Dean McEvoy is the Managing Partner at Stanley St Advisors, where he focuses on scaling technology companies and advising on corporate venture investments. He co-founded Spreets, Australia's first group buying site, which was sold to Yahoo7 for $40 million 11 months after its launch.
He has made more than 150 startup investments, including in unicorns like Canva and Zoox, through Startmate and Blackbird Ventures. A founding investor and mentor at Startmate, he has been recognised as the "Most Valuable Mentor" by Startmate and played a key role in establishing the Sydney Startup Hub.
In Day One's History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem, he talked about egos and startups and the early days of Spreets.
4 episodes
Start hereDean McEvoy on egos and startupsHis full interview, covering building and selling Spreets and how ego affects founders.
Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem With Jodie Fox, Alfred Lo, Hamish Hawthorn, Cameron Adams, Evan Thornley, John Allsopp, Malcolm Turnbull, Ian Gardiner, Mick Liubinskas, Matt Barrie, Mark Pesce, Phil Hayes-St Clair, Simon Thomsen, Phil Morle, Silvia Pfeiffer, Alan Noble, Niki Scevak, Alan Jones
Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem With Simon Thomsen, Tim Boyle, David Burt, Rachel Yang, Sarah Pearson, Bruce Tulloch, Cheryl Mack, Lucinda Hartley, Joshua Flannery, Megan Sebben, Alex Scandurra, Phil Ireland, Julie Trell, Peter Devine, Craig Swann, Colette Grgic, Pete Horsley, Aaron Birkby, Annie Parker, Paul Bassat, Maxine Sherrin, Malcolm Turnbull, James Alexander, Melissa Widner, Hamish Hawthorn, Lauren Capelin
Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem With Mark Pesce, Steve Grace, Eloise Hall, Isobel Marshall, Darryl Lyons, Megan Sebben, Phil Ireland, Wayne Gerard, Sam Jockel, Samantha Finnegan, Arthur Sinodinos, Peter Devine, Tim Fung, Peter Tippett, Trevor Folsom, Moira Were, Kate Jones, Daniel Flynn, Mick Liubinskas, Peter Bradd, Rachael Neumann, Chad Renando, Annie Parker, Aaron Birkby, Rachel Yang, Melissa Widner, Sarah Pearson, Colin Kinner, Lauren Capelin, Bruce Tulloch, Matt Barrie, Kate Cornick, Cheryl Mack, Andrea Gardiner, Niki Scevak
The History of the Australian Startup Ecosystem - Interview Series Recorded as Startup founder and angel investor, Spreets
Key moments from Dean McEvoy on egos and startups.
“It's the people who have this real authentic connection with a problem that tend to make the best startups.”
“If you're a company that's not actually improving the world in the future, you won't survive.”
“If you're not ashamed of the first version, you're waiting too long to launch things.”
Managing Partner · Stanley St Advisors
Co-founder · Spreets
Founder · Booking Angel
Co-founder · TechSydney
Founder · IconPark.com
Founder · Binary Investments
Sources: deanmcevoy.com
Adam SpencerHost, Documentary: The History Of The Australian Startup Ecosystem 
Jodie FoxCo-founder & former Chief Creative Officer, Shoes of Prey 
Alfred LoChief Commercial & Product Officer, Harvest B 
Hamish HawthornVP Corporate Development, Propeller Aero 
Cameron AdamsCo-founder & Chief Product Officer, Canva 
Evan ThornleyCo-Founder & CEO, LongView 
John AllsoppCo-Founder, Large Language Law 
Malcolm TurnbullFormer Prime Minister of Australia Spot something wrong? Suggest a correctionUpdated 29 October 2026
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