Women’s Equity Lab launches fund for Okanagan female startups

Photo: Contributed

A group of Okanagan women has created an angel investment fund that it hopes will help more females get into the local business world.

Okanagan Women’s Mentoring and Angel Network, or WMAN, is part of the Women’s Equity Lab, which was founded in Victoria in 2017. WEL’s mission is to increase equal gender opportunity in the area of early stage investing, and it has so far launched three funds in Victoria and one in Vancouver.

Now it is coming to the Okanagan.

“To mark International Women’s Day, the new Okanagan Women’s Mentoring and Angel Network will begin accepting applications from women founded, led or co-led businesses from the Okanagan region,” co-founder and general partner Camille Saltman said in a press release.

“Our goal is to increase the number of women angel investors, remedy the gender gap in start-up funding and aid women business owners who are bearing the brunt of economic fallout from the pandemic.”

WMAN will be similar to Accelerate Okanagan’s OKGN Angel Summit, whose finale will be held March 18. Under the WEL model, partners will invest $5,500 for a pool of almost $140,000 that will be used to invest in companies the group thinks will generate the best return.

“Angel investing is as much about the business as it about the people,” said WEL Okanagan co-founder and general partner Carollynn Schafer, who is also the director of the OKGN Angel Summit. “As we work towards a more equitable distribution of funding, it will be important for entrepreneurial women and women investors to witness and connect with each other.

“By creating a women’s network, we hope to create a space for women that not only expands their knowledge of angel investing but also builds a thriving community of female entrepreneurs and investors.”

To learn more information about WMAN or to apply for funding, send an email to Saltman at [email protected].