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V O L . X X V I I N O. X X V I N OV E M B E R 2 9 , 2 0 2 1 18 B A N K I N G / F I N A N C E / I N S U R A N C E A s Atlantic Sea Farms CEO Briana Warner raises more than $4.5 million in venture capital to finance a new 27,000-square-foot kelp-pro- cessing facility in Biddeford, she recalls early pitches to unwelcoming investors. "It was fairly deflating in every way," Warner says three years after taking the helm of the country's first commercially viable seaweed farm, established in 2009. "It wasn't unusual for me to walk into a room with a bunch of old white men and be told that 'No one is going to eat kelp. What are you thinking, and why are you talking to us?' and questioning my ability to under- stand basic facts about the world. I had one experience where someone said, 'We know you present well, but can you sell kelp?' with an insinuation about how I looked." e standard wasn't the same for three fellow Ivy League alumni — all men — with a money-losing business and zero staff retention who received softball questions and got the $2 million they sought, according to Warner, who holds a Master's degree from Yale. She, on the other hand, went in having raised $1 million and with a solid track record and business plan, "and they just threw daggers the whole time." ough the inves- tors later came round, Warner turned them away before due diligence after deciding she didn't want to be in business with them. "I'm happy for the guys to get that money, because if those investors are a--holes, at least I can vet them out before they're in my cap table," says Warner. P H O T O / T I M G R E E N WAY F O C U S Briana Warner, CEO of Atlantic Sea Farms, is currently raising more than $4.5 million to fund a new 27,000-square-foot kelp- processing facility in Biddeford. Women and Venture Capital: 2021 Facts & Figures $40.4 billion Amount raised by female-funded companies in the first three quarters of 2021 (previous record was $23.7 billion, in 2019) 895 Total U.S. female angel investors (up from fewer than 100 in 2010) $30 billion Value of deals closed by venture investors with female-founded tech companies so far in 2021 (83% above 2020 levels) $58.8 billion Exit value year-to-date for female- founded startup exits, more than double the previous annual record and 144% above 2020. 15.4% Share of women checkwriters/general partners at U.S. venture capital firms S O U R C E : "All In: Women in the VC Ecosystem," report by PitchBook published in Nov. 2021. How Maine female entrepreneurs are beating the odds to raise capital B y R e n e e C o r d e s

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