Magda Markosyan

Magda MarkosyanJul 17, 2026

I'll be joining Seaside Startup Summit as a mentor July 30–August 1, and another thing I always look forward to is the conversations outside the sessions. If you're a founder, investor, entrepreneur, operator or simply someone who enjoys exchanging ideas, let's grab a coffee. Whether you want to discuss startups, branding, partnerships, fundraising, scaling, or just reconnect, I'd be happy to meet. And if we've only known each other online, this might be the perfect time to finally say hello. Send me a DMs, or just stop me if you see me around. See you by the lake. #SevanStartupSummit #Mentorship #Startups #Entrepreneurship #Innovation Seaside Startup Summit

Magda MarkosyanJul 30, 2026

Every mentoring session reminds me that experience isn't about having all the answers. At Seaside Startup Summit I had around 10 minutes with each founder. No preparation. No deep knowledge of their product. Just a brief pitch, followed by questions they hoped would help shape decisions about product, branding, positioning or marketing. It's a surprisingly demanding exercise. You have to listen intensely, identify what actually matters, ignore everything that doesn't, and offer advice that can create clarity in just a few minutes. I came in running on only 3.5 hours of sleep. Yet somewhere between the first startup and the last, something shifted. Instead of getting more tired, I became more energized. That's probably my favorite part of mentoring. You give your experience away, but somehow you leave with even more than you brought. Every year I come back to Seaside Startup Summit, and every year it's a completely different experience. Thank you to every founder who trusted me with those ten minutes. I hope at least one idea from our conversations stays with you long after the summit. #SeasideStartupSummit #Mentorship #Startups #BrandStrategy #Product #Marketing #Entrepreneurship #Advisor

Magda MarkosyanJun 19, 2026

Some partnerships end badly. Some end quietly. And some, if you are lucky and intentional enough, simply transform. 7-8 years ago, Diana and I separated our professional paths. She was my co-founder, my business partner, and the person who stood back to back with me through some of the most intense, uncertain, and formative years of building MAROG. Before we founded the company, we had made one very important decision: no matter what happens in business, our friendship should never become collateral damage. It sounds simple when you say it out loud. In reality, it is not always easy. Letting your co-founder and your buddy go is not easy. Especially when you have built something together, fought through things together, grown up professionally together. But sometimes the best thing you can do for someone is to let them follow the path that is right for them. And I am proud that years later, we are still here. Different roads, different businesses, different chapters but the same feeling that we have each other’s back. Today Diana Oganesian is building New Norm with her co-founder. I have nothing to do with the company, and this is not “my” journey. But I decided to make a small contribution to it as an early-stage investor. It is not a huge investment. I will not become a billionaire from it :) But that is not the point. The point is that some relationships are bigger than the businesses we build together. Some partnerships don’t end, they evolve into respect, support, and quiet belief in each other’s next chapter. And honestly, that feels like one of the better returns on investment. P.S. Thanks to eqwefy this investment was smooth and easy.