Mark Shepherd, originally the founder of London Tech Drinks, has revamped the informal gathering into Gathr.
- Gathr now encompasses a community of nearly 10,000 tech investors, founders, and operators.
- The platform is segmented into three key verticals: Gathr to Connect, Gathr to Learn, and Gathr to Find.
- Gathr aims to provide robust networks and resources that enable tech enterprises to overcome developmental obstacles.
- Community-driven, Gathr’s resources are curated through recommendations from esteemed industry leaders.
Founded by Mark Shepherd, London Tech Drinks began as a casual meet-up facilitated through LinkedIn posts. It has now evolved into Gathr, a significant community platform aiming to connect and support nearly 10,000 tech investors, founders, operators, and service providers. This transformation marks a strategic attempt to formalise and deepen the networking opportunities available to emerging tech businesses.
The Gathr platform is structured into three main verticals. ‘Gathr to Connect’ focuses on enabling individuals within the tech industry to forge meaningful connections with peers. ‘Gathr to Learn’ offers opportunities to acquire knowledge from field experts. Lastly, ‘Gathr to Find’ serves as a business-to-business marketplace endorsed by the community, aimed at helping members identify premier service and software providers. Each vertical shares a unified goal: assisting tech firms in navigating the multifaceted challenges they encounter during growth.
Shepherd highlighted the organic and unexpected growth of the community, which began from a simple invitation for tech enthusiasts to meet over drinks. Despite expecting a maximum of 10 participants, the initiative swiftly expanded into a robust community approaching the 10,000-member milestone. “From initially expecting 10 people maximum who would want to meet, the response has been overwhelming,” Shepherd stated, underscoring the community’s rapid and organic expansion.
Industry voices, such as Arabella Reeves, former Platform Manager at Atomico and current Board Member of the Global VC Platform Community, have lauded Gathr’s development. Reeves noted the platform’s capacity to collate ‘meticulously curated recommendations’ from globally respected venture capitalists and founders, enhancing its credibility and usefulness for businesses focused on growth and execution strategies.
Gathr’s evolution from London Tech Drinks underscores the power of community-driven networking in the tech industry.
