KCUVF Hosts First Founders’ Lab Event
KCUVF Hosts First Founders’ Lab Event
Virtual roundtable connecting female and minority founders with venture investors
Kansas City, MO. (November 14, 2020) — On November 11th, 2020, the Kansas City University Venture Fund (KCUVF), successfully hosted the first Founders’ Lab, an event for Kansas City based investors and entrepreneurs, in partnership with Royal Street Ventures and Fountain Innovation Fund.
The idea for Founders’ Lab was imported from London, where Playfair Capital hosts Female Founder Office Hours to address the gender imbalance in venture-backed companies in the UK. KCUVF expanded upon this to include both female and minority founders in the Kansas City area. In its first iteration, Founders’ Lab brought together 11 investors and 26 founders for 57 meetings. KCUVF plans to host a second event in the spring.
“Founders’ Lab promotes access to venture capital for female and underrepresented minority founders. The event rotates founders through three one-on-one sessions with investors, empowering each founder to advance the needs of their business by asking for advice, funding, or introductions,” said KCUVF Associate, Michael Svoren.
As Dan Kerr, Principal at Flyover Capital, said “I was excited to join this event to meet great entrepreneurs that I might not have connected with otherwise. Widening networks and sharing best practices are some of the key ways we can help address funding inequities. It is great to be a part of KCUVF’s effort to ensure the next generation of talented entrepreneurs have the resources to grow their businesses regardless of background.”
Lauren Lawrence, Founder and CEO of Stenovate, said, “As a first-time founder, I’m always looking for words from the wise. The KCUVF Founders’ Lab was a perfect opportunity to get immediate feedback to questions that have been lingering in my mind, all in one quick round robin hour. It was a great way to connect or reconnect with respected VCs and I’m grateful for the opportunity. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
KCUVF, launched in 2017 by Royal Street Ventures with the backing of the Kauffman Foundation, is a scholarship program for local university students which aims to strengthen the Kansas City technology ecosystem by training the next generation of venture and entrepreneurial talent. Each year, 20 students from KU, UMKC, and William Jewell College go through a 12-week curriculum on venture capital, perform due diligence and invest in Seed Stage and Series A financings, and work on projects for portfolio companies.