OtherPortland Seed Fund Recruits Class 04, Looks Ahead
Contributed by Lynn Le, Associate at Portland Seed Fund
Two years ago Portland Seed Fund founders Angela Jackson and Jim Huston weren’t quite sure what the Portland Seed Fund was going to look like or what it was going to produce. One of the most important reasons for creating the seed fund was to fill a gap in early stage investments. Fast forward to today: we have graduated three classes of companies, generated some success metrics we are proud of and are on our way to raising our second fund.
In the time since the fund was established, our companies have managed to raise $18 million in additional investment capital. If you do the math, that’s about $21.5 for every $1 we invest in our companies. Our companies have also created roughly 125 jobs as well as generated a bit of buzz for themselves in the media, ranging from Forbes to Forrester Research. Six top tier venture capital firms from outside the region also put money into several of our companies. Kicking off the new year, we are excited to soon inaugurate our fourth class and hope to continue this great body of work.
The Portland ecosystem is evolving into a blossoming startup community. Not only is our own network growing within the region and beyond, but the curiosity and eagerness of people wanting to become more involved in Portland’s ecosystem overall is rewarding to be a part of. The growth stage startup environment is also healthier now than it has ever been. When you have great companies like Jama, Urban Airship, Elemental, Cedexis, JanRain, Cloudability, Puppet Labs, among others hosting events and bestowing their knowledge to other founders of early companies, it harvests a promising future for Portland innovation. We truly appreciate being a part of this growing process.
It is an exciting time to be a part of this community. If you and your founding team are looking for seed investment and quality mentorship, consider applying to Class 04 – our applications close today (January 7) at midnight. Apply on our website or on AngelList if you have a company profile. We look forward to seeing what you’ve been working on.
