Melissa Pegus, Managing Director of Techstars Atlanta Powered by J.P. Morgan, joins ChedHER to discuss how they are supporting diverse and traditionally overlooked entrepreneurs, and the challenges these entrepreneurs often have to overcome.

chedHER

How Techstars is Investing in Founders for the Future

joining us now, Melissa PGA's Managing director of Techstars, Atlanta powered by Jpmorgan Melissa. So good to have you on the show. Tell us more about the mission of techstars, Thanks so much for having me. So, Techstars began with three simple ideas first, entrepreneurs can create a better future for everyone. Collaboration drives innovation and great ideas can come from anywhere. And so today our mission is to enable everyone on the planet to contribute to and benefit from entrepreneurs success. And we know techstars recently partnered up with Jpmorgan to invest $80 million dollars in diverse entrepreneurs. That sounds amazing. So what's in store for the partnership? So when we were looking for a partner to lead a diversity focused accelerator, Jpmorgan, uh, they assessed several early stage startup industry leaders and they found no one else like techstars who had our level of program development, a vast and deep network or the financial results with regards to our funded accelerators with corporate relationships. Um, Jpmorgan is also currently a trusted multiyear partner with Techstars on another program, Women on the move, which is a fan catalyst program advancing entrepreneurship for early stage of women entrepreneurs. And so for Jpmorgan it was really about changing the entire ecosystem because while talent is distributed equally, we know that opportunity is not so for us and our partners, we know that backing diverse founders leads to a reinvestment in their communities and expanding access for for others. Well, so what kind of challenges and hurdles do the founders that you're working with often face, are there specific trends or themes that you see emerging right now? So across all startups there, the common challenges that they face that range from uh, building the right team, product design, customer sales raising capital and then there's a nuance of the specific challenges that diverse founders will encounter. So access to network and specifically access to funds, they have a much harder time raising capital. And so these are the areas that we're really excited about leaning in and supporting our founders. In addition, specifically with techstars Atlanta powered by Jpmorgan, we endeavor to help our founders with two things. So first their go to market acceleration and then second preparing for a successful fundraise. Okay, those, those are a few things. If there are any founders or business leaders out there, who are watching this, what kinds of startups are you looking for to participate? And who specifically is this program designed for? So our program is open to founders of all backgrounds. The Techstars Atlanta Accelerator powered by JPMorgan is designed to provide equitable access to funding and support for black Hispanic and latino, indigenous indigenous american and pacific islander entrepreneurs, uh specifically who are building the future of commerce, technology, consumer brands and platforms and the creator economy. So if you the programs open to founders of all backgrounds and if you're building in one of our target industry areas, we'd love to work with you and help you on your founders journey. It's so exciting and we know this partnership began in 2021, it's been just a short time so far between techstars and Jpmorgan, but what kind of impact has it had to date? What kind of entrepreneurs have you helped to succeed? Absolutely. We've already seen amazing results and wins from the 40 women who participated in our first two cohorts of founders catalyst. Um and again, that's a partnership with Techstars and JPMorgan across Atlanta and D. C. And as a result, we're really excited to continue the momentum in Miami as well as in the Bay Area later this year. The previous three Techstars, founder catalyst programs in partnership with J. B. Morrigan led to nearly 1000 mentor connections for product launches, more than $850,000 raised and dozens of active investor conversations that are currently ongoing. Uh, seven of those participants were also accepted into the Techstars accelerators following program completion. So, in addition to the pre accelerated program, Jpmorgan and Techstars and more broadly announced the $80 million commitment um where we're really looking to unlock untapped potential and traditionally overlooked entrepreneurs in nine U. S. Cities including Miami. So we're excited to grow that momentum and open up more opportunities for founders to grow through this initiative. And though through founder's pack catalyst and through the Techstars accelerator, we only have, I would say a relative small number of slots for entrepreneurs, relative to the demand. We still see a ton of benefit to the communities that we're in, um through our programming through our overall investor and mentor support. Overall, our goal is to be a rising tide that raises all ships for entrepreneurs across the U. S. And around the world. I love that. And speaking of that rising tide, it's a really challenging time for founders, especially women founders right now. What is your biggest piece of advice for remaining resilient and nimble in this challenging economy? It's currently a challenging economic time for all founders. That that's no lie. And then specifically for women founders, specifically for founders of color. And I think the good news is that the industry is turning and recognizing that diversity is a competitive advantage and overall um embracing of founders who come from all walks of life. And so are number one sort of tip in terms of resilience, I actually think it's twofold. So first, um find those networks and investors and supporters who want to help because they are there. I always say in times of challenging times, look for the helpers and then secondarily really focus on your customer and the needs that you're serving and the mission behind your business. Because if you say focused on your mission, there's no way that you won't win. All Great notes, that's Melissa PGAs, Managing Director of Techstars Atlanta powered by Jpmorgan