Latest news with #Midwest-focused
TechCrunch
20-05-2025
- Business
- TechCrunch
South Loop Ventures closes $21M fund in Houston to build up local tech ecosystem
South Loop Ventures, a Houston-based venture firm, announced a $21 million Fund I, with Rice Management Company and Chevron Technology Ventures serving as anchor investors. The firm, which launched in 2022, focuses on seed and pre-seed companies, with $400,000 as the average check size. It also primarily hopes to focus on backing founders of color. Zach Ellis, the firm's founder and managing director, spoke to TechCrunch about his final close. He said the fund is general and will invest in founders nationwide, though it does have a preference for sectors that 'reflect the industrial strength of Houston,' such as healthcare, energy, space, and climate. Texas Capital Bank and The Great Commission Foundation of the Episcopal Diocese of Texas also participated in the round. So far, South Loop has made 13 investments and hopes to invest in a total of at least 30. 'We thought it was important to have a fund focused on diverse founders here in Houston, given Houston's diversity,' he said. Houston is one of the nation's most diverse cities, ranking at number five. Asked if he was worried about the anti-DEI backlash, as his fund targets founders of color, Ellis offered a simple response. 'We strongly believe that venture capital should be accessible to everyone and that underinvested and diverse teams offer a unique opportunity for significant returns,' he said. Techcrunch event Join us at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot for our leading AI industry event with speakers from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Cohere. For a limited time, tickets are just $292 for an entire day of expert talks, workshops, and potent networking. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you've built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | REGISTER NOW Despite his growing love for Houston, Ellis actually hails from New Orleans and started his career in the military. 'I've always been a very mission-driven person, so after serving seven years active duty in the Navy, I transitioned to the corporate sector.' That led him to work as a health care consultant, which later exposed him to a corporate innovation group. That group then taught him about how to use technology in a way that helps people with the mundane aspects of everyday life. 'I was like, 'I can't believe we get paid to do this,'' he recalled. 'And my colleague said, 'You should see what the VCs do.' He networked until he landed on the corporate venture team at PepsiCo, where he performed a mix of technology scouting, corporate partnerships, and investing in food and agriculture-related funds. From there, he went to Ohio State, where he helped manage a pool of money to later invest in Midwest-focused VC funds and startups spun from the university. 'It was around that time that the pandemic happened, the George Floyd murder happened, and I was able to reflect on my career and the impact I was having and the fact that I was often the only Black or brown face in any room that I was in,' Ellis said. 'I wanted to do something about it.' Serendipitously, he received a call from a friend in Houston, who told him that the city was working to raise its profile in tech and innovation. His friend, in particular, said many stakeholders had an appetite to support a fund backing founders of color. That, and he had already told many of them that Ellis would be the perfect person to lead one. So, Ellis came down to Houston and birthed the idea for South Loop Ventures. He described the fundraising process as 'difficult.' 'We began just as the market started to slow down, and it continued to become more challenging,' he said. 'While we had strong initial momentum, it ultimately took us 24 months to complete.' He met most of the fund's current investors through a network of stakeholders, adding that Mercury Fund in particular helped connect him with other investors in the ecosystem. Next, Ellis is hoping to lure in some more tech talent to the city. That, and, of course, pour some money into founders looking to build the next big thing. 'People are naturally drawn to live here, which I believe will help attract top-tier founders who will see not only the business opportunities but also feel welcome and comfortable,' he said. 'With South Loop's support, we aim to ensure they also feel empowered.'
Business Journals
24-04-2025
- Business
- Business Journals
Chicago VC firm M25 adds Ryan Coon as venture partner
THE REMAINDER OF Ryan Coon, who sold his Chicago startup to in 2020, explains why he's switching to the other side of the table. A local early-stage venture capital firm has added a new venture partner with ties to Chicago's tech scene as it aims to find the Midwest's next unicorn. Ryan Coon has joined M25, bringing with him direct knowledge of what it's like to launch a startup in the Windy City. expand After founding Chicago startup Avail, Ryan Coon is moving to the other side of the table by joining M25 as its new venture partner. Courtesy of M25 GET TO KNOW YOUR CITY Find Local Events Near You Connect with a community of local professionals. Explore All Events Coon's most recent venture, Avail, a Chicago startup he co-founded in 2012 and for which he served as CEO, was acquired by in 2020 after it raised $10 million and served more than a million landlords and renters. The platform provided tools and resources to improve the landlord-tenant relationship. Coon thinks his experience launching and scaling a startup and raising capital will add a fresh perspective to an early-stage venture firm focused on finding startups headquartered in the Midwest. M25 launched a $31.8 million fund in 2021 and has become one of the most active investors in the Chicago market, backing more than 50 startups in Chicagoland including Kin Insurance, Chowly and Continuum. M25 first launched nearly 10 years ago with a mission to support Midwest-headquartered startups. Coon spoke with the Chicago Business Journal about why he decided to join the Midwest-focused firm. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. What made you want to switch to the other side of the table? Now is the right time for me, both personally and professionally. I think on the personal front, have a couple of young kids, and so I see this as a way to be still be involved in the venture ecosystem but outside the founder/CEO chair. And professionally it just seems like a really good match between the experience of going through all the different stages of growing a company, from literally writing the first line of code to selling and and sharing that news with our team and investors. Along that journey, I made a ton of mistakes, and so I really view this as an opportunity to help others in the M25 portfolio to avoid a lot of those mistakes and things we screwed up. How do you think your experience in launching a startup in Chicago will serve you in evaluating where M25 should invest? As a investor, there's three things that you've got to do really well: You've got to be able to raise capital from the limited partners. You've got to deploy and invest that capital. And you've got to support your portfolio companies. With each of those three things, my experience growing and selling a company in Chicago will be helpful. I know firsthand: I had a number of advisors and investors who were former operators and those were my favorite and best investors as founder. How do you think it will help when advising and talking to startups? When we raised our last round, I got 168 no's before finally getting a yes. I think it will be helpful to have a former operator around to say and be able to identify holes in pitches and identify things that maybe even founders haven't thought about. Sign up for the Business Journal's free daily newsletter to receive the latest business news impacting Chicago.
