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Fund for South LA Founders

The best ideas have never been bound by zip codes. But access to the capital needed to scale them is not equal – especially for Black and Latinx entrepreneurs.

That’s why we launched the Fund for South LA Founders – with help from our members, we’re raising $500,000 in non-equity funding for Black and Latinx-led businesses.

Announcing the PledgeLA + Grid110 Winter Cohort

These innovative leaders and their businesses comprise the PledgeLA + Grid110 Winter Cohort:

JONATHAN KINNARD

FOUNDER
Coffee Del Mundo

SHILOH JOHNSON

FOUNDER
ComplYant

MICAH JACKSON

FOUNDER
Esqapes Immersive Relaxation

MICHELLE HENG

CO-FOUNDER
Everlaunch

CHEYENNE BROWN

CO-FOUNDER
Fun-Diggity
Funnel-Cakes

GUADALUPE TLATENCHI

FOUNDER
GTLA Apparel Development

KRISTINA JONES

FOUNDER
Guardian Lane

CREIGHTON TAYLOR

FOUNDER
Guided Compass

BRYAN OVALLE & ARUN GUNASEKARAN

CO-FOUNDERS
JUMPWatts

TERELL & MARISA JOHNSON

CO-FOUNDERS
LA Create Sp_ce

GABRIEL GAMEZ & ENRIQUE LOYOLA

CO-FOUNDERS
On The Go LA

JAMES JONES

FOUNDER
Ownors Technologies Inc.

JAZZI McGILBERT

FOUNDER
Reparations Club LLC

TREY BROWN & GARRICK MITCHELL

CO-FOUNDERS
Ride FRSH

EZINNE IROANYA-ADEOYE

FOUNDER
SKNMUSE

NADIYAH WARD

FOUNDER
Snojo

CRAIG BOWERS

CO-FOUNDER
South LA Beverage Company

OLYMPIA AUSET

FOUNDER
SÜPRMARKT

DENISE PINES

CO-FOUNDER
Tea Botanics

BRANCHÉ FOSTON

FOUNDER
The Honey Block

Finalist Judges

Our incredible panel of judges brings diverse experience from tech, philanthropy, venture capital, and social impact. They’ve helped us select our innovative companies poised to thrive:

Beatriz AcevedoPresident of Acevedo Foundation and Co-founder of Suma Wealth
Beatriz Acevedo
President of Acevedo Foundation and Co-founder of Suma Wealth
Taj Ahmad ElridgeSenior Director of Investments, LACI
Taj Ahmad Elridge
Senior Director of Investments, LACI
Anna BarberManaging Director, Techstars
Anna Barber
Managing Director, Techstars
Marsha BonnerSenior Director of Programs, Community Grantmaking & Special Initiatives, Annenberg Foundation
Marsha Bonner
Senior Director of Programs, Community Grantmaking & Special Initiatives, Annenberg Foundation
Noramay CadenaCo-founder & Managing Partner, MiLA Capital
Noramay Cadena
Co-founder & Managing Partner, MiLA Capital
Eyana CarballoGlobal Commercial Strategy & Intellectual Property, BCG Digital Ventures
Eyana Carballo
Global Commercial Strategy & Intellectual Property, BCG Digital Ventures
Sarah ChamblessPartner, Fenwick & West
Sarah Chambless
Partner, Fenwick & West
Joe FernandezCo-founder & CEO, Joymode
Joe Fernandez
Co-founder & CEO, Joymode
Kobie FullerGeneral Partner, Upfront Ventures
Kobie Fuller
General Partner, Upfront Ventures
Marcos GonzalezManaging Partner, Vamos Ventures
Marcos Gonzalez
Managing Partner, Vamos Ventures
Al GuerreroManaging Director, Silicon Valley Bank
Al Guerrero
Managing Director, Silicon Valley Bank
JoHannah HarringtonCo-Founder/Advisor, Stat Zero
JoHannah Harrington
Co-Founder/Advisor, Stat Zero
Ed Jean-LouisPartner, Tale Venture Partners
Ed Jean-Louis
Partner, Tale Venture Partners
Nick KimPrincipal, Crosscut Ventures
Nick Kim
Principal, Crosscut Ventures
Lauryn NwankpaHead of Social Impact, Dave
Lauryn Nwankpa
Head of Social Impact, Dave
Qiana PattersonVP of Strategic Development, HopSkipDrive
Qiana Patterson
VP of Strategic Development, HopSkipDrive
Cody PetersonStartup/VC Attorney, Gunderson Dettmer
Cody Peterson
Startup/VC Attorney, Gunderson Dettmer
Sofia RamosAnalyst, Vamos Ventures
Sofia Ramos
Analyst, Vamos Ventures
Lilly RochaCEO & Executive Director, LA Latino Chamber of Commerce
Lilly Rocha
CEO & Executive Director, LA Latino Chamber of Commerce
Joe RouzanPresident, Vermont Slauson Economic Development Corporation
Joe Rouzan
President, Vermont Slauson Economic Development Corporation
Aria SafarPlatform Partner, Nike Valiant Labs
Aria Safar
Platform Partner, Nike Valiant Labs
Jessica SalinasFounding Partner and VP, Venture Ops & New Media, Stat Zero
Jessica Salinas
Founding Partner and VP, Venture Ops & New Media, Stat Zero
April SandiferProgram Manager, Slate-Z
April Sandifer
Program Manager, Slate-Z
Derek SmithFounder, Plug In South LA
Derek Smith
Founder, Plug In South LA
Rick SmithFounder & Managing Director, Crosscut Ventures
Rick Smith
Founder & Managing Director, Crosscut Ventures
Anastasia Tarpeh-EllisCo-Founder, Bosa
Anastasia Tarpeh-Ellis
Co-Founder, Bosa

