founder of Vibe Your SaaS
Gregory’s gospel is simple: B2B startups absolutely must figure out the best channels for their own companies because the way people search and consume content has fundamentally shifted. Forget hiding behind your corporate brand. Forget pushing blogs and expecting people to find you on Google. Or, at least, forget relying on that. People connect with people, not logos, so put your founder’s face front and centre.
Greg himself is a one-man marketing machine that never seems to get tired. His personal anti-burnout strategy reads like an athlete’s training manual: pure consistency and discipline, no shortcuts, no excuses. He is, after all, an avid cyclist. Cycle around the Seattle area? Get in touch with him!
Hear his advice, backstory and more by listening to the episode on the Runway podcast.
#4 Adam Jennings, Founder of Made by Contour
Adam is not only a great branding expert – he’s the man behind the Black Unicorn PR brand! Adam preaches that branding isn’t some nice-to-have afterthought you tackle once you’re profitable. It’s critical infrastructure. The bare minimum for any startup? Pick one consistent brand colour and nail your positioning statement that clearly answers what you do, who you serve, and why it matters. He’s obsessed with brands like Nike and Patagonia because they don’t just sell products. They sell movements that people desperately want to join.
If you’re wondering about branding at early stages, don’t miss this episode.
#5 Viktorija Ratomske, fractional CMO and Founder at Partnergap Agency
Viktorija, or Vik, is the founder of fast-growing affiliate agency Partnergap. In this episode, Vik demolished the myth that affiliate marketing only works for B2C companies. Yes, B2B can absolutely crush it with the right approach. Here’s what’ll blow your mind: while fashion affiliates might get 10-20% commission, SaaS affiliates can score 70% or even 200% because smart companies understand customer lifetime value. Her pro tip for brands? Skip the agency middleman and negotiate directly with creators for better rates and more authentic integration.
Learn all about affiliate marketing with Vik, here.
#6 Kotryna Kurt, Owner of Linkedist and Co-founder of AQ22
Kotryna’s LinkedIn mastery boils down to two things: curate your feed like your career depends on it (because it could!), and follow the 80/20 rule. Specifically, 80% professional expertise, 20% personal stories that make you human. While everyone’s rushing to use AI for content creation, she notes that authentic personal stories still win because robots can’t replicate genuine human experience. In other tips, she highlights how the feed should work for you, not against you, so start muting the noise.
More on LinkedIn from Kotryna, here.
#7 Eric Melchor, Founder of B2B Pod Pros
Eric is a podcaster and podcast business pro. After years of experience with his own podcast, Innovators Can Laugh, Eric cracked the podcast monetisation code by aggregating smaller B2B shows for group sponsorship deals. A brilliant move that benefits everyone. Here’s his contrarian take: audience loyalty and qualification matter infinitely more than raw download numbers, especially in B2B where one qualified listener can be worth thousands of casual ones. His advice for new podcasters? Define your unique listener promise and make sure you’re offering something the market actually needs, not just what you want to talk about.
Get Eric’s podcasting tips, advice and secrets, here.
#8 Matt Thompson, Director of Sales Development EMEA at Deel
Figuring out (inside) sales is hugely important for a lot of B2B startups. So we learn from the best. Matt scaled Deel’s inbound team from a handful of people to over 100 by obsessing over personalisation in an age of automation. His game-changing technique? The “permission-based cold call” where you immediately ask for 30 seconds to explain your purpose. It cuts through the awkwardness and actually gets results. For sales newbies, his formula is personal brand + consistent hard work + daily self-development, and yes, you have to do all three.
Check out how he scaled at Deel and his formula for success, here.
#9 Elisheva Marcus, VP of Comms at Earlybird Capital
In our first episode of “VC meets comms” we spoke with Elisheva, heading comms at Earlybird Capital in Berlin. We got her story leading up to Earlybird as well as her advice and insights for comms professionals. Over time, she’s learned that stakeholder management in the weeks before a funding announcement can make or break the entire campaign. Alignment is everything! She also does away with a number of myths. Among them? Despite what cynics say, the press release is far from dead; it’s the essential information conveyor belt that journalists actually rely on. Her top advice for VCs? Get your team actively building their personal brands on LinkedIn because thought leadership is what attracts the best startups and co-investors.
More VC comms goodness, courtesy of Elisheva, here.
#10 Zane Bojare, Pitch Coach and Former Head of Brand at Startup Wise Guys
Zane was the Head of Brand at the legendary Startup Wise Guys, so no wonder she had exposure to so much pitching goodness. After coaching over 500 founders, Zane’s discovered the secret sauce: treat your pitch like a movie trailer, not a documentary. Early-stage startups need to show proof that someone actually wants what they’re building and bet confidently on their future growth plans. The biggest mistake she sees? Founders giving “expert pitches” loaded with jargon instead of simple, compelling stories that anyone can understand. Keep it simple!
