Tundra Angels in the Tundra Area - Private Events with Gather

While Gather has become known for hosting downright breathtaking weddings for incredibly in-love couples, there is also no shortage of private parties hosted by companies and organizations within Gather, angel investing group, Tundra Angels, being a frequent repeater.

Matthew Kee, manager and CEO of Tundra Angels, sat down to speak with Gather’s Blog writer, Kira Doman, to discuss organizing professional business parties and presentations within Gather.

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Angels of the Green Bay community

Before becoming an angel investor himself and finding startups to invest and promote in, Tundra Angels needed an angel investor to help start off their company, so Matthew Kee understands both what it’s like to be a founder and CEO of a company, and what it’s like to be an investor. From July of 2020 to June of 2022, Tundra Angels was an investor company through the Green Bay Chamber, in June of 2022 the company became an independent entity.

“Tundra Angels started when the Greater Green Bay Chamber was looking to hire an individual to build out a precede capital source in Northeast Wisconsin,” Kee explained. “I joined the Green Bay Chamber in 2019, and Tundra Angels became that capital source. We were initially seated underneath the chamber of commerce from their economic development strategic plan, but became our own entity for investing in startups across Wisconsin in June of 2022.”

Since the company’s start in 2020, Tundra Angels has since signed on over 50 investors across the state of Wisconsin to assist in company startups. It is a membership-based group, with each member paying an annual fee once they’ve been approved as a member by Kee. 

To apply for a membership with Tundra Angels as an investor, one must first contact Matthew Kee for a meeting to see if Tundra Angels is a good fit. If an individual has been approved, Kee will provide a link to a site for Tundra Angels where the investors select a membership that suits what they’re looking to achieve with their involvement in the company. With a membership, they are given access to all quarterly pitch meetings held within Gather, methods of communication with the startups they invest in, and all other community resources provided by Tundra Angels.

“We invest in high-growth technology companies around the state of Wisconsin, with over 50 investors in our group currently,” Kee revealed. “All of these investors, CEOs, presidents and executives of companies pay an annual fee to be included in Tundra Angels, and as a part of that, my role is curating startups from around the state to eventually pitch to our group for investment.”

“We have a pitch meeting every quarter, which is where Gather on Broadway comes in,” Kee smiled. “At each pitch meeting, we take indications of interest on which companies we're interested in investing in or pursuing, and then we run our due diligence process for the ones we’ve chosen. If we like the startup enough, we'll commit and invest.”

Kee has been booking quarterly pitch meetings at Gather since July of 2021, about to hold Tundra Angels’ 11th meeting within the brick walls.

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Perfectly professional presentations

Matthew Kee met Jyll and Tommy Everman in June of 2021 while attending an investor’s private dinner. After becoming an independent company from the Greater Green Bay Chamber, Kee was looking for an elegant and professional venue that would allow for up-scale presentations to be held, without having to bring a collection of outside equipment in, a delicious menu, and a dedicated team to help him achieve a perfect night for a special group of people. 

Jyll Everman and Maddy Meyer displayed an out-of-this-world experience with food for this investor’s meeting, and when Kee was told by the investor that they have a beautiful venue along with their delicious menu, Kee knew he had found what he was looking for.

“Tundra Angels first pitch meeting held within Gather took place in July of 2021, and we have had one every quarter since,” Kee said. “Gather was our first meeting space after the pandemic had become a bit more under control and it was a really a hand-in-glove, perfect scenario because I was looking for something classy, professional, and high-end for people to return to in-person meetings for. Gather has fulfilled everything we’d been looking for.”

Since individuals and business startups are presenting for each and every pitch meeting held, Kee was relieved and thrilled to discover not only Gather’s full A/V setup and staff that can help with those operations, but there is also a 20-foot projection screen that can be used for presentations as well. Kee also praised Gather’s social media and brand manager, Steven Aprill, for his professional quality photographs of each meeting.

“Steven Aprill does an amazing job with photographing all of our events, he's an excellent photographer,” Kee gushed. “We're very active on LinkedIn and other social platforms, such as our website, and his pictures are awesome because we can feature them on LinkedIn, making Tundra Angels look really good. I also send them along to the founders who presented because it's already amazing to have this experience in pitching to Tundra Angels, and then to receive these amazing pictures that can be used for your own purposes as a company, it's the icing on top!”

“What's really cool is when I talk to the different founders, and without fail, they all gush to me about how beautifully amazing the evening was. That's so rewarding to me and it truly speaks to how well Gather helps Tundra Angels reflect from a brand perspective, and that's exactly what we want. We want to try to invest in the best service we can find, and it all starts with the pitch meeting.”

With so many of these pitch meetings being held at Gather, Kee and the Gather staff have found an organized method for each day for setup, presentations, and takedown. Kee gives the number of guests, typically between 35 and 40, and any allergies amongst them for each meeting to Jyll and Maddie for catering, but allows complete creative freedom in what is served on the menu. Each pitch meeting also has a different menu from one another to keep the event fresh for anyone who has attended and continues to attend multiple pitch meetings. 

Gather staff and it’s partners with Ruby Design LLC. take care of setup and takedown for the pitch meetings entirely on the day of, and startup founders arrive at 3:30 PM for a pitch run-through to make sure the A/V equipment is operating smoothly. All guests should arrive between 5 and 5:30 PM, before the first presentation begins at 5:30 PM. Presentations last until about 7:30 PM typically, with an hour of networking and mingling between attendees after the last presentation. The Gather staff comes in to begin take-down of the venue by 9 PM, after the last guest has left. 

“Timing is very tight for the pitch meetings as a lot of our members are arriving from out of town,” Kee explained, “so our routine has to be water-tight at this point, which it is! Being a startup CEO is hard, it's oftentimes a very underappreciated role because you're doing everything and nobody's acknowledging it or thanking you for your work because, as the owner, you're the one who's supposed to be the cheerleader for the company. But for our pitch meetings at Gather, I truly feel valued by them, and I want our founders and investors to feel like they're part of something that could be bigger than themselves.” 

“As the brand of Tundra Angels continues to grow, I've noticed one of the reasons why we have been successful is because of Gather. I know that when startup founders go back to Madison and Milwaukee or wherever they came from in Wisconsin, they are telling other people about Tundra Angels and they tell other people about the experience at Gather.”

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A heavenly experience

Kee knows how it feels both to pitch a startup and to invest in a startup, so organizing the quarterly pitch meetings with Gather into everything they need for a smooth and ideal evening has become second nature, but what he still hasn’t gotten used to are the reviews back from each meeting.

“Even though investors and companies have the leverage, the capital, and most other crucial parts of getting a business off the ground, the founders have the actual business we want. I want founders who present for us to feel as if they are the heroes of the story, because frankly, they are! They're pitching for us, they're giving us the opportunity to invest in their company. We, as the investors, are almost being auditioned as much as they're auditioning for us, so I want to give them an evening to remember in the best way.”

“Most of these startups have never pitched at such a professional location or pitch meeting before, and it's details like the big screen and a beautiful atmosphere with delicious food that become a reflection of the overall experience of Tundra Angels,” Kee smiled. “A lot of these deals are competitive, and startup founders have to ask themselves why they should take Tundra Angels' money when they can also take money from other investors, but when I talk to the founders after the night of the pitch meeting with the results, they’re always glowing. They go on and on about the event, the venue, and how much they loved the experience. It's so rewarding to be part of that.”

Creating a memorable event from the first step inside Gather, to the moment you and your guests walk out the door is what Gather is made for – let us help you plan your next high-class event for an evening you and your friends will never forget!

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