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19 N OV E M B E R 2 9 , 2 0 2 1 While the early setbacks didn't stop Warner from winning over investors in Maine and elsewhere, her bumpy start typifies a male-dominated venture capital fundraising culture that's long been inhospitable to women and is only slowly starting to change. 'Smaller portion of a larger pie' While mega-deals are propelling the U.S. venture capi- tal industry to record highs, the proportion of money going to startups founded by women is declining. In the first eight months of 2021, companies with all-female founders raised just 2.2% of venture fund- ing, which according to Crunchbase is lower than any of the previous five calendar years. e picture is even grimmer for Black and Latina female founders, who received 0.43% of venture funding in 2020, down from 0.67% the year before, according to ProjectDiane fig- ures cited by WIRED magazine in October. Another report, released by PitchBook in early November, found that while the U.S. startup ecosystem increased deal value by 16% in 2020, VC dollars invested in female-founded companies fell by 3% and deal count fell by 2%, "meaning female founders received "a smaller portion of a larger pie." Early-stage startups founded by women also saw median valuation increases of only 4%, trailing the 15% overall market increase. Even as female founders are selling their compa- nies more quickly and at higher valuations than the industry overall, they're disadvantaged in the initial phases when courting potential investors — who are still predominantly male and pose different questions to different genders. at's well-documented in several places, including a 2017 Harvard Business Review study of interactions at an annual startup funding competition in New York. Researchers observed that while men were asked about potential gains ("How do you plan to monetize this?") women were put on the defensive about potential losses ("How long will it take you to break even?") Perfecting business pitches In Maine, Warner isn't the only female startup leader — and successful fundraiser — to get curveballs from male investors and hit back with confidence. Imagine, for example, explaining a breastfeeding sup- port platform to a group of 50 men and only a handful of women, as Amy VanHaren had to do in Boston. "I saw them all, I was nervous. I ended up going in and started my pitch saying, 'Breastfeeding is really hard. Raise your hand if you feel me,'" the Kittery- based entrepreneur recalls of a pitch meeting for her company, called pumpspotting. "ey looked at me for a minute and they all started laughing." Her response Loans & Leases Financial Record-Keeping Payroll Services Profitability Consulting Tax Preparation & Planning Appraisals Estate Planning Beginning Farmer Programs Crop Insurance Nobody finances agriculture like Farm Credit East. Farm Credit East was made in agriculture – built for its unique credit needs and owned by the customers we serve. This explains why no other lender offers more ag financial products, dedicated services or greater expertise. Or, works harder to achieve your goals. We are mission-driven. We prove it every day. OUR BUSINESS IS TO LEND YOU MONEY. OUR MISSION IS TO GROW YOUR SUCCESS. C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » 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. — Briana Warner Atlantic Sea Farms

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