Launch NY invests nearly $1M in upstate companies
Launch New York has added six portfolio companies and invested a total of $925,000 in more than 20 Upstate New York ventures since March 2016.
A venture development organization in Upstate New York, Launch NY provides pro bono mentoring and capital access to high-growth potential startup businesses across the 27 westernmost counties of New York State. It has earned a designation as the only venture funding Community Development Financial Institution deploying capital in the state. With more than 75 applications to date and an average of more than one investment transaction per month, Launch NY is continuing its raise to fully capitalize the fund at $5 million.
“Launch NY isn’t a typical venture capital organization, simply picking the one in a 100 good deal,” said Marnie LaVigne, President and CEO of Launch NY. “Our model of providing pro bono mentoring while leveraging our seed funding to help our clients achieve key milestones is exactly what our entrepreneurial ecosystem needs at this time in our evolution. We’re gratified to see that our resources, including deep due diligence, is already yielding more than 3.5 times our funding in investment from others, as well as amazing progress in our client companies.”
The organization’s portfolio companies have raised an additional $3.1 million in follow-on and co-investments since March 2016. Co-investments took center stage in 2017, with over 10 Launch NY investments featuring one or more co-investors. In two of its most recent investments, Launch NY partnered with Z80 Labs in a co-investment in 3AM Innovations totaling $125,000 and StartFast Venture Accelerator in a co-investment in RepHike totaling $145,000.
“Launch NY, Z80 Labs, and StartFast Venture Accelerator share the vision of creating a support network that gets entrepreneurs on a path to success and improves the odds of growing their businesses and the region’s economy,” said Lindsay Stencel, COO and fund manager of Launch NY. “These co-investments are an example of how our collaborative work is allowing Upstate New York’s most promising companies to receive early funding more effectively.”