[Dallas] Texas Women Ventures Fund, L. P. (TWVF) announces that Ray Hunt, through Hunt Equities, will be the lead investor in the fund with a commitment to invest up to $2 million. Hunt's commitment along with the $3.2 million raised from charter investors gives TWVF the required capital to break escrow and complete its application to become a Small Business Investment Corporation (SBIC).
"Even though women-owned businesses in Texas have grown revenues by nearly 45 percent since 1997 -- quadruple the growth registered by all privately-held Texas businesses -- they continue to cite 'access to capital' as their greatest need for business expansion," noted Whitney Johns Martin, co-founder of TWVF and chief executive officer of Capital Across America, the general partner of TWVF. "TWVF plans to draw from this dynamic sector of the Texas economy and provide mezzanine financing to established women-led companies with significant growth opportunities"
Texas Women Ventures Fund, L.P. (www.texaswomenventures.com) was founded in 2002 by Valerie Freeman, Carol Nichols, Cynthia Pharr Lee and Whitney Johns Martin. In its first round of fundraising, more than 40 charter investors -- primarily women -- committed more than $3 million to TWVF. TWVF plans to raise a total of $10-20 million in private equity. If the fund is licensed as a Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) as expected, the fund will be able to leverage its private capital and invest additional money in this under-served market.
TWVF Co-founder Cynthia Pharr Lee commented, "TWVF is also becoming recognized as a national leader in the evolution of women angel investing groups. A soon-to-be published report, 'Women with Wings,' indicates that women have attained the significant financial power required to become major players in equity financing of entrepreneurial ventures." This first national study on women angel investing will be released in late summer 2004 under the sponsorship of the Kauffman Foundation (www.emkf.org) and the authorship of Dr. Jeffrey Sohl, the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire (www.unh.edu).
To be funded, TWVF does not require majority woman ownership in companies, but instead focuses on "women-led," meaning at least one woman owns a significant stake in the company and is a member of its management. With the Center for Women's Business Research (www.nfwbo.org) reporting 791,000 privately-held companies in Texas that are majority-owned by women, TWVF believes this indicates at least one million women-led businesses in Texas.
TWVF's three-fold mission is to provide capital to the under-served women business market in Texas, to be a profitable investment for its investors and to teach more women how to become angel investors and savvy investors in venture funds. TWVF anticipates funding 15-20 women-led companies in Texas during the next eight years. TWVF will not invest in start-ups. TWVF will focus on more traditional industries such as manufacturing, distribution and healthcare rather than technology or biotech.
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