Brown Venture Group, the Minneapolis-based venture capital firm focused on financing Black, Latino and Native American-owned tech companies, has secured its first investment partnership as lead investor in a $3 million seed round for Naples Fla.-based transportation-solutions company Ecolution KWH.
The funding will propel Ecolution’s development of a technology called Module Active Response System (MARS), which harnesses vehicles’ wasted kinetic energy and turns it into electricity — thus potentially offsetting the carbon emissions from the vehicle. MARS is patented in the U.S., and Ecolution is trying to secure patents in Japan, Korea, China and Germany as well.
Brown Venture CEO Paul Campbell said that securing the partnership is a big step forward for his company.
“I think it’s a really big deal that we landed Ecolution,” said Chris Brooks, Brown Venture founding partner. “I think part of what will be achieved through this partnership is we will get an increased credibility in the space and in the field.”
Ecolution approached Brown Venture about a deal shortly after the Business Journal first profiled the venture firm in August. The companies went public with the agreement last week, though Brown Venture declined to disclose how much of the $3 million plans to chip into the deal.
“Our partnership with Brown Venture Group will empower our customers to generate, store and distribute sustainable energy,” said Johanne Medina Then, CEO of Ecolution. “As a minority-controlled business, we understand the challenges in bringing ground-breaking ideas to life. Partnering with Brown Venture Group allows us to take that important first step. We will soon begin to save our planet.”
Brown Venture, which anticipates raising $50 million for its inaugural fund by the end of the first quarter of next year, is hoping that securing this deal will help it land more investment partners, both locally and across the nation.
Campbell is hoping Brown Venture will reach more entrepreneurs of color involved in tech in the Twin Cities, he said. The company believes it can change the area’s narrative around race from police brutality and wealth disparity to one of success. The key to doing that, Campbell said, is to tell the Twin Cities business community that they shouldn’t try to do things “for” entrepreneurs of color, but should instead strive to work “with” them.
“People think about George Floyd and how we can come back from that. I think we have a real opportunity to think through solutions,” Campbell said. “We think we have a tremendous regional advantage here in the Twin Cities and one that’s been historically underutilized.
“As leaders become more intentional with working with us, we’ll see all of our communities prosper.”
