64% of Americans think there are not enough women in positions of power. If you’re a female small business owner seeking funding, you know first hand that you’re not playing on the same court.
That’s why Serena Williams is not only speaking out about underrepresentations in Silicon Valley but is putting her money where her mouth is. Now that’s a one-two punch.
After years of quietly funding early-stage start-ups, she unveiled Serena Ventures in 2019 to smash more glass ceilings. Even though woman-run, venture-backed businesses perform better, they receive just 7% of venture capital for their startups.
For women of color, that figure drops to less than 1%. She’s on a mission to level another playing field. Here are 30 game-changing start-ups funded by Serena Williams.
1. Andela
Andela is solving global engineering staffing challenges by connecting 77,000 engineers from 60 countries with companies in need. People are no longer limited to the job opportunities in their town, region or country. Andela breaks down the barriers that prevent global talent from finding remote opportunities with top companies.
2. Billie
Billie is a grooming subscription service that puts women, their preferences and needs at the forefront of shaving and simple beauty. They use ingredients that do not harm, work super hard, and take the guesswork out of clean. Paying it forward, they donate 1% of their revenue to support women and important causes worldwide.
3. CoinTracker
Do you own a part of the $1 trillion cryptocurrency market? If you have more than one digital wallet for your various cryptocurrencies, you need an all in one solution to track performance. CoinTracker gives you a tool for a fuller read on your investment gains.
4. Daily Harvest
Daily Harvest is a food delivery company that focuses on organic, thoughtfully sourced fruits and vegetables. They create delicious and nourishing smoothies, soups, oats and lattes, making healthy eating easy for busy lives.
5. Every Mother
Diastasis recti, or abdominal separation, is a common side effect of pregnancy. For some, postpartum treatment is needed to heal the muscles. Every Mother is the only program clinically proven to resolve diastasis recti. This at-home workout solution fits into a busy new mom’s schedule in the comfort of her own home.
6. Flockjay
Flockjay is out to solve underrepresentation in the tech industry and the world’s unemployment challenges in one stroke. They teach you the job skills needed for sales tech positions in ten weeks with online classes and live instructors.
7. Gobble
If you’ve tried some other cook at home meal kits but find the recipes too complicated or time-consuming, Gobble is for you. Gobble’s chefs do all the prep work, like peeling, chopping & marinating, so you can cook a fresh homemade dinner in just 15 minutes.
8. Hello Alice
Hello Alice is a platform upgrading the small business support system for millions of women, minority, immigrant and veteran business owners. It features the first machine learning technology to help business owners by matching them to personalized opportunities and resources.
9. Honeylove
Developed by a professional singer, Honeylove creates shapewear that actually performs, no matter your shape or size. They offer innovative solutions for women that shifts instead of squeezes and actually fights gravity to stay put.
10. Impossible Foods
Some said it wasn’t possible to make appealing plant-based substitutes for meat products. Well, Impossible Foods cracked the code. They create products with a similar taste and nutritional benefits of meat without the health and environmental consequences. You might have seen their signature product, The Impossible Burger, on the menu at your local restaurants.
11. Kopi Kenangan
Taking on the big players, Kopi Kenangan is the fastest-growing non-franchise coffee chain in Indonesia. Seeing an opportunity to focus on Indonesia-style coffee, they already have 200 stores across 18 cities serving 3 million cups a month.
12. Let’s Do This
80% of Americans don’t get enough exercise. Let’s Do This was created to make it easier for people to discover epic experiences. Grab a group of friends or your family and register for an upcoming mass-participation sports event.
13. Little Spoon
Pandemic parenting or not, there’s a lot on parents’ plates today. Little Spoon delivers fresh organic baby food, kid’s meals, vitamins and natural remedies at affordable prices.
14.. Lola
Did you know that feminine hygiene products aren’t required to list all their ingredients on the package? Lola is for you if you’re concerned about regular intimate body exposure to certain chemicals and ingredients. Lola makes period and sexual wellness products without mystery ingredients delivered monthly, so you’re never out.