More advice on startup pitching from Zane by heading over to the Runway podcast.
#11 Alex Gibb, Investor, Founder and Connector of People
An unusual episode, and a super fun conversation. Alex has been through an incredible journey that saw him start up companies and exit them, but also invest exit as an investor. In the episode he shares some of the most interesting stories of wearing so many hats as well as advice for startup founders (and angel investors).
Alex keeps it brutally real: losing money on seven or eight out of ten startup investments is completely normal statistics in early-stage investing. What drives him crazy? Startups pitching for funding without even bothering to read his profile or understand what he actually invests in. Hint: he is passionate about positive impact for the planet and people. It screams amateur hour. Sometimes the best decision for everyone involved is knowing when to kill a startup that’s not working so talented people can move on to something that will.
Hear all of Alex’s episode, here.
#12 Zoltan Vardy, Founder of The Launch Code and B2B Sales Expert
Zoltan Vardy’s career has seen him structure and close complex B2B sales deals. And pretty big ones as well! With over $2 billion in B2B sales under his belt, Zoltan pivoted to helping startup founders and developed an entire framework to guide them to success. Zoltan knows that cold outreach in enterprise sales has minuscule success rates. Instead, he advocates for targeted approaches using common connections and shared affiliations to get that crucial first meeting. His favourite sales wisdom? The second-best answer is “no” because “maybe” leads to endless, soul-crushing conversations that go nowhere.
Get Zoltan’s framework for B2B sales by listening to the episode here.
#13 Rana Rahman, Founder and MD of Raptor PR
Rana Rahman is the founder and MD of the games-specialist PR agency Raptor PR. Rana juggles the agency founder’s eternal trilemma: hiring, client work, and sales, all while protecting his most precious commodity — time. Given Raptor’s success, we had to speak with him for a PR agency special. His communication philosophy is ruthlessly authentic and data-driven because bullshit messaging always gets exposed eventually. For aspiring PR pros, his advice is to go straight to the C-suite with personalised pitches that show genuine interest in their work rather than generic spam.
Check out our conversation with Rana here.
#14 Andra Bagdonaitė, Partner at FIRSTPICK
Andra is not just Partner, she also looks after marketing at FIRSTPICK. Which we explore in the conversation. Andra sees VC work as essentially building a company where investments are the core product, just like any other founder would. FIRSTPICK deliberately built a bold, approachable brand from day one to stand out from the often arrogant and unapproachable VC crowd. The biggest challenge in VC marketing? You can’t measure results quickly because brand recognition and trust build over months and years, not days and weeks.
Listen to our episode with Andra here.
#15 Stefano De Marzo, Senior Communications Manager at Openers
Stefano is a PR professional based in Germany. Previously, he was Head of News at EU Startups. Having worked both sides of the media fence, Stefano’s golden rule for PR pros is simple: be genuinely useful to journalists by understanding their needs and avoiding irrelevant pitches at all costs. For startups, step one is setting clear goals — whether that’s funding, clients, or brand awareness — and aligning all communications with a compelling story. Sometimes niche industry outlets deliver better ROI than mainstream media when you’re trying to reach specific clients. Stefano also wore the journalist hat at the end, giving us an overview of the year (2024) in startups and what we can expect going forward.
Check out our full conversation with Stefano!
#16 Christian Sorensen, Founder and CEO of Podder
Christian’s building the “Google Analytics for podcasts” because podcast analytics are still stuck in the dark ages compared to other digital media. Podcasts thrive because they offer intimate, authentic connections through real, unpolished conversations that traditional media can’t replicate. His advice for podcasters? Define clear, measurable objectives and work consistently toward them, and remember that being a guest on other shows is your best growth strategy.
That, and much more about podcasting, by listening to the episode.
#17 Dino Starčič, Founder of higroup
Dino has built up a software consultancy out of Slovenia that works with global clients, particularly from Silicon Valley. And it all started with an unusual taxi ride! After meeting at a European startup event and hearing about higroup’s growth, we had to speak with him. Dino’s learned that startups collaborate best with software agencies when founders actually understand the development process. It’s like how understanding PR makes you better at working with PR agencies. He lives by Reid Hoffman’s wisdom that you should be embarrassed by your first product version because perfectionism kills momentum. The sweet spot for engaging a software consultancy? Usually around seed or Series A when you’re ready to get serious about architecture and scalability.
Listen to Dino’s story of scaling and building software, here.
