Apply for Investment.

Application:

We encourage pre-revenue companies to apply to the Start.coop Accelerator in order to qualify for seed stage investments from the fund. The Equitable Economy Fund’s investment committee is generally looking for companies that are growth stage or later and have some revenue to date.

The Equitable Economy Fund’s investment committee reviews applications monthly. If your application passes initial Investment Committee review, you will be asked to give a short presentation to the full membership. Or if the Investment Committee declines your application, we will let you know where your application needs more work or why it wasn’t a fit.

NOTE: The Equitable Economy Fund has paused applications for new investments as of June 30, 2024.

Investment Criteria:

Social impact: What problem does the business address? Does the business close a significant gap of access, opportunity or outcome for low income communities and/or communities of color? Does the management team include people from underestimated groups (BIPOC, Womxn, LGBTQIA)?

Opportunity size: What is the total projected potential size of sales dollars in a single year? A bottom up analysis is calculated by multiplying projected unit sales by price in order to determine a total sales figure.

Competitive landscape: Who are the primary and secondary competitors who also address this problem? How do they compare on features, benefits, strengths, and weaknesses?

Business model: What is the company's plan for generating revenue and making a profit? A business model is a company's core strategy for profitably doing business. The two levers of a business model are pricing and costs.

Product or service: What is the real world customer experience of engaging in this product or service? What is the current state of the product, and the makeup of the team?

Ownership model: Who are the owners of your business? We are looking for companies with a shared ownership structure today, or have an intention to convert within the next six months.

Financial analysis: How robust is the business's financial health? Is there is a plan for the deployment of the investment funds, and how likely will the business be able to pay back its investment within our timeframe?