15. Noom
Despite all the existing aides out there, the U.S. obesity rate is over 40%. Noom uses psychology to help people develop more mindful eating habits via a personalized tool. So far, more than 50 million people have benefited from Noom’s behavior change courses, including its virtual diabetes prevention program, the first of its kind to be recognized by the CDC.
16. Mahmee
Moms and babies are falling through the cracks of our fragmented healthcare system. In the U.S., Black mothers and babies are significantly more likely to die in childbirth and during the first year of life. Mahmee using advancements in technology to connect various health care providers to catch more preventable health issues faster.
17. MasterClass
MasterClass is an online learning platform that disrupts continuing education by providing unparalleled access to A level experts. You can learn from the likes of Issa Rae, Gordon Ramsay, Bobbi Brown, Bob Woodward and Bob Iger.
18. Mayvenn
Mayvenn is now the largest Black-owned hair company in a billion-dollar global industry. By connecting superior, affordable products with an existing network of local salons, they not only provide a better customer experience but put more of these dollars into local communities via small businesses.
19. Neighborhood Goods
Neighborhood Goods is at the forefront of the future of retail. They curate a modern take on the department store, offering customers a place to experience brands and products they’ve only interacted with online. It’s the pop-up shop of Instagram’s dreams.
20. Ollie
72% of pet owners consider their pets to be a part of their family, yet the vast majority of pet food manufactured is not safe for human consumption. Ollie offers a customizable food delivery service for your four-legged family members with fresh food made from real ingredients.
21. OLLY
In a world where the government loosely regulates supplement labels, it can be hard to tell what is proven to help your health and what just tastes good. Enter OLLY. Their vitamins and supplements have real benefits in gummy goodness without artificial flavors or colors.
22. Propel
Propel builds modern, respectful and effective technology that helps low-income Americans improve their financial health. Their app, Fresh EBT, helps more than 4 million users manage and budget their food stamp benefits. Propel is an easy way to check an EBT card balance, transaction history and local deals.
23. Quit Genius
You’re no longer tied to a physician’s office or in-person medical center to get addiction help. Quit Genius is the world’s first technology-enabled digital clinic for multiple addictions. You can tackle nicotine, alcohol and opioid addictions with one dynamic program, accessible through an app.
24. Retail Zipline
Retail Zipline is a communication software tool that helps vendors with store execution, ultimately leading to profitable sales and more stable businesses. As women typically outnumber men in retail jobs, more successful stores mean more employment opportunities for women.
25. Rockets of Awesome
Rockets of Awesome delivers super cool, long-lasting comfortable kid’s clothes. Provide your kids’ preferences, and they use the magic of data science to create a custom box of clothes sent right to your doorstep.
26. S by Serena
S by Serena is a direct-to-consumer independent clothing collection that not only offers an inclusive range of sizes and styles but celebrates body positively.
27. Shopping Gives
Shopping Gives is a social impact e-commerce platform that integrates donations into the shopping experience. Now that a company’s charitable giving affects three-quarters of Americans’ purchase decisions, websites can display their commitments front and center to customers with Shopping Gives.
28. Teespring
Teespring removes all the complications of selling custom merchandise for creators by handling marketing, production, fulfillment and customer service. If you want to monetize your following on YouTube, Instagram, Twitch, Discord or Streamlab, Teespring can make it happen seamlessly.
29. Tonal
Tonal is a connected strength training machine that focuses exclusively on weight training in the comfort of your own home. It uses artificial intelligence to set the weights, track your progress, and challenge you along the way.
As women age, bone density diminishes, causing a range of health issues. Strength training leads to stronger bones improving women’s health and mobility.
30. Wave
On a continent where less than 10% of 1 billion people have a bank account, Wave is on a mission to make Africa the first cashless continent. Most Africans lack access to affordable ways to save, transfer or borrow money to grow businesses or support their families.
Leveraging technology, they created a radically inclusive digital finance platform to help lift millions out of poverty.
This article originally appeared on YourMoneyGeek.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.
Image Credit: zhukovsky/ DepositPhotos
