Key Takeaways
- • Costco Wholesale Corporation (Nasdaq: COST) invested $1 million in Fearless Fund, a venture capital fund built by and for women of color, according to a Business Wire release dated February 9, 2021.
- • Fearless Fund, launched in 2019, targets pre-seed, seed and Series A financings for women of color-led businesses in tech, CPG, beauty and fashion, with a goal of investing in more than 40 startups.
- • The Costco commitment follows recent investments from PayPal and Bank of America, and the fund says it expects to continue expanding its investor base.
Summary
Costco Wholesale Corporation has committed $1 million to Fearless Fund, a venture capital firm that describes itself as the first VC fund built by women of color for women of color, according to a Business Wire announcement issued from New York. The investment is presented as support for the fund's mission to address the funding gap that women of color founders face in venture capital.
Fearless Fund was launched in 2019 and invests in women of color-led businesses seeking pre-seed, seed or Series A financing. The firm aims to bridge the gap in venture capital for female founders of color building scalable, growth-oriented companies. The Fearless Fund team also operates The Fearless Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization focused on entrepreneurial education, reducing racial inequities and expanding African-American access to capital, along with the Get Ready Venture Program, a 12-month training initiative for women of color business owners covering training, mentorship and capital-access skills.
General Partner and Co-Founder Arian Simone said the Costco investment reflects that large corporations are recognizing the undervalued potential of women of color founders and are willing to help close the venture funding gap. The announcement notes that Costco's investment follows recent investments from PayPal and Bank of America. Costco President and CEO Craig Jelinek said the company applauds the fund's efforts to provide venture capital to women of color-led businesses.
The fund's current portfolio includes founders and companies such as Roshawnna Novellus of EnrichHER, Alicia Scott of Range Beauty, Angel Lenise, Montre Moore, Phyllicia Phillips of AMP Beauty, Tracey Pickett of HairBrella, Angela Benton of Streamlytics and Sheena Allen of Capway. Fearless Fund has a stated goal of investing in more than 40 women of color-founded startups across the technology, consumer packaged goods, beauty and fashion sectors. The release does not disclose the fund's total size.
Fearless Fund was launched in 2019 and invests in women of color-led businesses seeking pre-seed, seed or Series A financing. The firm aims to bridge the gap in venture capital for female founders of color building scalable, growth-oriented companies. The Fearless Fund team also operates The Fearless Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization focused on entrepreneurial education, reducing racial inequities and expanding African-American access to capital, along with the Get Ready Venture Program, a 12-month training initiative for women of color business owners covering training, mentorship and capital-access skills.
General Partner and Co-Founder Arian Simone said the Costco investment reflects that large corporations are recognizing the undervalued potential of women of color founders and are willing to help close the venture funding gap. The announcement notes that Costco's investment follows recent investments from PayPal and Bank of America. Costco President and CEO Craig Jelinek said the company applauds the fund's efforts to provide venture capital to women of color-led businesses.
The fund's current portfolio includes founders and companies such as Roshawnna Novellus of EnrichHER, Alicia Scott of Range Beauty, Angel Lenise, Montre Moore, Phyllicia Phillips of AMP Beauty, Tracey Pickett of HairBrella, Angela Benton of Streamlytics and Sheena Allen of Capway. Fearless Fund has a stated goal of investing in more than 40 women of color-founded startups across the technology, consumer packaged goods, beauty and fashion sectors. The release does not disclose the fund's total size.
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