Munich Startup: What kind of career path have you had so far?
Katja Ruhnke: As the child of an entrepreneurial family, I worked for ten years as a musical actress and drama producer in the cultural sector after graduating from high school. After studying cultural management, my path led me back to Munich and the family business. While searching for new business opportunities, I became infected with the idea of startup financing in the summer of 2019, and I have been passionate about it ever since. together with my sister Conny Hörl, passionate angel investorIn January 2023, we also opened the "CK Workspace," a coworking space and shared office where we bring together the old economy (real estate) and the new economy (startups). My first book, "Female Money - How Female Investors Are Transforming the Startup World," was published in fall 2021.
Munich Startup: What motivated you to invest in startups?
Katja Ruhnke: I had a life-changing moment in 2019. I was able to accompany my best man to a startup conference. Before that, I'd only seen "The Lion's Den" and wasn't aware that startups are an asset class that anyone can invest in. The passion and energy, coupled with the ideas and solutions that will save our world, captivated me so much that I decided more or less immediately to become a business angel. It gives me incredible hope and makes me more than optimistic when I see how many great founders are working on the problems that are currently piling up. I must and want to do my part here.
Katja Ruhnke: A passion for hardware
Munich Startup: Which technology or industry do you personally find particularly interesting at the moment?
Katja Ruhnke: Conny and I specialize in impact investing, so I still find everything in that area exciting. Recently, we invested in a circular economy startup with Hey CircleI think this is an incredibly important industry because the excess of consumerism sometimes really frightens me, and we have to get on top of it. But the topic of education also always appeals to me, even though it's really difficult to finance. We also have a soft spot for hardware, but that's also difficult to finance. We like to choose topics that not everyone wants to do.
Munich Startup: In your opinion, what advantages do diverse founding or VC teams bring?
Katja Ruhnke: Female investors bring different perspectives and experiences to investment decisions. Women also tend to invest more frequently in female-led startups. This is especially important because female founders often have less access to funding than their male counterparts. Support from female investors can help close this gap and reduce gender inequality in entrepreneurship. Women also invest more frequently in companies that address societal challenges and pursue sustainable business models, and I believe that's something the world desperately needs right now. Diverse teams, on the other hand, demonstrably perform better because they make better decisions.
Munich Startup: What are your three favorite work tools?
Katja Ruhnke: I enjoy working with Asana. I use Microsoft OneNote the most. I used to write things in notebooks by hand and couldn't find anything, but OneNote was my savior. In general, though, I use very few tools because I don't have enough time to devote to them.
Pitch tip: “If you don’t overcome this hurdle well, you have no chance.”
Munich Startup: Your top tip on pitching?
Katja Ruhnke: Pitching is a performance and requires rehearsal. Factors such as facial expressions, voice, and gestures can be crucial. It's a sales pitch whose impact is far too often underestimated by founders. It's the ticket to deeper discussions. Anyone who doesn't overcome this hurdle well has no chance of securing sufficient capital.
Munich Startup: Does this seem like a good time to start a business? Why?
Katja Ruhnke: Yes and no, bad phases offer an incredible number of opportunities, as the market consolidates and large companies have demonstrably emerged during these phases. But I consider the conditions for starting a business in Germany to be poor. We are expensive, complicated, suffocated by bureaucracy and we have far too little respect for entrepreneurship. The starting conditions in other European countries are sometimes much better, so as a founder I would think very carefully about whether Germany is the right location. Furthermore, the rapid development of technology is very difficult to assess, and it is difficult for us investors too. What is current today and seems like a good solution can already be outdated tomorrow. In my opinion, speed is a key criterion for the future and that is not a core competency of Germans.
Munich Startup: In your opinion, what could be improved at Munich as a startup location?
Katja Ruhnke: We need much more Networking and collaboration between the various players. Here, everyone cooks their own soup and has their own group or event. From my observation, this works better in Berlin. There's a larger, shared community there.
Munich Startup: Which investor would you like to meet in person? And what would you ask them?
Katja Ruhnke: Catie Wood from Ark Invest. How she selects investments and where she gets her conviction from. I'd be incredibly interested to know.
