The chips are stacked against us women..but we continue to thrive!
As I contemplated the first blog post, I thought considering the “unprecedented” times we currently live in, it would be about the COVID19 pandemic. I put unprecedented in quotation marks because we have all heard that word one too many times over the past year. So I write it with a twinge of cringy-ness and a bit of an eye-roll.. Anyways, I digress… I considered the many things I wanted to explore about the COVID19 pandemic: from the development of vaccines, the administration of these vaccines, the different lockdown measures, the mental health effect, the inequities in those affected with a focus on black and ethnic minorities to an overall view on the importance of the space between science, health and policy for meaningful change. These are all topics I will definitely explore at some point in the near future but as I mulled over these topics, I was pulled in another direction with this headline news this last week.
So here I am, dedicating my first post to Whitney Wolfe Herd’s life journey.
In order to appreciate any story – positive or negative, it is imperative to have some context around it. Maybe it is the scientist in me who is always seeking facts and evidence but hey – Let us take it a step back and for context.
Bumble is a women-centric dating app where women make the first move in heterosexual relationships. Insights in to the app showed users are more likely to pay for premium offerings to have a deeper level of connection and browse others’ profile while being anonymous. She actually expanded this to Bumble BFF, where women can form friendships and Bumble Bizz to expand their professional networks. Considering I am writing this on Valentine’s Day 2021 – If you’re single and searching – you know what to do ;).
Here are five things to note about Whitney Wolfe Herd, the driving force behind Bumble..
1- She has a degree in International Studies from the Southern Methodist University
2- She actually co-founded the “Tinder” app, she says she came up with the name “Tinder”. She was vice president of marketing for Tinder and has been credited for fuelling its popularity on college campuses.
3- She dated fellow Tinder co-founder and then-boss – Justin Mateen. She was ousted from the company after they split. She filed a lawsuit for sexual harassment and discrimination which was settled outside of court and she netted just over $1 million plus stock from the settlement.
4- After enduring online hatred, she decided to rebuild herself and launched Bumble in 2014
5- At 31, she became the youngest female CEO to take a company public in the United States with over 70% of the members on Bumble’s board being women. The stock soared 64% in its Nasdaq debut making Wolfe Herd’s 21.5 million shares worth over $1 billion.
Since 2017, Bumble has had its unicorn distinction with the company’s valuation above $1 billion with investment from Andrey Andreev, Wolfe’s close friend and business partner– who owned 79% stake in Bumble. After allegations of sexism and racism, Andreev sold his stake in the business and was now worth $3 Billion.
Now, being a woman and entrepreneur in the Tech ecosystem, Wolfe’s story is an inspiration. According to data from PitchBook, female founders received 2.2% off $130 billion in VC funding in 2018. In 2019, Venture Capital investment in all-female founding teams hit $3.3 billion representing 2.8% of capital invested across the entire U.S Start-up ecosystem.
However, as an immigrant and black woman, with all the dreams, goals and work ethic in the world, while reading and writing about Wolfe’s story, inspired by it, there is still that all looming feeling of exasperation at the back of my mind – as I contemplate the intersectionality of gender and race and access to Venture Capital investment. Black and Latinx women combined, receive jut 0.64% of total venture capital investment between 2018 and 2019. 0.37% went to Black women and 0.37% went to Latinas.
Two things come to mind as I reflect about this especially in an era where several companies are pledging to diversity and inclusion, pledging to supporting black founders and female founders. In an era where the #metoomovement has taken several twists and turns;
1- Starting a tech company more often than not requires capital to truly make an impact. Access to this is minimal as a result of institutional and personal bias and a lack of “knowing the right person or someone willing to give you a warm introduction”. In the last 2 years, we saw companies such as Paystack founded in Nigeria by Shola Akinlade and Ezra Olubi that sold to Stripe for $200 Million and Tope Awotona founder of Calendly that recently received Unicorn status by receiving $350 Million in investment from OpenView Venture Partners valuing the company at $3 Billion. While that is encouraging, we need MORE! Black female founders cannot only have 0.37% of total Venture Capital investment. I am certain it’s not because of a lack of companies, ideas or entrepreneurs to invest in – but rather limited access.
2- As much as I truly dislike this thought - As a woman, why do the chips always seem to be stacked against us? Primarily, the obvious- access to finance and investment. More personally, in the event of a fall out especially in a romantic involvement as was with Wolfe’s story, more often than not, the woman receives the short end of the stick. She is called several names and her contribution undermined. I know, I know, you may be thinking – that is why you don’t mix business and pleasure - true..but why does the burden of shame and repercussions fall on the women even though both parties were involved? It’s the harsh reminder of – “This is a man’s world”. What is clear though is - should Wolfe not have filed a lawsuit against Tinder, she would have walked away with nothing!
Anyways, to all my women entrepreneurs out there, specifically like me from minority ethnic backgrounds, keep striving, keep believing, whatever situation you may find yourself in – fight your corner but make sure you bounce back. In the words of Amanda Gorman, “there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it, if only we’re brave enough to be it”.