Support the Fund

Join us as a sponsor of the Fund — every dollar donated goes directly into the hands of our founders.
DONATE NOW
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Our Sponsors

Core Partners – $50,000+
Series “C” Champions – $10,000+
Anonymous
Series “B” Backers – $5,000+
bonfire-ventures
Assia Grazioli
Joseph Jones
Spencer Rascoff
Series “A” Advocates – $2,500+
Angel Sponsors – $1,000+
Beatriz Acevedo
Patricia Arvielo
Austin Clements
Lucas Dickey
Kate Edwards & Joey Serxner
Eytan Elbaz
Kobie Fuller
Qiana Patterson
Jared Rouppet
Calvin Selth
Rick Smith
Chris Williams

Our Partners

The PledgeLA + Grid110 Winter Cohort

After receiving more than 200 applications from South LA founders, we’ve selected 20 innovative companies to be part of the new PledgeLA + Grid110 Winter Cohort, where each will receive:

  • Three months of tailored training & support
  • Mentorship from other LA founders and investors
  • $25,000 in non-dilutive funding

FAQ

Founders and businesses should have a clear connection to South LA (AKA South Central) and adjoining neighborhoods and cities, such as Inglewood, Compton, South Gate, etc.

The economic impacts of COVID-19 have had a disproportionate impact on Black and Latinx communities, already facing generations of systemic under-investment. In LA, only 6% of venture capital investments go to Latinx founders, and only 7% go to Black founders. In our nation’s largest county with such a wealth of diverse talent, we know we can do better.

The PledgeLA + Grid110 Winter Cohort training will run from January 4 to March 26, 2021. Weekly meetings will take place on either Wednesday mornings or Thursday evenings, depending on the specific needs of the final cohort. COVID-19 Planning: At this time, we are planning to host training sessions virtually. We’ll update this as the city recommendations for COVID-19 continue to evolve.
Each week of training consists of 2 hours of facilitated sessions (required), plus additional time for office hours (highly recommended). This makes for a weekly commitment of about 2-4 hours. Like anything, you get what you put in. This program is designed to allow you to focus on running the day to day operations of your business, while layering in support where needed to help you meet key milestones.
With the exception of non-profit organizations, we welcome applications from any field, sector, or industry. Knowledge and skills taught and reviewed during the program are applicable and transferable to ideas from all sectors & industries. While most businesses are tech enabled, you do not necessarily need to be a “tech company” to be considered. We’re open to companies across a wide range of products/services: SaaS, mobile apps, e-commerce, CPG, food, social enterprises, fashion, B2B software, health/wellness, AI, sports, beauty.
We do look for companies that have at least an MVP (an early product that customers can use) with evidence of traction (users, revenue, or funding). As stated previously, companies should not have raised more than $250,000 from any source. The majority of companies selected for the program will be live with their product or service, but we will make exceptions for promising products/founders. The founder/co-founders should be prepared to work full time on their venture.

Mentors and advisors come from PledgeLA’s network of tech companies and venture capital firms. We’ll be matching each company selected with mentors relevant to their specific needs.

Because this program is focused on founders, only the founder and one additional co-founder are invited to participate in the weekly cohort programming. If your team has more than two members, please contact [email protected] for more information.

Below are some of the essay questions we’d like to highlight in our application to help you prepare (3-4 sentences max / 500 characters):

Essay Questions (Required)

  1. What problem is your company solving, and why is it important?
  2. How will you use the $25k funding to help take your business to the next level?
  3. How is your company connected to the South LA community?
  4. Beyond the $25k, what would you like to get out of this program and community?


Video Component (Optional, but Recommended)

Introduce yourself and your company. What would you want the companies in your cohort to know about you? (2 minutes)

Contact us with any other questions at [email protected].

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