Mindset, a women-led integrated marketing and communications agency, has opened applications for its inaugural Growth Programme, a six-week, non-profit initiative designed to help female founders from emerging markets prepare their businesses for international expansion across Europe, the UK and the US.
Applications for the inaugural 15-founder cohort are open until 30 August 2026, with the programme running from 21 September to 23 November 2026. Eligible applicants must be from a World Bank-designated emerging economy, including India, Brazil, Nigeria, Indonesia and Mexico, and have a market-ready product.
Tackling Capital Disparities in Emerging Economies
The initiative addresses persistent gender disparities in venture funding. Globally, female-founded startups receive less than 2% of VC capital, while women-owned businesses in emerging economies face an estimated $1.5 trillion credit deficit.
“At Mindset, we work with female founders every day, and we keep seeing the same barriers,” said Dina Mostovaya, Founder and CEO of Mindset. “Women still have less access to capital, and fewer people opening doors for them. For founders from emerging markets, breaking into more developed economies can make those challenges even harder. We built this program to give fifteen founders practical guidance and direct access to people who can help them move forward, together with an actionable playbook. It’s our mission put into practice.”
Partner and Chief Operating Officer Natalia Edde added that community support is vital when entering unfamiliar markets. “As someone who has been an immigrant myself, I know how important it is to have a community around you when you’re building something in a new environment,” Edde noted.
Four-Track Executive Curriculum
The curriculum is delivered by industry practitioners across four targeted operational tracks:
- Investor Communications: Led by Taryn Andersen (Impulse4Women), focusing on EU and US early-stage fundraising ecosystems.
- Customer Intelligence: Led by Natasha Gorobinskaya (Blueberry Research Group), focusing on customer feedback loops and market validation.
- Personal Branding & Deal Flow: Led by Karolina Attspodina (Beyond Vision / BMW Foundation Herbert Quandt), covering executive LinkedIn positioning to drive investor engagement.
- Strategic Narrative: Led by Erik Eklund (The Oasis / IESE Business School), teaching founders to frame non-linear career trajectories into competitive narrative advantages.
Participants will also receive one-on-one mentorship, direct pitch access to tier-1 journalists and investors, and three years of post-graduation resource access.
