TMS Teddy Ruge overlooking Kampala
The Founder's Sprint · Uganda
Turn your idea into
a strategy for growth.

A 5-week clarity programme for first-time founders — guided by the co-founder of Hive Colab, founder of Raintree Farms, and mentor to over 250 businesses.

Reserve Your Spot See the programme
250+
Businesses
Mentored
10
Years Founding &
Running Raintree Farms
$1.5M
Raised in
Funding
Now Enrolling
May 5 — Jun 6
May 2026 Cohort
Jun 9 — Jul 11
June 2026 Cohort
Who It's For

Built for Uganda's
next generation of builders.

01
Idea-Stage Founders

You have a business idea you believe in but don't know how to structure it, validate it, or turn it into a real plan.

02
MVP-Stage Startups

You've built something but struggle with go-to-market strategy, customer clarity, or articulating your value proposition.

03
Stuck or Overwhelmed

Lots of hustle, no clear traction. You're spinning in circles and need structured, focused guidance — fast.

04
First-Time Founders

No business school background or investor network. You need practical coaching grounded in the African context.

The Programme

Five focused weeks.
Real progress every session.

Each session builds toward a concrete deliverable. By Week 5, you won't just feel clearer — you'll have the documents, the strategy, and the story to prove it.

01
Week One
Idea Clarity & Founder Mindset

Move from vague idea to a clearly articulated problem worth solving. Build the founder mindset to navigate uncertainty.

Problem Statement
02
Week Two
Customer Discovery & Market Sizing

Stop guessing. Conduct real interviews and calculate a market size that investors take seriously.

Persona + TAM/SAM/SOM
03
Week Three
Go-to-Market Strategy

Shift from building to selling. A concrete plan for acquiring your first customers using channels that work in Uganda.

90-Day GTM Plan
04
Week Four
Branding, Pricing & Business Model

Build a brand that resonates and a pricing strategy grounded in real value — not guesswork.

Brand Guide + Pricing
05
Week Five · In Person
Pitch, Story & Launch Readiness

Craft a compelling investor story. Deliver it on Pitch Day in Kampala. Leave ready to build.

Pitch Day · Kampala
TMS Ruge
TMS Ruge Entrepreneur · Ecosystem Builder
Your Mentor

TMS Ruge

TMS Ruge is a Ugandan entrepreneur, writer, and ecosystem builder. He is one of the founding forces behind Hive Colab, Uganda's pioneering innovation hub, through which he has mentored over 250 businesses across East Africa.

As founder of Raintree Farms — an agribusiness he has led for over a decade, raising more than USD 1.5M in funding — he brings real operator experience to every founder he works with. He writes about Africa's development and entrepreneurship for CNN, The Guardian, The New York Times, The Globe and Mail, and NPR.

250+ Businesses Mentored
$1.5M Capital Raised
10+ Years Operator
2012 White House Champion of Change
  • Co-Founder, Hive Colab — Uganda's first innovation hub
  • Founder & CEO, Raintree Farms — agribusiness from seed to scale
  • Published commentator on Africa's development & innovation
As Seen In
CNN The Guardian New York Times The Globe & Mail NPR How We Made It In Africa
Pricing

Three tracks.
One programme.

Choose the level of support that matches where you are and how fast you want to move. Every track includes the full 5-week curriculum and resource library.

01
Group Track

Group
Mentoring

For founders who thrive in community and peer learning

UGX 500K
Per 5-week cohort
  • 5 weekly group coaching sessions (2 hrs each)
  • Full 5-week guided curriculum
  • All templates, checklists & Founder Workbook
  • Weekly group office hours with Teddy
  • Private WhatsApp founder community
  • All recorded sessions + bonus library
  • In-person Pitch Day, Kampala
Reserve a Spot — Group

Max 10 founders per cohort

02
Most Popular · 1-on-1 Track

One-on-One
Coaching

For founders who want direct, personalised guidance every week

UGX 1.5M
Per 5-week cohort
  • Everything in Group Track, plus:
  • Weekly private 30-min coaching call (Mon–Thurs)
  • Personalised feedback on all startup materials
  • Priority WhatsApp support between sessions
  • Custom action plan for your business
  • Direct pitch deck review before Pitch Day
Reserve a Spot — 1-on-1

Max 10 founders per cohort

03
Maximum 2 Founders · Direct Access

Founder
VIP

For founders already in motion — who want direct, unfiltered access

UGX 5M
Sprint + 2-month retained partnership
  • Everything in 1-on-1 Track, plus:
  • 2 months post-sprint retained coaching (120 min/month)
  • Personal brand & LinkedIn strategy review
  • Investor network introductions where relevant
  • Direct line to Teddy — 48-hr response commitment
  • Access to Hive Colab ecosystem, events & alumni network
  • Short founder intake brief after deposit — so Day 1 is never wasted on basics
Reserve Your VIP Spot

2 spots per cohort · first deposit secures your place

Cohort Calendar

Reserve your
seat in advance.

Cohorts fill from the VIP track down. A non-refundable 10% deposit holds your spot — balance is due 48 hours before Day 1. Deposits transfer to the next cohort if you can't make your original date.

Deposit is non-refundable · Balance due 48 hrs before Day 1 · Unused deposits transfer to next available cohort

What's Included

Every founder gets
the full resource toolkit.

From day one, you have everything you need. No extra purchases, no upsells. Just the tools built from years of accelerator experience.

01
TAM/SAM/SOM Worksheet

Step-by-step market sizing with Uganda-specific examples and data sources.

02
Customer Persona Builder

Evidence-based persona template built from your real discovery interviews.

03
Go-to-Market Plan Template

90-day GTM canvas with channel, messaging, and success metric fields.

04
Canva Pitch Deck Starter

Pre-designed 7-slide deck template, ready to customise for your startup.

05
The Founder Workbook

Week-by-week exercises and reflection prompts for the full sprint.

06
Recorded Group Sessions

Full recordings of all 5 group sessions to review, revisit, and catch up anytime.

Questions

Frequently
asked.

  • No — you don't need a registered business. You do need a business idea you're actively working on. The Sprint is designed for idea-stage founders and early startups who are already putting in the work. If you have a serious idea and you're moving on it, you're a good fit.
  • Weekly group sessions are held online (Zoom or Google Meet), Tuesdays or Wednesdays 7–9 PM. One-on-one calls are by appointment, Mon–Thursday. The final session is an in-person Pitch Day in Kampala — the one event we strongly encourage all founders to attend.
  • All sessions are recorded and made available to enrolled founders. We ask that you attend at least 4 of the 5 sessions to get the full value and qualify for your completion certificate.
  • We accept MTN Mobile Money and Airtel Money (sent directly to Teddy's Airtel number). Bank transfer details are available on request. We are not currently accepting credit card payments.
  • Yes. You can upgrade from Group to 1-on-1 or VIP within the first week by paying the difference. Use the contact form to arrange this.
  • Each cohort is capped at 10 founders per track. This is intentional — small cohorts mean real attention, intimate group sessions, and Teddy actually knowing your business by Week 5.
Get in Touch

Have a question?
Let's talk.

Tell us what you're working on and we'll get back to you.