#18 Sigvards Krongorns, Associate at Verge HealthTech Fund
From co-founding a health tech startup to investing in them, Sigvards has seen both sides of the VC equation. Verge receives over 1,000 pitches yearly but invests in fewer than 10, so his advice is crucial: keep it short, simple, and straight to the point while avoiding buzzwords you can’t actually explain. The Theranos scandal still haunts diagnostic biotech startups with the inevitable “are you building the next Theranos?” question, which is why Verge brought on a Theranos whistleblower as a venture partner.
Listen to Sigvards’ episode here.
#19 David Cruz e Silva, Co-founder of EUVC and Venture Partner at Isomer Capital
David built EUVC on the belief that thought leadership comes from creating content, not consuming it, which led to their unique media-investment hybrid model. Their business operates on multiple flywheels where content, events, education, and investments all strengthen each other in a virtuous cycle. The decision to go full-time was driven by wanting to carve out a central, influential role in the European ecosystem rather than watching from the sidelines.
Learn more about David and EUVC here.
#20 Philip Mohr, Founder of AddTrust
Philip’s timing is perfect. He is launching an AI compliance consultancy just as the EU AI Act started making companies sweat about regulations and relocations. AddTrust simplifies the complex world of AI compliance with practical tools like compliance checkers and cheat sheets that actually make sense. His work directly addresses the growing need for businesses to innovate with AI while staying on the right side of European law. While no one is a fan of additional regulation, Philip argues that most startups should be able to make it work. As always, the devil is in the details!
Hear more from Philip about the AI Act and what awaits startups, here.
#21 Nick van Osdol, Founder of “Keep Cool” and Venture Partner at Climate Capital
Nick’s “Keep Cool” newsletter started as his personal learning tool where he’d consume massive amounts of information and then process it by writing his own insights. Getting into climate tech content early gave him a huge advantage in attracting an audience in a relatively nascent space. He predicts the term “climate tech” will evolve within five years as climate considerations become so embedded in the broader economy that the distinction becomes meaningless. He now has 20,000 subscribers and more climate tech knowledge than AI can ever dream of.
All your climate tech needs and wants over at the episode.
#22 Vlad Andriescu, Editor-in-Chief of Startup.ro
We reached out to Vlad Andriescu to break down the Romanian startup ecosystem for us hear its story in our first ecossytem-focused episode. Of course we also spoke about his career and publication. Vlad positions Startup.ro as a “connector between words” within the Romanian ecosystem rather than detached observers, mixing storytelling with hard numbers. He believes media outlets should be inside the startup world, engaging with people and events while maintaining objectivity. His next challenge is evolving from simply reporting on the ecosystem to actively building a community around it — reflecting media’s changing role from observer to participant.
Learn more about Romanian startups here.
#23 David Johnson, Country Manager at Maddyness UK
We dive into UK startups with none other than the man running Maddyness UK, one of Britain’s most iconic startup publications. David also has a pretty unusual background story that took him to startups by way of book shops and architecture… but more on that in the episode. David’s learned that entrepreneurship can come from anywhere. And that PR pitches stand out when they tell relatable stories. Like the cricket clothing brand started by two teenage girls. Journalists primarily seek genuine, interesting stories that provide real value, and earned media coverage offers external validation that self-publishing simply cannot replicate.
Catch David on the Runway podcast by clicking here.
#24 Anda Asere, Journalist at Labs of Latvia and Co-founder of Finday.lv
Known as the “godmother of Latvian startups,” Anda has the luxury of writing about all the new and exciting startups coming out of Latvia. So get in touch, what are you waiting for? No matter how early-stage, Labs of Latvia has a mandate of showcasing what’s happening in the ecosystem. Of course, with the proper journalistic lens and rigour. What frustrates her most? When agreements around embargo and news timing are not respected. In this Latvian special, we also spoke about the sectors that are hot in the Baltic country, standout startups and the future outlook.
Learn more about Latvian startups and Anda’s work here.
#25 Joel Burke, former Head of Business Development of Estonia’s e-Residency Program
Joel is an American who, for a long time, led BD at Estonia’s e-Residency. His years there left a mark, which is why he decided to write a book on Estonia’s rise as a digital nation – Rebooting a Nation: The Incredible Rise of Estonia, E-Government and the Startup Revolution. From a historical point of view, he points to a few pivotal moments in which key decisions put the country on the path to digitisation, aided by both internal and external factors (such as Estonia’s internal market size).
He observed that Estonia excels at getting everyone on the same page with unified national messaging around its startup ecosystem, contributing to its stellar global reputation. The country’s small media market means domestic disagreements often resolve internally before going public, allowing for more consistent external narratives. However, Estonia faces a challenge integrating foreign founders into its often Estonian-language-dominated community, limiting its foreign-run unicorn potential.
Listen to this Estonia special with Joel on the Runway podcast. Click here.
