By 2022, Arlan Hamilton’s Venture Capital firm, Backstage Capital, had invested nearly $20 million into 200 companies. Hamilton has changed lives, hers included – when she started in 2015, she was homeless! How’d she do it?
To understand Hamilton’s hustle, we must understand how venture capital (VC) works. VC funders invest money into promising companies that are lacking financially, hoping to make a profit if the company they support is successful.
Black-women led businesses rarely receive funding – in 2017, women of color COLLECTIVELY received only 0.2% of America’s VC funding.
Frustrated by statistics like these, Hamilton wasn’t going to let her lack of investing experience or college degree stop her from taking action. She studied YouTube tutorials, read investment books, and used what money she had to fly to California for a VC scholarship training program.
When the program ended, there was no “next step” – so she created one.
She slept in the airport for months, attending conferences and investor meetings during the day. Eventually, she published a blog calling out white-owned VC companies who don’t invest in minority-run businesses.
This post attracted funders, who invested in Hamilton! Backstage Capital was born.
Backstage Capital funds underrepresented businesses, and Hamilton also widely shares her knowledge to help others towards obtaining financial freedom. She showed we can self-educate ourselves to success AND support others in the process