2024 WVS Impact Report by Stella Foundation

SEPTEMBER 2

Impact Report 2024

FUND women

CHANGEworldTHE

The 11th Annual Women's Venture Summit is an unmatched event that builds bridges between female founders and investors. The goals of the conference are to boost female founders' access to capital and to grow the number of investors who invest in female-led startups.

Individuals from across the globe meet in a vibrant and intimate conference setting to explore opportunities for increased funding and collaboration.

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HERstory: Why We're Here

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Building Awareness

Women's Fast Pitch

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WVS Schedule & Speakers

WVS 2023 Stats

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Testimonials

WVS Showcase Exhibitors

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HER

story

B Y T H E N U M B E R S

Companies founded solely by women garnered 2.4% of the total capital invested, as reported by PitchBook.

In recent years, venture capital (VC) funding for women-led startups has shown modest fluctuations, with some positive developments in 2024.

The share of VC funding for femalefounded startups remained low, with companies founded solely by women receiving just 2% of total capital invested in US venturebacked startups.

Through September, VC funding to women-led startups slightly declined to 2.3%, per PitchBook data.

There was a significant increase, with women-led startups raising over $930 million across 136 deals—a 93.75% surge from the $480 million raised across 118 deals in 2023. 2.3%

Despite this notable growth in 2024, the overall percentage of VC funding allocated to women-led startups remains disproportionately low compared to their male counterparts. Encouragingly, the rise in women-led venture capital firms is contributing to increased support for female entrepreneurs. In 2023, women-led VC firms raised a record $3.5 billion, up $500 million from 2022, accounting for roughly 3% of all venture funding raised that year. *INC42

While the surge in funding for women-led startups in 2024 is a positive development, sustained efforts are necessary to address the persistent gender disparities in venture capital funding.

Venture capital funding overall has surged in recent years, but the numbers haven't leapt forward for female founders at the same pace *OUTLANDER

FEMALE (CO-)FOUNDED VC CAPITAL %

Source: Pitchbook 2022 US VC female founders dashboard

Still, only

2% of VC funding to solo female founders

Volume of VC funding raised by Black and Latina women-led companies from 2018 to 2019 (in billion U.S. dollars)

What about intersectionality?

Black and Latina women-founded companies have historically received a disproportionately small share of venture capital (VC) funding. In 2022, these companies secured only 0.85% of all venture capital, marking it the second-largest year for this cohort.

Despite this limited funding, diverse leadership teams have demonstrated superior financial performance. Companies with gender-diverse executive teams are 25% more likely to experience above-average profitability, and those with ethnic and cultural diversity in leadership are 36% more likely to outperform on profitability.

an average of

Black women-founded companies Latinx women-founded companies

Source: Statista

In the third quarter of 2024, U.S. venture capital-backed companies raised approximately $37.5 billion, marking a 32% decline from the previous quarter. *

*REUTERS

tups founded e total capital artups in 2023.* d companies e the average for years.

nture capital al partners as of apital firms have ntrepreneurs, with oward startups

* D ECONOMIC FORUM BOOK EDITORIAL CAN ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Women founders receive only ~27% of angel funding (Pre-seed & Seed) and 2% of VC funding starting at Seed+ or Series A.

Startups with at least one female founder go on to hire 2.5x more women than startups with all-male founders.

Women investors (angels and women VCs alike) are 2x as likely to invest in a women entrepreneur.*

*KAUFMANN FOUNDATION

This is why WVS is important.

To bring female founders and investors together.

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HERstory: Why We're Here

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Building Awareness

Women's Fast Pitch

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WVS Schedule & Speakers

WVS 2023 Stats

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Testimonials

WVS Showcase Exhibitors

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Sponsors + In-Kind

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Press

C O V E R A G E

Televised segment

Sept. 26, 2024

Website feature Sept. 27, 2024

Featured Stella's Founder and Chairwomen of the board, Silvia Mah, and Women’s Fast Pitch Finalists, Janice Williams Oliver, Founder and CEO MisTee Wants To Know, and Haley Marie Keith, Founder and CEO MITO Material Solutions.

BROADCAST REACH

1M+ San Diego adults 18+ each week

BUILDING COMMUNITY IS WORK. good

For the startup ecosystem, investors show up to build a conSTELLAtion with all stars, big and small, balls of energy to massive giants.

56% of NEW investors who are attending the Women's Venture Summit this year. WELCOME!

We have 44% returning early-stage VCs and investor groups, thank you for returning to this exceptional experience. YOU ARE HOME!

In 2022, the Women's Venture Summit attracted 74 VCs and angel groups to attend.

Our Stella Foundation team of AMAZING women succeeded in bringing 1.53x the amount of investors to the Women's Venture Summit in 2023.

The values or goals of most pitch competitions are:

1. unleash potential

2. unlock opportunities

3. unveil access to capital to propel aspiring entrepreneurs toward success.

SILVIA’S

S E R I E S

Building community is GOOD work. For the startup ecosystem, investors show up to build a conSTELLAtion with all stars, big and small, balls of energy to massive giants.

In 2024, the Women's Venture Summit attracted 100+ VCs and angel groups to attend.

Our Stella Foundation team of AMAZING women succeeded in bringing 1.53x the amount of investors to the Women's Venture Summit in 2023.

