The startup, founder, employee and investor pool in Richmond doesn't mirror the city and region’s sizable Black and brown population. A new program is meant to expand investment in startups that reflect that demographic.
Activation Capital, the independent state authority that incubates life science and deep technology companies by leasing wet lab space and office space and providing resources and education, has announced a racial equity initiative to expand high growth companies.
The partnership with Atlanta's Opportunity Hub, a technology, startup and venture ecosystem committed to increasing racial equity in the tech economy, is the result of a $100,000 grant from Richmond tobacco company Altria Group Inc. to increase diversity, equity and inclusion programming around Central Virginia and Activation Capital’s work coordinating the area’s Virginia Initiative for Growth & Opportunity.
The equity initiative includes a launch event, a startup masterclass series for up to 100 participants, a monthlong startup bootcamp for up to 50 idea-stage companies with Black or brown founders, a one-week pre-accelerator program and an investor pitch event. The entire program will culminate with a $50,000 investment in a company.
“We're going to be looking at scalable ventures,” said Frank E. Pobutkiewicz, director of entrepreneurship and ecosystem at Activation Capital. “This is really an opportunity to engage the Black, brown, Indigenous population in starting technology-based scalable startups. It's not a small business program. It's really focused on getting folks involved with scalable and investable ventures and building generational wealth through that.”
The pilot program is meant to kick off sustained effort around DEI in Richmond and the larger region.
“We're looking forward to bringing this to market and seeing the community reaction,” said Pobutkiewicz. “Our hope and our goals are to build a series of successive programs and support other organizations around the region that are engaged in this type of work.”
Speakers will include Rodney Sampson, chairman and CEO of Opportunity Hub, and Chandra Briggman, president and CEO of Activation Capital, who said in a statement regional entrepreneurs will benefit from additional connections made outside of the region.