Happy Pride from Chasing Rainbows!
Ben kicked off Pride Month as a guest on Ande Lyons’ podcast: Startup Life Show with Ande Lyons. Ande Lyons is a “Startup Champion” and 4x founder, who launched her podcast in order to discuss strategies, solutions, and inspiration for and amplify the voices of diverse founders. Ben shared his own experience as an LGBTQ+ founder of color, angel investor, and now fund manager by discussing how he is changing the investment landscape for the LGBTQ+ community. Listen here!
On June 16th, Ben made his way to NYC for the Stonewall Foundation’s annual Vision Awards and Pride gala event, hosted in-person for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic. The Vision Awards is an important fundraising event that honors a high-profile crowd of business and political leaders, activists, philanthropists, influencers, and various celebrities who have achieved great feats in making the world a better place for LGBTQ+ individuals.
On the 17th, Ben spoke on a panel for the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center and StartOut about his experience as an angel investor. During this chat, Ben shared advice for underrepresented founders on the benefits and drawbacks of angel round fundraising. Specific topics ranged from how to determine if angel investing is right for your business, how to present your business to angel investors, and what common pitfalls to avoid when seeking investment. Check it out here!
Ben eventually made his way to the West Coast, and began his time in San Francisco at StartOut’s demo day, a VC case competition highlighting LBGTQ+ founders and their startup ideas. Next, Ben attended the British Consulate’s LGBTQ+ Startup Delegation, where Joe White Hosted Ben, Kyle Lui from Bling Capital, and Dave Mullen from Silicon Valley Bank spoke at a VC Insights panel.
Finally, Ben closed out Pride Month strong, as he was named one of “13 LBGTQ+ Investors Making a Big Impact” in the VC space. Receiving recognition in this article alongside several other prominent LGBTQ+ investors is a great honor, as it contributes to Chasing Rainbows’ growing acknowledgement and brand presence as a valuable resource for LGBTQ+ founders.
Even though the celebrations of Pride Month have concluded, the important and good work that Ben and the Chasing Rainbows team does to advance LGBTQ+ founded businesses does not cease on June 30th. To Ben, Pride is much more than a month of extravagant parades and celebrations; ultimately, it’s about “being proud to be authentic.” In relation to entrepreneurship, Ben firmly believes that founders should be able to focus 100% on growing their companies, rather than exerting mental energy trying to hide themselves when raising capital. Read more about Ben’s personal thoughts about Pride in his LinkedIn post here.
All in all, as the fund celebrates 6+ months of life, there are so many more opportunities, goals, and investments that Chasing Rainbows anticipates for the future!