Finding a co-founder and your first hires has been a big hole in New Zealand's startup ecosystem.
Your job as an early-stage founder is three-fold:
- Don't run out of money.
- Set the strategy.
- Find and keep the right people.
Finding the right people has been much harder.
If you need a co-founder, an early hire, a technical person, a designer, or a skill you don't have, you usually start with the people you already know.
Friends. Former colleagues. People from university. People you happen to meet.
That's a pretty small pool for one of the biggest decisions you'll make in your company.
Lineup makes the people you need easier to find
Lineup is a New Zealand platform that makes people and projects findable.
If you're looking for a co-founder in New Zealand, building your first team, or looking for someone with a specific skill, Lineup gives you a place to start.
Projects show what they're building, what stage they're at, what skills they're missing and how much time they need.
People show what they can do, what they're interested in and how much time they have.
Everyone answers the same questions, so you can find the gaps that line up.
You can use Lineup to:
- Find a co-founder
- Join an existing project
- Find your first hire
- Bring a missing skill into your team
- Find someone to build with
You can browse projects before publishing your profile.
When you find someone worth talking to, you already know what they are building, what they need and how much time they have. Lineup turns that into a first message worth replying to, directly on the platform.
This is something New Zealand has needed for a long time
We've built a lot of startup infrastructure around funding, accelerators, incubators, events, advice and community.
But there hasn't been a simple way to see who is building what, what they need, and who might be the right person to build it with.
That's a real gap.
The person you need might already be here. You just haven't had a good way to find them.
Lineup gives founders that missing layer.
At WFW, our job is to make it easier to find what you need to build a business.
Sometimes that's information. Sometimes it's money.
And sometimes it's a person.
Free access for founders
If you're building something and need people, get your project on Lineup.
If you're looking for a co-founder, a skill you don't have, or someone to build with, find them on Lineup. Become deliberate about building your founding team.
About What Founders Want
What Founders Want builds founder-first infrastructure for New Zealand's startup ecosystem.
We create directories, templates, and resources that answer the questions founders actually search for.
If something reduces wasted time, lowers risk, or improves decision-making for founders, it belongs here.