Best Buy Commits up to $10M Investment in Brown Venture Group's Inaugural Fund
$50M Fund One of the Largest in the Country Dedicated to BIPOC Tech Entrepreneurs
MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 5, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Brown Venture Group LLC, a venture capital firm formed to fund Black, Latino and Indigenous technology entrepreneurs, announced today that Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) has committed up to $10M to its inaugural fund.
Brown Venture Group, a majority Black-led organization, was founded in 2018 with the goal of raising $50 million to invest in entrepreneurs of color who in the past have not had access to venture capital and have experienced economic barriers to contribution.
The commitment by Best Buy builds on its recent announcement that it will spend at least $1.2 billion with BIPOC and diverse businesses by 2025 with a focus on leaders in the tech industry.
"The partnership with Best Buy, represents an important shift in our business community from doing things for communities of Color to investing and executing with communities of Color in longer-term collaborative business relationships," said Brown Venture Group Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Dr. Paul Campbell. "This hometown partnership is especially meaningful and Best Buy is to be commended for its commitment to co-creating solutions that will lead to greater economic flourishing for contributors of color."
In addition to the monetary investment, Best Buy and Brown Venture Group will also work together to create a stronger community of diverse suppliers as well as launch an entrepreneurial partnership program at Best Buy Teen Tech Centers to help develop young entrepreneurs through education, mentoring, networking and funding access.
"We're committed to taking meaningful action to address the challenges faced by BIPOC entrepreneurs," Best Buy CEO Corie Barry said. "Through partnerships like this, we believe we can begin to do this by helping to build a stronger, more vibrant community of diverse innovators in the tech industry, some of whom we hope will become partners of Best Buy in the future."
Disparities = Missed Opportunities = Unprecedented Potential
A 2020 Citigroup report estimates that if racial inequity gaps were closed today, the equivalent add to the U.S. economy over the next five years could be $5 trillion of additional GDP.
"Best Buy's belief that technology changes lives is in sync with Brown Venture Group's premise that focusing on technology entrepreneurs not only will create greater economic flourishing in communities of color, it will also unlock previously unrealized innovative capacity in the marketplace," said Brown Venture Group Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Dr. Chris Brooks.
Brown Venture Group plans to invest in technology startups in various industries including clean energy and retail across the country as well as leverage the abundant startup talent that exists within the region and state of Minnesota.
About Brown Venture Group
Launched in 2018, Brown Venture Group, LLC, is a venture capital firm exclusively for Black, Latino and Indigenous technology startups. Brown Venture Group is writing a new playbook for both those interested in launching a minority-owned technology startup and those interested in investing in new technologies. For more information go to brownventuregroup.com.
SOURCE Brown Venture Group LLC
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