Fearless Fund and the Tory Burch Foundation continue their partnership to boost women of color entrepreneurs by awarding grants ranging from $10,000 to $20,000. In mid-July 75 women of color-owned small businesses will learn of their grant awards and be given access to a “self-paced learning portal and peer-to-peer community networking.”
Fearless Fund was founded in 2019 by with the mission of bridging the gap in venture capital funding for female founders of color building scalable, growth-aggressive companies. The Fund is dedicated to WOC-led businesses seeking pre-seed, seed level, or series A financing.
The Fund identified an important need of all women-owned businesses. While they continue to rise, disparities remain great with only 2% of women-owned startups generating $1 million in revenue, while men are 3.5 times more likely to achieve that number. Timely access to capital hopefully changes these statistics and in particular Women of Color Entrepreneurs who face even greater hurdles.
The Fearless Foundation is 501c3 organization that is also run by the Fearless Fund team. The Foundation fulfill multiple needs: education and skills training of entrepreneurs, reducing racial inequities, and empowering African-Americans to gain access to capital. The Get Ready Venture Program is a 12-month training program for WOC business owners that addresses those needs with also the addition of mentorship and and a path forward to gain access to capital.
Applications are open for Women of Color Entrepreneurs until Friday, April 28. To learn more about the program and how to apply, visit the Fearless Fund’s website at https://www.fearless.fund/tory-burch-foundation. Accepted grantees will be notified in July 2023.
The “3rd Annual Fearless Fund VC Summit” will be held August 18-19, 2023.
