Startup Grind is the leading global startup community dedicated to fostering the growth of early-stage companies. From bootstrapped beginnings through Series A rounds, we support our members with access to funding opportunities, expanding market reach, and connection to a robust network of founders, tech leaders, investors and partners spanning 150 countries worldwide.
Brand Overview
Logo
This is our primary logo. This is the preferred version to use.
When the primary logo doesn’t fit your composition, use the stacked or stamp version.
Logo Don'ts
Don’t distort the logo.
Don’t rotate the logo.
Don’t change the logo composition.
Don’t use the whole logo in our brand color.
Don’t use other colors.
Our Vision
Our vision is simple: we want every entrepreneur – regardless of background, age, gender, location, education, or experience – to have access and opportunity to succeed. We hope to play a significant role in making this world one where anyone can become an entrepreneur and when they do, they have access to a community that will help them do so.
Core Values
We believe in making friends, not contacts.
We believe in giving first, not taking.
We believe in helping others before helping yourself.
“Ten years ago I became an entrepreneur and have never looked back.
What began as a gathering of a bunch of clueless entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley trying to learn and help each other is now the world’s largest startup community spanning 120+ countries. We’re on a mission to educate, connect, and provide access to startups as they build and scale their companies around the globe.”
Derek Andersen
Co-founder + CEO of Startup Grind
Our Bio
Startup Grind is a global startup platform that connects founders, startups, partners, and investors to help companies grow—from first idea to scale.
Founded in 2010 by a group of entrepreneurs trying to solve the shared challenges of starting a company, Startup Grind began as a local gathering in Silicon Valley. It quickly became clear those challenges were universal. What started as small meetups grew into a worldwide movement, with communities forming across Los Angeles, Tel Aviv, London, New York, Beijing, and hundreds of cities beyond.
Today, Startup Grind operates across two core pillars. Our community arm brings founders together on the ground in over 300 cities worldwide, fostering local connections, peer learning, and real-world support. Our partnerships arm bridges the gap between leading global organizations and high-growth startups, creating meaningful opportunities for collaboration, distribution, and scale.
From bootstrapped founders to Series A teams, we support entrepreneurs with access to capital, expanded market reach, and a trusted network of founders, operators, investors, and partners. Our platform includes local events, flagship global conferences, startup, partner, and investor memberships, and digital programming that collectively reaches millions around the world.
Startup Grind also produces Divot, our podcast hosted by founder and CEO Derek Andersen, featuring legendary leaders and builders who have shaped industries and left a lasting impact.
Our community is built on a simple belief: entrepreneurs are stronger together.
Our values are at the forefront of everything we do: Give First, Make friends, and Help Others.
Color
Primary colors:
Vibrant Red
HEX: #FF2A45
RGB: RGB (255, 42, 69)
CMYK: C0% M94% Y69% K100%
Black
HEX: #262626
RGB: RGB (38, 38, 38)
CMYK: C0% M0% Y0% K95%
Light Gray
HEX: #F2F2F2
RGB: RGB (245, 245, 245)
CMYK: C0% M0% Y0% K5%
Typography
Proxima Nova
Use Proxima Nova font for all purposes
Integral CF
Use Integral CF font for bold headlines
Tone of Voice
Startup Grind’s voice is clear, confident, helpful and inclusive.
While we intend to have a more conversational, human tone, that doesn’t mean that we’re overly informal. Our tone will vary depending on the audience, the context and the information we need to get across.
Our voice is…
Warm and Human
Informative and Relatable
Open and Inviting
Intelligent and Considerate
Our voice isn’t…
Cold or Formal
Uninformed or Cliche
Exclusive or Elite
Full of tech jargon
We use American English at HQ
It all started in Silicon Valley, and we’re proud of our roots. So, whenever we speak in the voice of our overall brand (think global campaigns, conferences, partner communications), we use American spelling.
We use local spelling on local channels
At the chapter level, we use what the locals use. For example, the Facebook page of a chapter in Ontario uses Canadian spelling.
Our name is Startup Grind
We’ve seen it all, every variation imaginable of our name. In any application, our name should be two words, each capitalized at the beginning. Never Start Up Grind, StartUp Grind or Start-up Grind or SUG.
Word Fatigue
We try to be specific and real with our language when we’re communicating the benefit of what we do. Calling an event “our biggest” sounds like cheesy marketing speak (especially if we don’t provide any context for comparison) and may not hold true. Avoid words like biggest, best, fastest, epic, incredible, or unique.
*Punctuation Fatigue We use exclamation points only when they’re truly needed. As a rule of thumb – there should never be more than one within the same paragraph or post.
Attention to Detail
We’re detail-oriented and use a second set of eyes on our communications, especially the names or social media accounts of speakers, their companies, or our partners are included.
Inclusivity
It should go without saying, but it’s still worth stating: We never use exclusionary terms, cultural appropriation, ableist or misgendering language, or anything that could be interpreted as a slur. We don’t walk the line of anything that could be offensive, inflammatory or exclusionary.
These rules help us produce copy we’re proud of – but we’re not perfect 100% of the time. If you notice language that does not align with Startup Grind’s brand voice, please let us know so that we can learn and grow together.