HOW WOMEN LEAD LAUNCHES THE NEW TABLE CAMPAIGN TO BRING 10,000 WOMEN INTO VENTURE INVESTING

Aiming to Disrupt The Venture Capital Landscape

SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- How Women Lead, the network of 20,000 corporate leaders driving women's representation in positions of power, influence, and wealth, today unveils the future of venture capital: The New Table Campaign. The campaign's mission is simple—disrupt the venture capital landscape by inspiring women to invest in venture capital funds who invest in women founders. In 2022, only 2.1% of venture funding went to women-founded companies—a number unchanged after a decade of data tracking outsized returns by women founders and the new entrants to venture, women fund managers. The organization decided to take matters into its own hands and activate women's wealth and influence to change the landscape. The New Table campaign goal is to bring 10,000 women into venture capital investing to close the large funding gap for companies founded by women. In celebration of the launch, How Women Lead will be ringing the bell at NASDAQ on Friday, June 16th.

The groundbreaking campaign is for women who are done waiting for a seat at the table. The New Table campaign will invite 10,000 women to pledge to invest in venture in the next 12 months. Taking a seat at the table as a venture investor is easy, the benefits for us all are extraordinary.

"Although women have more power, and wealth than ever before, there is still a huge gap in venture capital funding. Our needs as women investors aren't being met and investments are not reflecting our values or interests," said Julie Castro Abrams, Founder and CEO of How Women Lead and Managing Partner of How Women Invest—the only venture fund in the US that funds companies with only women founders. "I'm excited to launch The New Table campaign for every woman—from powerful CEOs to successful young entrepreneurs to women who are retired—everyone needs to know how to build and sustain wealth. We're aiming to demystify the venture capital process. The New Table is designed to give women the tools and network they need to increase their wealth and put their expertise to work scaling companies that make a tremendous impact in the world. Venture investing has long been seen as a man's game and it is time to change that story. This is a powerful opportunity for women to grow both power and influence professionally and personally."

In tandem with the launch of The New Table campaign, How Women Lead is debuting its proprietary searchable index of women-led venture capitalists for women who take the pledge to join The New Table. This Values-Based Investing Tool is the first of its kind to sort and find women-led VC firms based on specific values, minimum investment amounts, investment stages, or industry sectors.

"I'm excited about bringing more women to the table so that we can create opportunities and abundance together," said Jessica Karr, General Partner at Coyote Ventures, whose firm is included in the Values-Based Investing Tool.

How The New Table Works
Gaining a seat at The New Table starts with a pledge. Women interested in venture investing can sign-up at HowWomenLead.com/new-table and pledge to invest within 12 months.

Using the resources provided and The Values-Based Investing Tool, accredited investors can search more than 30 active women-run venture funds to find investment opportunities that align with their interests, values, investment amount, and financial and impact objectives. The New Table online tool is the first of its kind and further signifies how women harness their power to dramatically steer the investment ecosystem toward values-aligned, women-founded, and led businesses.

Please visit HowWomenLead.com/new-table for additional information and follow the movement on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

About How Women Lead:
How Women Lead connects 20,000 top executive women to activate their individual and collective power to achieve equity for women. Founded in 2011, the organization fights for change at all levels by affecting systems reform, mobilizing movements, education, research and access to opportunities like board seats and investing. How Women Lead's philanthropic arm, How Women Give, provides grants and invaluable connections to women's and girls' organizations on the frontlines of today's most critical issues. And its sister organization, How Women Invest, invites women to play big and powerfully in venture, making meaningful investments and propelling high-potential, women-led companies forward at scale. For more, visit https://howwomenlead.com/.

Media Contact: Dara Kaplan, [email protected]

SOURCE How Women Lead