FounderLink Opens to Global Founders After Two-Year Beta

Multi-exited founders launch the curated community they wish they had coming up

VANCOUVER, B.C. — FounderLink, a vetted global community for founders at every stage of the journey, today opened applications to founders worldwide after two years in invitation-only beta. The launch coincides with Web Summit Vancouver, where FounderLink is exhibiting at booth E179.

In two years of quiet operation, FounderLink has built a community of 834 vetted founders, hosted 21 Founders Dinners across seven cities in North America and Europe (including Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Tampa, and Lisbon), and facilitated millions of dollars in founder-to-founder deals.

The community operates on two rules enforced at every dinner and across every channel: no sales, no politics. Membership requires application and approval. Founders must be living with, or actively heading toward, the responsibility of meeting payroll and managing clients.

“FounderLink is the founder community I wish had existed when I started,” said co-founder Graeme Barlow, an eight-figure founder, accredited investor, and founder coach. “There are communities you grow up in, and communities you age out of. We’re building the one you never have to leave, from your first dollar to your last exit.”

Co-founder Shawna Tregunna, a multi-exited founder and former leader of Founder Institute Ottawa and Startup Ottawa, leads community strategy. “Building a company is one of the loneliest things you can do,” Tregunna said. “Founders need to seek out people who get it: people who’ve managed payroll, lost sleep over clients, and come out the other side. That’s the room we’re building.”

A community designed for the full journey

Most founder networks serve a single stage. FounderLink is built as a full-cycle community, with early-stage founders learning alongside growth-stage operators and nine and ten-figure exited founders. Its signature Founders Dinner format brings 20 to 30 founders to each event, curated to a deliberate mix: 50 percent late-stage or exited, 25 percent growth-stage, and 25 percent early-stage.

The model has produced what Barlow calls a feeder system the founder ecosystem has been missing: capital and operational expertise flowing in both directions across stages, inside one trusted room.

Three membership tiers, including a forthcoming co-investment syndicate

FounderLink’s launch introduces two paid tiers alongside its core community membership:

• Member: the open application community. Slack workspace, monthly group coaching with Barlow, weekly accountability calls, and core resources.
• Fellow ($249 USD/month): private stage-based channels by revenue band, expert workshop access, full session replay library, preferred Founders Dinner access, and quarterly peer-matched introductions.
• Legacy ($499 USD/month): everything in Fellow, plus priority onboarding with curated member introductions, a featured profile on FounderLink, and access to invitation-only Founders Dinners. Legacy also serves as the foundation for a forthcoming co-investment syndicate, with Barlow and Tregunna as lead investors, giving members first access to vetted deal flow from within the community.

Launching at Web Summit Vancouver

Web Summit Vancouver brings tens of thousands of founders, investors, and operators to the city this week. FounderLink chose the moment intentionally, aligning its global open call with one of the largest gatherings of founders in the world.

“Nobody has built a community founders can live inside from their first idea to their biggest exit,” Barlow said. “Some you grow up into, some you age out of, most of them disappear when you stop fitting their box. We’re building the one that holds the whole arc. Where founders find community, for the long haul.”

Founders can apply at founderlink.com.

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About FounderLink

FounderLink is Where Founders Find Community: a vetted global community for entrepreneurs at every stage, from pre-revenue to post-exit. Co-founded by Graeme Barlow and Shawna Tregunna, FounderLink is headquartered in Vancouver, B.C. Learn more at founderlink.com.

Media Contact

Shawna Tregunna
Shawna@FounderLink.com