56% of NEW investors who are attending the Women's Venture Summit this year. WELCOME! We have 44% returning earlystage VCs and investor groups, thank you for returning to this exceptional experience. YOU ARE HOME!

The values or goals of most pitch competitions are:

1. unleash potential

2. unlock opportunities

3. unveil access to capital to propel aspiring entrepreneurs toward success.

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HERstory: Why We're Here

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Building Awareness

Women's Fast Pitch

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WVS Schedule & Speakers

WVS 2023 Stats

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Testimonials

WVS Showcase Exhibitors

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Sponsors + In-Kind

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Northeast Region

MEET THE Semi-Finalists

Heather Lawver WINNER

Joanna Shu FREEZENIT

Maria Boustead POCAMPO

Nathalya Mamane RT MICRODX

Jen Fry COORDLE

Southeast Region

Kimberly Evans FINALIST

Melody Roberts

Margarita Womack

Martika Jones

Erica Feggeler

Midwest Region

Haley Marie Keith FINALIST

Laura Meemken

Nicole Armstrong

Lanna Last AIMA

Sarah Hill HEALIUM

Northwest Region

Janice Williams Oliver FINALIST

Shelley Elkovich

Cori Omundson RISING WINES COLLECTIVE

Amy Yan NOWADAYS

Anna Fuller HALO

Southwest Region Lauren Fang FINALIST

MEET THE Semi-Finalists

Courtney Young

MYOGENE

Natalie Fairbourne

YOODLIZE

Kristina McMillan

ARGYLE EARTH

Wynn Austin

WYNN'S KITCHEN

S p e a k e r s 2 0 2 4

GabrielleDeLaCruz

THEIMPACTSEATFOUNDATION

DaniellePrice

HOLLAND&KNIGHT

EmilyHolpert

HOLLAND&KNIGHT

COOLEY

ColleenBadgley

COOLEY

JoannaHubberts

TracyStevens

AlexisLewis

PRODUCT REBELS FIFTH QUARTER

DanaAlligood

JuliusAlejandro

ChristyJohnson

BANK OF AMERICA R e v i e w e r s 2 0 2 4

KathrynGardow

GARDOW CONSULTING

AmyDuncan

LucyPostins

ShelleyIocona

SoniaSteinway NellyYusupova St TGR

THE HONEST KITCHEN 360 VENTURE COLLECTIVE

VILLAGE UP FIRE ROAD I.O

KristenGendron WILDWOOD VC

J u d g e s 2 0 2 4

M I D W E S T

Brittni A VENTURE

Misti Cain TECH STARS

Sylvester AN & KNIGHT

Laurie Bauer COOLEY

O R T H E A S T J u d g e s 2 0 2 4

A10

Darya Allen

Tracy Stevens Pippa Balestrieri

Alexis Lewis

Chris Wayne

STANELY HOLLAND & KNIGHT

FIFTH QUARTER

J u d g e s 2 0 2 4

N O R T H W E S T

Gab THE IMP

Phoebe Huang COOLEY

Julius Alejandro VILLAGE UP

Dan Sylvester HOLLAND & KNIGHT

FIRE ROAD I.O

S O U T H E A S T

ANGELS

J u d g e s 2 0 2 4

Cindi Englefield

Christy Johnson

Kim King

Dana Alligood

Lila Inman

ACCELERATING

IMPACTX

BANK OF AMERICA

COOLEY

J u d g e s 2 0 2 4

S O U T H W E S T

GARDOW CONSULTING ALTERNATIVE GROWTH PARTNERS HOLLAND & KNIGHT

Cheryl Contee COOLEY IMPACT SEAT FOUDNATION

Kelly Winget

Kathryn Gardow

Renee Lewis

Ilana Brand

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HERstory: Why We're Here

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Building Awareness

Women's Fast Pitch

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WVS Schedule & Speakers

WVS 2023 Stats

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Testimonials

WVS Showcase Exhibitors

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Sponsors + In-Kind

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HERstory: Why We're Here

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Building Awareness

Women's Fast Pitch

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WVS Schedule & Speakers

WVS 2024 Stats

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Testimonials

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YEARS IN Review 11

7350 ATTENDEES 386 ATTENDEES

8.7M IMPRESSIONS

511

2.5M IMPRESSIONS

INVESTMENT GROUPS 126 INVESTMENT GROUPS

536 SPEAKERS

123 SPEAKERS

485K WEBSITE VISITS

165K WEBSITE VISITS

2024 WVS Breakdown

$175K+

$9,000

IN-KIND DONATIONS

TICKET SCHOLARSHIPS INVESTORS

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HERstory: Why We're Here

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Building Awareness

Women's Fast Pitch

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WVS Schedule & Speakers

WVS 2024 Stats

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Testimonials

WVS Showcase Exhibitors

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e a r l e s s F u n d i n g

Sponsors + In-Kind

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Testimonials

I flew out from New Zealand for the summit (WVS) and it was TOTALLY worth it. I am excited for all of the new connections I made. None of which would have been possible without the hard work of the Stella team.

Mika Leah, Founder of Goomi Group

All I can say is WOW. So incredibly impressed with the entire event - from start to finish eery detail was top notch. So many wonderful connections made for everyone in attendance.

Paulette Firestone Founder & Managing Partner of Phoenix Fund

Already I’ve met some amazing founders that I’ve introduced to other investors in my community, just in the last couple of hours.

Bridgette Smith Purpose Led Ventures