Design Founder Summer School

Designers bring an intuitive understanding of user needs, a relentless focus on experience, and the ability to prototype and ship fast—all critical when chasing product-market fit.

But while design founders often have great instincts for building products people actually want, they tend to struggle when it comes to:

• Fundraising and navigating the VC landscape
• Sales, marketing, and go-to-market strategy
• Assembling a well-rounded team beyond design and product
• Understanding what makes a startup truly investable

That’s where this course comes in.

This live, cohort-based course is designed to help experienced designers explore the founder path with clarity and confidence. Whether you're still validating your idea, building a prototype, or considering raising money, this course will help you avoid common pitfalls and start building serious momentum.

Led by Andy Budd—former design founder, startup advisor, and now a VC—you’ll learn what it really takes to go from idea to investor-ready, without losing your soul (or your weekends).

• A clearer understanding of the founder mindset
• Tools to validate ideas quickly and effectively
• Insight into what makes an idea fundable
• A safe space to develop your pitch with feedback from peers
• A supportive community of designers exploring the same path

You’ll work on a real idea (or test one during the course), and shape it into a pitch by the end of the program—with a chance to share your deck and story in our final session.

🗓 Starts: Mid-July
🕓 Live sessions: Fridays, 4–6pm BST
📍 Format: 6 weekly Zoom sessions + community group
👥 Cohort size: Small and focused (around a dozen people)
💸 Price: £750 + VAT (pilot price; will be £1,750 in future)

This is a first-run pilot. You’ll get early access, a significantly reduced rate, and the chance to help shape the format through your feedback.

I chose this slot intentionally:

✅ Fits around the workday.
By 4pm Friday, your week is winding down. No deep meetings, no context switching—just time to focus on yourself and your future.

✅ Respects your weekend.
No evenings, no Saturdays. You finish the week with momentum and still have your weekend free.

✅ Works across time zones.
4–6pm BST = 8–10am PT / 11am–1pm ET. Friendly for both UK and US-based designers.

✅ It's your founder hour.
A weekly window to work on what matters most: the things you wish you had time for the rest of the week.

If you’re a designer with big ideas and nowhere to put them—this might be exactly what you’ve been looking for.