Pitch - Fund and Grow

18/03/2026

I didn’t start my Dragons’ Den pitch with numbers.

Most startup pitches fail for one simple reason.
They start with numbers.
- Revenue.
- Margins.
- Market size.

All important.

But none of it makes people care.

When I walked into Dragons' Den, I didn’t start there.

I started with this:
“I’m really passionate about adventures and travel…”

Because that’s the truth.
That’s where the business came from.
Not a gap in the market spreadsheet.
But real life.

Becoming a mum.
Wanting to share those experiences with my children.
And realising the products I needed didn’t exist.

So I made them.

In my kitchen.

Here’s what I’ve learned since:
- People don’t invest in numbers first.
- They invest in belief.
And belief doesn’t come from your revenue slide.

It comes from:
• why you started
• what you’ve seen first-hand
• and how clearly you can make someone else feel it too

The numbers validate the story.

But the story is what opens the door.

It’s one of the reasons I care so much about speaking to founders.

Because a small shift in how you tell your story can be the difference between being politely listened to and actually being remembered.

If you had 30 seconds to pitch your business with no numbers allowed…

What would you say?

06/01/2026

Happy New Year!
I’m not doing the usual “new year, new me” post.
Because honestly? I’m the same person I was on 31st December.

But I am approaching this year a little differently.

Last year was full.
I spoke at universities, served on boards, reviewed 50+ pitch decks, and somehow squeezed in running my own businesses too. And I loved most of it.

What it also taught me is that progress doesn’t come from doing everything, it comes from doing the right things consistently.

That’s where the 1% strategy comes in.

Not big, dramatic changes.
Just small improvements, made daily, that compound over time.

So for 2026, I’m focused on getting 1% better. And practically, that looks like this:

1. Identifying the big goal we want to reach and then dividing it into chunks

2. Setting a goal and planning for what we’ll do daily or weekly. This can be very small (as small as adding just one push-up a day or meditating for just a few minutes to begin with, and then adding 30 seconds or a minute at regular intervals)

3. Creating a system of accountability that will help to remind us of the goal and hold us to it

4. Building needed support from friends, co-workers or relatives

5. Establishing a system of follow-up and measurement so we can see progress

Not doing more.
Doing better, a little at a time.

What’s one small shift you’re making this year that you know will add up?

Let’s start 2026 with honest conversations about priorities.

Keep building (sustainably),
Hannah 💙

30/10/2025

Imagine knowing exactly where your next £100K in sales could come from.
Which channels are actually profitable.
Which competitors are overspending on ads.

Most founders don’t get that kind of insight, not because they don’t want it, but because it’s locked behind tools that cost £2K+ a month.

That’s what we’re changing at Nudge.

We’re giving early-stage and scaling brands access to real-time insights that show what’s working, where opportunities are, and how to grow smarter, not harder.

We’re running a limited pilot with a few UK brands right now, and the feedback’s been incredible.
One founder told us:

“We found a £300K untapped segment in our category within minutes.”

There are just a few pilot spaces left, and we’re closing them soon.

If you sell on Amazon and are in FMCG, wellness, beauty or pet care, this might be your sign to stop guessing and start growing with clarity.

Comment “Nudge Pilot” or DM me, happy to share more.

15/10/2025

Before boardrooms and investment rounds, there was the RAF.
People often assume success comes from one big moment:
The pitch.
The investment.
The exit.

It doesn’t.

Success is built long before anyone’s watching.
In the quiet, unglamorous hours that nobody talks about.

From my time in the RAF, to starting my own business…
Pitching (and securing investment) on Dragons’ Den…
Scaling, exiting, and now helping other founders secure funding…
And serving as a Non-Executive Director across multiple companies

Here’s what I’ve learned 👇
- Talent matters, but not as much as people think.
- Connections help, but they don’t build resilience.
- Luck happens, but it doesn’t sustain success.

The real differentiator?
Consistency when nobody’s watching.

Think of it like training for a mission:
You don’t rise to the occasion, you fall to the level of your preparation.

The Compound Effect of the Unseen Work

1️⃣ Early Discipline → Strategic Advantage
Those 6am emails, late-night drafts, and endless prep sessions build momentum nobody else can see.

2️⃣ Curiosity-Driven Research → Innovation
Digging deeper because you want to, not because you have to, uncovers opportunities others miss.

3️⃣ Relationship Nurturing → Long-Term Leverage
Investing in people without expecting anything back always pays off down the line.

4️⃣ Skill Stacking → Value Acceleration
Developing new skills while you’re already busy isn’t glamorous, but it compounds faster than any funding round.

Hard Lessons I Keep Repeating:
- Big moments are earned through small, consistent actions.
- Resilience is built long before the spotlight hits.
- Growth happens in private before it’s ever celebrated in public.

