The Startup Ladies are delighted to announce the Top 9 women entrepreneurs who will be headlining our second annual #InvestInWomenFounders Summit on Wednesday, November 15, 2023 at the Delta Faucet HQ in Indianapolis from noon-6pm. This half day conference will gather our current investor members, along with a new group of investors in an effort to fund female founders and business owners growing scalable startups.
“We’re really excited about the caliber and diversity of businesses that applied to be in the Top 9 this year. These women business owners are growing the Indiana economy,” said Jantina Anderson, Startup Ladies Advisory Board member and Co-Chair of the selection committee. “As an investor in several startups founded by women, I’d like to see more of my male counterparts attend the Summit and invest in these smart and talented women,” said Richard Millunchick, Startup Ladies Advisory Board member and Co-Chair of the selection committee.
Diana Caldwell, CEO, Amplified Sciences
Nicole Clark, CEO & Co-founder, striing
Lesley Crane, CEO & Co-founder, Diversifind
Anna Dorris, CEO & Founder, Everwear
Doloreste Jean Baptiste, CEO & Founder, Shestel
Nicole Kearney, Head Winemaker & Founder, Sip & Share Wines
Morgan Miller, CEO & Founder, Miller Co Medical Devices LLC
Bo Turner, Owner & Founder, TruckStop
Karen Wurster, CEO, Adipo Therapeutics
—> Learn more about each founder here.
To avoid pattern matching, each founder is paired with a seasoned entrepreneur or senior executive from a major company. These proven entrepreneurs/execs interview the founder (think Oprah style interview) and ask questions that will allow founders to cover the content in their decks.
These moderated conversations are more personal, relaxed, and allow the audience to engage with the founder in a supportive way. Each interviewer goes through extensive training alongside the woman business owner they have been matched with prior to the event.
“In 2022, more than $200,000 was invested into women founders from individuals who attended the Summit. Additional money was invested into several of the participants throughout 2023. Money is finally moving into the hands of women founders and women business owners because The Startup Ladies chose to do something different than the traditional pitch competitions that are statistically biased against women,” said Kristen Cooper CEO & Founder of The Startup Ladies.
Following are the nine Indianapolis executives who have been selected to be interviewer’s at this year’s Summit:
Jantina Anderson, Associate HR Director, Carrier
Amy Brown, CEO, Authenticx
Liz Conzo-Kershner, Senior Director - Strategy, Insights, & Advanced Analytics at Delta Faucet Company
Jon Dartt, Startup Ladies Board Member and retired VP Sales, Delta Faucet Company
Christi Garcia, Recruiting Talent, E-gineering, LLC
Jon Gilman, Director, Microsoft
Joanna Milliken, CEO, Emarsys
Brian Powers, Founder and Former CEO, PactSafe
Eric Prugh, Chief Product Officer, Authenticx
It is the interviewer's job to champion the founder, get to know who is in the room, and ask questions of the investors to ultimately help founders secure investment, and be introduced to prospective investors, advisors, and clients. More information about each interviewer can be found here.
The keynote speaker will be presented after lunch by psychology and marketing expert, Mindy Weinstein, PhD, MBA. Dr. Weinstein's talk will focus on content from her new book, "The power of scarcity, leveraging urgency & demand to influence customer decisions." Weinstein reveals scarcity's psychological underpinnings, its deep influence on decisions, and its ethical application. This is a topic close to the heart of anyone responsible for generating revenue. Learn more about the keynote speaker here.
—> Tickets to the Summit may be purchased here.
About The Startup Ladies
The Startup Ladies is a for-profit membership organization that identifies, educates, connects, and increases investment in women entrepreneurs starting up and scaling businesses. Through in-person events, live virtual training, eLearning, and one-on-one mentoring, entrepreneurs go from: idea, to market, to growth. Individuals with financial capacity learn how to invest in startups, and are then connected to investor-ready founders. Corporations providing ancillary services to founders and funders secure new deals. All genders are welcome to participate and become members. Learn more about membership and attending events at: TheStartupLadies.org.
Media Contact
Contact: Kristen Cooper
Phone: 317-645-6494
Email: Kristen@TheStartupLadies.org
Date: Thursday, September 7, 2023
