Starting up is one thing; building a business that lasts is another.

That is no small undertaking. In our view, the journey from start-up to established medium-sized company is the most challenging phase in a company’s life. It requires significant investment up front: in production, quality, and the people who make both possible. This was the focus of the third Marondo Investor Day, which brought together investors, leaders of medium-sized companies, representatives from the security and defence industry, the German Armed Forces, policymakers, and industry associations at the Noerr Conference Centre in Munich.

Zippermast on the panel

Our CEO, Frank Woodcock, joined the panel “Private Capital for Defence, Dual-Use and Critical Infrastructure Companies”, alongside Dr Markus Schillo (European Investment Fund), Dr Florian Becker (Noerr), and Dr Thomas Burkart (Bankhaus Metzler). The panel was moderated by Dr Lisa Morkoetter, Partner at Marondo.

The central question was how companies in the defence and dual-use sectors can reach the scale they need. Demand is there, and order books are full. The challenge is to grow responsibly: building production capacity before orders arrive, establishing quality systems and certifications, attracting skilled employees, and navigating long procurement cycles. This cannot be achieved through a single funding round. It takes investors who are committed for the long term, understand the market, and actively support the journey.

Our own journey

We know this journey from experience. Six years ago, we had three permanent employees. Today, we have 18. ISO 9001 certification gave our quality management system a solid foundation. Through our STAFF programme, Stability for Future, we are systematically strengthening the maturity of our systems. Most recently, we successfully passed EMC testing in accordance with MIL-STD-461G. Each of these steps was an investment that will pay off over the long term.

Reliability as our benchmark

Ultimately, what matters is what reaches our customers. Armed forces and critical infrastructure operators need partners they can rely on for many years, in terms of quality, delivery performance, and service. We hold ourselves to that standard, and it guides our continued development.

One idea ran through all the panels that day: the political will is there, and so is the technology. What matters is how reliably capabilities make it into operational use. Patient private capital can help bridge that gap.

We would like to thank Marondo for organising the event, as well as the partners Noerr, Rödl, Bankhaus Metzler, and PwC Germany. We are also grateful to all the panellists for the open and practical discussion.