If you’re building something and it feels unseen right now… good.
That’s where the real work happens.

What you do when nobody’s watching will define where you are in five years.

Keep showing up. 👊

If this resonates, share it with someone who’s quietly putting in the work.
Or tell me in the comments, what’s your “unseen work” that nobody talks about?

06/10/2025

Here's a question that's been keeping me up lately...
If you had to choose between being respected or being liked as a leader, which would you pick?

I used to think this was a false choice. "Why can't I be both?"

Then I had to make some tough decisions as a founder and board member that taught me otherwise.

Letting go of team members who weren't performing. Challenging strategies in board meetings when everyone else was nodding along. Saying no to "opportunities" that looked good but felt wrong.

Each time, I had to choose between being the person people wanted me to be and being the leader the situation needed.

The respect came later. But in the moment? It was uncomfortable.

What about you - have you faced this choice? And what did you learn from it?
Feel free to drop your experiences in the comments below. I have a feeling we've all been here in different ways.

23/09/2025

Most leaders think non-exec roles just happen once you’ve climbed high enough in your career...but they don’t.

Boards are looking for people who solve specific problems, and if you position yourself right, that person could be you.

I’ve put together 6 practical tips to help you go from “Could I do this?” to landing your first non-executive role. 👉 Swipe through to see how you can get started.

Share in the comments below - What’s the biggest challenge you see in stepping into a non-exec role?

📤Save this for when you’re ready to make your move and share with someone aiming for the boardroom.

♻️ Repost to help others in your network.

22/09/2025

Here's a question that might surprise you...
If you could sit on any company's board tomorrow, which one would it be and why?

Not because you want the prestige or the money (though both are nice).

But because you genuinely believe you could add value to their strategic decisions.

I asked myself this when I started looking at non-exec roles, and it completely shifted how I positioned myself.

Instead of thinking "what boards would have me?" I started thinking, "What problems do I solve at board level?"

Turns out, that's exactly the mindset shift you need.

So, which company's boardroom would benefit from your expertise? And what specific value would you bring?

Drop it below. I have a feeling your answers will reveal more about your leadership strengths than any CV ever could. 👇

22/09/2025

17/09/2025

"Hannah, you practised 300 times? That's a bit much, isn't it?"
That's what everyone said when I told them about my Dragon's Den prep.

But here's the thing - I got the investment.
And it wasn't because I had the best business in the room.
It was because of 3 simple strategies that most entrepreneurs completely miss.

⬇️Read the full story in this week's newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-i-bagged-dragon-3-strategies-actually-worked-hannah-saunders--tg61e

15/09/2025

If you had to explain your business in one sentence to a 10-year-old, what would you say?
My 7-year-old son asked me this sometime ago (after I'd been on yet another investor call). I started going into my usual spiel about "supporting startups through their funding journey" and watched his eyes glaze over 😅

So I tried again: "I help grown-ups who have really cool business ideas tell their story in a way that makes other grown-ups want to give them money to make those ideas come to life!"

His response? "Oh, so you're like a storyteller for businesses!"

And honestly, he's not wrong. That's exactly what I do.

When I strip it right back like this, it reminds me why I started Pitch in the first place. So many brilliant founders have game-changing ideas, but they get lost in the weeds of complex pitch decks and investor jargon.

The magic happens when you can explain what you do so simply that anyone gets excited about it - whether that's my 7-year-old OR a room full of investors.

Your turn! Drop your "kid-friendly" business explanation in the comments below. I bet you'll surprise yourself with how clear and compelling it sounds when you strip away all the industry lingo.

Sometimes the simplest version is the most powerful. ✨

P.S. My son now tells people "Mummy helps people ask for money for their ideas" and I'm genuinely considering it as my new elevator pitch 😂

08/09/2025

If you could hire one role tomorrow for free… what would it be?
Not your “dream hire” (CFO, Head of Sales, etc).
Not the one you think you should want.

The one that would actually make you exhale for the first time in months.

When I asked myself this last year, I thought my answer would be obvious:
- Marketing Manager
- Sales Director
All the “growth” roles.

But truthfully? It wasn’t.

What I really needed was someone to tame my inbox, wrangle my calendar, and stop me from accidentally double-booking myself with three calls and a dentist appointment in one afternoon.

So I brought on an assistant a few months ago. She's now my online right-hand person to handle calendars and administrative tasks. And honestly, it's been life-changing (I now wonder what on earth I was doing before. Apart from crying over decks 😂😅)

It freed up hours every week and gave me back the headspace to actually work on the business instead of constantly being buried in it.

So, over to you.
What’s the one role that would instantly give you back your sanity?

👇 Drop your answer below, I’m curious (and I suspect a few “future hires” might be lurking in the comments too).