Andrea Reynolds, Founder & CEO of Swoop, joins Gary to break down what founders actually need to know about funding, cash flow and building a business that lasts.
Andrea started Swoop after becoming deeply frustrated by how hard it was for business owners to access grants, loans and funding quickly. What began as anger at a broken system became a fintech platform helping businesses access cash faster, automate funding applications and identify savings across essential services.
In this conversation, Andrea shares the real-world funding lessons most founders only learn the hard way: why you should raise debt before you need it, why revenue solves more problems than almost anything else, how to think about investors properly, and why profitability matters more than hype.
She also opens up about building under pressure, raising millions across multiple rounds, expanding internationally, surviving market shocks, and why empathy is still her most important business principle.
If you’re a founder, operator or business owner trying to grow without losing control, this one is packed with practical insight.
Show notes
Andrea Reynolds is the Founder & CEO of Swoop, a fintech platform helping businesses access funding faster through data, automation and smarter financial decision-making.
In this episode, Gary and Andrea discuss:
Why businesses fail when cash flow gets tight
The original frustration that sparked Swoop
How Andrea manually tested demand before building the product
Winning early funding through timing, momentum and experimentation
The open banking opportunity that accelerated Swoop’s growth
What founders get wrong about fundraising
Why you should raise before you actually need the money
The difference between debt, grants and equity
Why some investors can become a liability
How to think about boards, board observers and investor fit
Why diversification matters in a volatile market
The shift from “growth at all costs” to profitability
Expanding from Ireland and the UK into the US and beyond
Building a forever business instead of chasing hype
Andrea’s personal approach to time, energy and staying grounded
The books, habits and mindset shifts that have shaped her
This episode is full of practical advice for founders navigating growth, fundraising and uncertainty.
Links and resources mentioned
Swoop: https://swoopfunding.com/ie/
Enterprise Ireland: https://www.enterprise-ireland.com/en/
Books:
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz
High Output Management by Andrew Grove
The Art of War by Sun Tzu
*Our Sponsors *
Nostra: https://bit.ly/nostra26
Azure: https://bit.ly/azure26
Rory’s Travel Club: https://bit.ly/rorys26
Chartered Capital: https://bit.ly/49ZuFrk
Ireland