From the Desk Of...Kelly Kehn, Co-Founder, All-In-Diversity Project; Partner, HappyHour.io

From the Desk off..." is a series from the G2E Insider written by G2E community members to share their knowledge with the wider gaming industry. Hear from Kelly Kehn, Co-Founder, All-In-Diversity Project; Partner, HappyHour.io, about how iGaming startups can navigate the complex field of fundraising and gain trust within the larger gaming industry.

To new market entrants and startups in the space, the iGaming industry can seem pretty vast. Yes, it’s a global industry with uncountable nuances across several jurisdictions. There are so many suppliers, game developers, and affiliates in addition to the online casinos themselves. But I have a secret – we all know each other, and if we don’t, we know about each other or know someone who works with that person. iGaming is actually a pretty small industry once you get to know it. That fact is not down to our amazing abilities to network or remember faces after one conversation. It’s because we are afforded the privilege to attend events, like G2E, that support our industry with a goal to help connect the right people with the right audiences.

Tomash Devenishek, founder of Kero Sports, a newcomer to the iGaming space recently shared a story about entering the industry. He went to well-known VC after VC looking for funding and while they liked his product, they didn’t know him, nor did they fully understand the space. When he started networking within the industry, however, he found advisors and mentors and his last funding round of $2 million was oversubscribed from industry insiders. The advice he shared was “don’t fish where the fancy fish are, industry people get it.”

At HappyHour, we get the chance to meet a lot of startup founders. The passion and tenacity of these people is unmatched, but oftentimes they don’t have the network to get their idea funded or off the ground. I would advise any new startup in the space to attend an industry event, do the pitch competition, and meet those in the room. Build the trust. We get it – the money, time, and effort spent will be well worth it.

As G2E continues to bring the entire ecosystem of gaming together, including startups, I’d also implore more of the industry to actively work to facilitate the innovation from these startups. Continue to bring in more investors and support accelerator programs. Create more networking opportunities. Put their advisors and mentors front and center so they are easy to find and connect with. If we want innovation like we continuously say we do, let’s pave the way for startups entering our space.

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Kelly Kehn is the co-founder of a global industry not-for-profit organization called All-In Diversity Project, as well a partner at HappyHour, a VC investing in iGaming startups. She’s an iGaming veteran who has worked for online sportsbooks and casinos as well as suppliers across the U.S., Canada, and Europe. She’s a regular contributor on the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as startups and innovation in iGaming.