Upstart Chicago venture firm LongJump has announced the first investments from its inaugural fund that aims to back underrepresented founders in Chicago.
LongJump has invested $100,000 each into four startups. It's the fund's initial investments from its first application cycle, which saw nearly 170 applicants. Of those, 91% had at least one minority founder, LongJump says.
LongJump says its goal is to back overlooked and underrepresented founders in Chicago. It aims to be a “first-check” fund for startups, providing needed seed capital to founders who've traditionally struggled to raise funding in a tech industry that still sees the vast majority of startup cash go to white male founders.
Officially launched in March, LongJump has raised more than $5 million to date and plans to continue raising before its first fund closes in the coming months.
The fund is led by six local Chicago tech entrepreneurs: Draftbit co-founder Brian Luerssen, Draftbit COO Tim Grace, Rheaply founder Garry Cooper, 4Degrees co-founder Ablorde Ashigbi, Paladin CEO Kristen Sonday, and A.M. Money co-founder Daniel Rogers.
The fund has more than 180 limited partners, many of whom are local tech and startup executives, including Relativity CEO Mike Gamson, Ocient founder Chris Gladwin, G2 founder Godard Abel, tastytrade co-CEO Kristi Ross and Cameo CEO Steven Galanis.
Here are the four startups that received funding from LongJump:
Founded by three former Trunk Club employees, Bottlecode is helping men find skincare regimens through its online service that matches users with specialized products from brands like Jack Black and Peter Thomas Roth. Its platform suggests products that meet users' needs, helps men learn about different skincare products, and allows users to purchase products via its website.
Sanarai is an online platform that connects the Latino community to mental health professionals to provide culturally sensitive, Spanish-language emotional support at an accessible price. It allows users to schedule remote emotional support sessions and improves access to high-quality mental health services.
Science on Call is a 24/7 subscription-based help desk for family-owned and local restaurants. It offers support for points of sale, internet issues, online ordering and other issues via text message or phone call. The startup was selected to this year's Techstars Farm to Fork accelerator in St. Paul, Minnesota.
STIGMA is a mental health app that enables people to send messages of support to others who share their struggles. Its mission is to reduce loneliness and normalize conversations about mental health by offering people safe spaces to share their stories.
LongJump’s next application cycle closes on October 31.
