What Nordic Makers does

Nordic Makers is a Copenhagen-headquartered venture capital firm composed of eight entrepreneurs who deploy their own capital into Nordic B2B software startups at pre-seed and seed stage. The firm writes cheques of €500K to €1M per company, participates in follow-on rounds, and provides founder-led operational support. Its investment remit is explicitly limited to Nordic-headquartered B2B software, with named exclusions covering MedTech, BioTech, impact measurement, marketing automation, crypto, virtual reality, and augmented reality.

The team draws credibility from prior venture-scale operating success: co-founder Alexander Aghassipour was co-founder and CPO of Zendesk (IPO at approximately $1.7B; later acquired for approximately $10.2B), co-founder Michael Seifert co-founded Sitecore ($1.1B valuation in 2016), and Klaus Nyengaard served as CEO of Just-Eat, which he grew from 35 employees to over 1,000 ahead of its £1.47B IPO. Other members include Nima Tisdall (CEO; previously co-founded Blue Lobster), Martin von Haller Grønbæk (partner at Bird & Bird and co-creator of CPHFTW), Moaffak Ahmed (serial entrepreneur and angel investor), and Lars Fløe Nielsen. The firm self-positions as "entrepreneurs, not VCs," framing its activity as payback for the mentorship and capital that was scarce when the partners built their own companies.

Nordic Makers has no proprietary technology platform and does not charge traditional LP management fees; returns accrue through equity stakes and follow-on participation in portfolio companies. Deal flow is largely inbound and network-driven, sourced through a Typeform pitch portal on its website and the partners' personal networks. The portfolio includes Spotahome (mid- to long-term home rentals), Corti (healthcare AI), Saltfoss (nuclear reactor technology), All Gravy (employee productivity), AvailJobs, and more recent pre-seed bets in Atech (AI hardware prototyping), Kime (generative engine optimization SaaS), and AirDodge (drone traffic management). Visible 2025-2026 co-investors include Sequoia Scout Fund, Andreessen Horowitz Scout Fund, Antler, PSV Tech, Emblem, and Lovable, signaling expanding cross-Atlantic and Nordic peer-VC ties.

Name

Nordic Makers

Legal name

Nordic Makers

Website

https://nordicmakers.vc

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nordic Makers is a Copenhagen-headquartered venture capital firm of eight entrepreneurs who invest their own capital in Nordic B2B software startups at pre-seed and seed stages. It writes €500K-€1M cheques, participates in follow-on rounds, and delivers founder-led support.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns / Carried Interest: Nordic Makers generates returns through equity investments in portfolio companies. They invest their own capital as entrepreneurs who have previously built successful companies. Returns are realized through portfolio company exits (M&A, IPO).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Nordic Makers is a community of entrepreneurs who invest their own capital into Nordic B2B software startups, deploying €500K–€1M tickets at the pre-seed and seed stages and following on in later rounds. The firm pairs equity investment with founder-led operational support, drawing on the partners' experience scaling companies such as Zendesk, Sitecore, and Just-Eat, and explicitly excludes MedTech, BioTech, impact measurement, marketing automation, crypto, VR, and AR.

Product overview

Nordic Makers is a venture capital firm that operates as a community of entrepreneurs investing their own capital in Nordic B2B software companies. The firm does not develop its own products or services; instead, it provides pre-seed and seed-stage funding (€500K to €1M) to portfolio companies, with follow-on support in later funding rounds. Nordic Makers engages in founder-led support and focuses investment criteria on Nordic B2B software companies, explicitly excluding MedTech, BioTech, impact measurement, marketing automation, crypto, VR and AR sectors. Notable portfolio companies include Spotahome (mid- to long-term home rentals), Corti (healthcare AI), Saltfoss (nuclear reactor technology), All Gravy (employee productivity platform), and AvailJobs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pre-seed and seed equity investment program Equity capital of €500K–€1M per portfolio company invested into Nordic B2B software startups at the pre-seed and seed stages, with follow-on participation in subsequent funding rounds and hands-on founder-led support for entrepreneurs scaling globally.

Quantifiable outcome

• Zendesk achieved $1.7B IPO and was later acquired for $10.2B
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Speedinvest: European early-stage fund with sector-specialized teams and Nordic exposure; comparable on stage and B2B software focus, though with a larger, multi-stage fund structure.
• Atomico: Pan-European VC founded by Skype's Niklas Zennström with strong Nordic presence; comparable geography and B2B software thesis, but at a much later stage and larger fund size.
• Northzone: Nordic-origin multi-stage VC; overlaps with Nordic Makers on early-stage Nordic SaaS but operates a much larger, multi-stage fund.
• Creandum: One of the most established Nordic early-stage VCs; invests from seed through Series B, making it a broader incumbent with overlapping Nordic B2B SaaS focus.

Direct peers

• Antler: Global pre-seed investor with strong Nordic presence and a founder-first model; co-led AirDodge's pre-seed alongside Nordic Makers, indicating directly comparable deal size, stage, and regional focus.
• ByFounders: Pan-Nordic early-stage fund backed exclusively by Nordic founders, mirroring Nordic Makers' operator-LP positioning and Nordic B2B SaaS mandate.
• Heartcore Capital: Nordic-focused early-stage fund investing in consumer and enterprise software; comparable stage, geography, and B2B SaaS focus.
• Seed Capital: Denmark's longest-running pre-seed/seed fund; directly comparable on stage, geography, and B2B software thesis.
• PSV Tech: Nordic pre-seed fund led Kime's €2M round with Nordic Makers participating; operates at the same stage, ticket size, and Nordic B2B SaaS focus.

Emerging players

• Cherry Ventures: Berlin-based pre-seed/seed fund founded by operator-founders; comparable operator-LP ethos and ticket size, though geographically broader than Nordic Makers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nordic_makers
• Facebookfacebook.com/holvicom
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/10939041

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments44 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nordic Makers