If you’re a founder who’s finally closed a pre-seed or seed round, it probably felt like winning a war. Constant pitches. Rejections. Sleepless nights. Now that the money is in, you can breathe a little.
But not for long.
Because the hardest part isn’t raising money. It’s what you do after. And one of the most expensive mistakes you can make is hiring the wrong people too early, too fast, or for the wrong reasons.
In a recent episode of Inside the Round, Chezie co-founder Toby Egbuna shared how he and his sister went from side-hustling their startup to raising $1.2M from grants and VC. His story is honest, familiar, and full of moments most founders won’t talk about publicly — the hiring panic, the missed signals, the pressure to scale before they were ready.
At Bamboo X, we help early-stage startups make smarter hiring moves after the raise. Not when you’ve got everything figured out, but when everything still feels a bit fragile. Here’s what founders can learn from Toby’s journey, and how it connects directly to how you build your team.
Hire With Urgency, Not Panic
Toby’s story makes one thing clear: capital gives you space, but it doesn’t give you clarity. At one point, he was paying himself just enough to get by. The pressure to grow was real. But he didn’t throw money at the first available candidate. He waited until each hire could be tied directly to the work that moved Chezie forward.
If you're feeling the pull to build out a team fast, pause. The goal isn’t to scale your headcount. The goal is to remove blockers, speed up delivery, or tighten your product loop.
At Bamboo X, we work with founders to define what kind of designer, engineer, or operator you actually need right now. Not who you'd hire if you were Series B. Who you need with three months of runway, a scrappy roadmap, and a product that still needs a lot of love.
Fundraising and Hiring Follow the Same Rule: No Process, No Progress
Early on, Toby said he didn’t know what he was doing in fundraising. He reached out to investors without a system, tried to pitch everyone, and wasted valuable time. It wasn’t until he built a structured plan — a list of targets, warm intros, follow-ups, materials ready — that he started gaining traction.
Most founders fall into the same trap with hiring.
They open roles without a clear definition of success. They interview whoever lands in their inbox. They skip the prep, then get frustrated when the results are inconsistent.
Hiring should feel structured, not scattered. We help founders build that process from day one. From writing a job brief that actually reflects your stage, to screening, to closing candidates fast, our systems keep your hiring focused so you’re not losing candidates or momentum.
Your First Hires Shape Everything
One of the most honest parts of Toby’s interview was about spending money. He admitted they made some mistakes, blew a bit of cash, and tried to learn fast. But the costliest mistakes were the ones tied to people.
Hiring isn't a line item. It’s a company-shaping decision.
Early hires will define your culture, your execution speed, your product’s DNA. You can recover from a missed marketing experiment. It's harder to recover from a hire who never should have been on the team.
That’s why we spend real time understanding what kind of person will actually thrive inside your company right now. It’s not just about matching on skills. It’s about finding candidates who are aligned with the chaos, the ambiguity, and the urgency of early-stage life.
It’s Not Weak to Ask for Help. It’s Smart.
Toby talked about how critical founder communities were for his mental health and momentum. Weekly check-ins. Slack groups. Venting sessions. He leaned into those spaces because being a founder is isolating.
Hiring can feel just as lonely.
You’re making big decisions with limited context. You might not know what “great” looks like in a designer or what to expect from a senior engineer. That’s where we come in. We’re not just here to send candidates. We’re here to walk through the decision with you and call out red flags when things look shaky.
Final Thought: The Raise Doesn’t Guarantee Success. Your Team Might.
Toby raised $1.2M. But what changed his business wasn’t the check — it was what he built afterward. Smart hires. Clear processes. A vision he could sell that others wanted to be a part of.
If you’ve just raised, this is your window to build the team that gives your idea a real shot. Not in six months. Not after a few more customers. Now.
That’s the work we do at Bamboo X. We help startups like yours build product, design, and engineering teams that can take the next ten steps without wasting the money you worked so hard to raise.
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