How do I build a founder community when I'm building outside the big startup hubs and don't have a local scene?
The short answer
Start online-first and lean on the whole country or region, because you are not limited to who lives in your city anymore, and a weekly video call can knit together founders across ten towns. Anchor it in a shared, specific problem (fundraising outside metros, hiring remote engineers) so people feel seen rather than generically networked. Then convert online momentum into small in-person meetups when there is enough local density to make one worthwhile.
Go deeper, your way
3 hand-picked resources, 3 link-checked. Pick how you want to dig in.
▶️ Video
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Why we picked it
EChai started as casual chai meetups in Ahmedabad in 2009 and grew into a founder network running weekly events across 25+ cities, most of them well outside the obvious startup centres. This conversation is a concrete look at how that multi-city model actually holds together, run by local hosts and repeatable rituals rather than one big hub. If you are building where the scene is thin, it is a working example of doing it city by city instead of waiting to move.
Why we picked it
Justin Jackson builds from Vernon, a small town in British Columbia, not a metro tech hub, and he started the MegaMaker community specifically because indie makers were isolated and had nobody local to talk to. His shows are a first-person account of turning an online-first audience into a real peer group, which is the exact bind you are in when there is no scene at your doorstep. Start with any MegaMaker or Build your SaaS episode where he talks about finding your people online.
On
justinjackson.caby Justin JacksonOngoing show, episodes ~30 to 60 min
You can build a genuine founder circle without a local scene by going online-first and being consistent, which is how MegaMaker grew from a small town.
Community often starts as a byproduct of showing up in public (a podcast, a newsletter) rather than as a launch event you have to fill.
Isolation is the real problem to solve, so optimize for a small group of people who actually talk to each other over a big list that does not.
Why we picked it
From the founder of CMX and author of The Business of Belonging, a practical framework for deciding whether to build community and tying it to real business goals.
