Backed by some of the most influential names in New England business circles,
"Springboard 2000: New England," conducted a venture capital forum
last Friday (Nov. 3) in which 30 women-led companies presented business plans
to more than 300 investors at Harvard Business School in Cambridge.
FleetBoston Financial was the lead sponsor of the event.
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Springboard 2000 was jointly hosted by the Center for Women & Enterprise
and the National Women’s Business Council, and represents one in a series of
national forums designed to accelerate investments in high-growth businesses
run by women.
Chosen from a field of over 300 applicants, 30 women entrepreneurs presented
business plans seeking more than $300 million in venture funding. The forum
primarily included presenters and investors from New England and the Northeast.
Springboard 2000 is the first national initiative designed to exclusively showcase
women-led firms and facilitate deals with investors.
The number of women-owned businesses in the U.S. has more than doubled during
the past decade, according to the National Foundation for Women Business Owners.
Employment in women-owned firms has increased four-fold since 1987 and sales
have grown five-fold. But despite these numbers, it is estimated the women entrepreneurs
receive only 5 percent of available venture funding in the United States.
New England rates second only to Silicon Valley in the volume of venture capital
investments in the region. According to a Pricewater-houseCoopers Money Tree
Survey, a record $2.61 billion was invested in 179 New England companies in
the second quarter of 2000 – more than doubling the dollar amount from one year
ago.
"Women are the newest entrants into the high-growth business sector,"
said Kay Koplovitz, chairperson of the of the National Women’s Business Council.
"Not only are the equity markets a new frontier for women entrepreneurs,
but these women-led firms are a lucrative new market for investors looking for
new deal flow."
Fleet recently announced a $2 billion financing and investment initiative dedicated
to women-owned businesses, a major impetus to its growth within the "new
markets" community. A special unit within Fleet’s Small Business Services
group, called the "Women Entrepreneurs’ Connection," provides dedicated
resources to connect women business owners to capital and technical assistance.
"In our experience, women-owned businesses have their own approach to achieving
success and very specific needs for support in attaining it," said Teri
Cavanagh, director of the "Women Entrepreneurs’ Connection" at Fleet.
"We have built the ‘Connection’ to meet those needs and ensure their success."
The Milken Institute and National Women’s Business Council have also named Fleet’s
"Women Entrepreneurs’ Connection" as one of six "noteworthy"
national programs effectively responding to the needs of women business owners
and entrepreneurs.
The only U.S. bank included among the six honorees, Fleet’s focus on the financing
and investment needs of women business owners, including its recent $2 billion
initiative dedicated to this market, earned high marks in a Milken report.