#26 Ben Costantini, Founder and CEO of Sesamers
After Ben blew our mind with his presentation on branding at events at TechChill in Riga, we had to invite him on the pod. As well as getting to know his story better, Ben had lots of difficult-to-find advice for making the most of events. Ben’s seen that while it’s never been easier to start an event, making it financially sustainable is harder than ever, typically requiring a three-year break-even period. His clever tip for founders at exhibitions? Engage with neighbouring booths early to understand their offerings, enabling mutual referrals and creating organic buzz. For speakers, success comes from tailoring content to the audience, being honest with organisers, and demonstrating genuine kindness.
Want more on the wonderful world of events? Listen to Ben’s episode here.
#27 Nick Huber, Veteran Journalist and Comms Consultant
With 25+ years at outlets like the Financial Times and BBC, Nick’s observed that startups often have wildly unrealistic expectations about media coverage and should start with specialist media before targeting top-tier outlets. At the same time, it’s not impossible. But not everything is newsworthy. Newsworthiness boils down to something new, original, controversial, exciting, or interesting that answers the crucial “so what?” and “why now?” questions. What frustrates him most? Interesting startups that actually could be the subject or part of a story being inaccessible to journalists due to poor contact details or uncooperative PRs.
Listen to the episode with Nick on Runway over here.
#28 Bojan Stojkovski, Editor-in-Chief of IT Logs
How much do you know about the Balkans? And North Macedonia? In this episode we spoke to Bojan Stojkovski, an international journalist who is also a regional expert. Bojan accidentally entered tech journalism after a single email led him to cover Huawei cameras in Belgrade for ZDNet. Sometimes the best careers start with unexpected opportunities! Covering “unknown and enigmatic” startup ecosystems in southeastern Europe offers unique advantages in finding compelling stories and undiscovered talent that can attract investors. We also spoke about the future of media. Among other things, Bojan believes people will increasingly pay for media they genuinely value, something we already see playing out in the media industry globally.
Listen to our fun conversation with Bojan here.
#29 Julieta Varsano, B2B Marketing Lead at Upvest
A B2B marketing masterclass, would be the only way to define this episode. We got Julieta’s frameworks for setting up, running and evolving the marketing function at a startup, and much more. Coming from a psychology background, and with years of experience at top companies, Julieta understands that marketing isn’t about “making things pretty”, it’s a strategic imperative for business growth. She predicts AI will automate labor-intensive marketing tasks and enable broader experimentation, but this will actually elevate the value of human interaction and storytelling. In an AI-saturated future where everyone might sound the same, authentic human stories will become the ultimate differentiator. Julieta also runs marketing meetups in Berlin, so do check it out if you’re around!
Listen to Julieta’s B2B marketing masterclass here.
#30 Frederik Barsøe, PR and Comms Lead at Scale Capital
We chat with Frederik, a fellow PR with a journalistic background, in a candid conversation about comms, startups and VC. Out of the UK, Fred still does some journalism work for a Danish broadcaster. His journalism background is a massive asset in PR because it gives him deep insight into how editors and journalists think and what they actually need. We also talk about bootstrapped startups, who face unique challenges securing media coverage because startup media focuses heavily on funding and valuations, making profitable but unfunded companies seem less “newsworthy.” And of course, we chat about VC and how funds do comms. His advice when it comes to PR? Don’t start PR too late or treat it as a one-off thing. Begin thinking strategically around seed stage.
Listen to our chat with Fred here.
#31 Parker Olson, Founder of PodPitch
Parker’s memorable “two cents” PayPal outreach caught a more than one person’s attention and converted PodPitch a few clients, proving that creative, unique approaches still work in our oversaturated world. It’s also what called our attention to get Parker on the pod to speak all things podcasts.
Why are podcasts so successful? Parker believes the number one way to build trust is showing vulnerability, and podcasts uniquely enable this by letting audiences hear someone’s voice and story directly. We also talk about podcast strategies for startups and why smaller pods are worth it. Hyper-niche, smaller podcasts often provide higher engagement and ROI for B2B companies than larger shows because their audiences are more qualified and genuinely interested.
Get a ton of podcast insights from Parker on the episode here!
#32 Hege Tollerud, Head of Community at Brighteye Ventures
Hege leads Brighteye Ventures’ efforts to actively contribute to the broader EdTech ecosystem through extensive content creation, well-received funding reports, and operational resources for founders. As Head of Community, she’s part of the VC ‘platform’ world, which we define in more detail in the episode. We also talk about community and comms on a more granular level. Among other things, she’s identified a common early-stage startup mistake: being too excited and wanting to tell everything, leading to unrealistic media expectations. Her core advice for EdTech founders is keeping stories basic, short, and digestible so they’re easily understood by broad audiences.
Learn more about VC platforms, community with Hege, here.
