gener8tor’s Inaugural Cohort of gBETA Urban League Completes Accelerator Program
Five Madison-based founders complete first Urban League accelerator
MADISON, Wis. - Global venture firm and startup accelerator, gener8tor, in partnership with the Urban League of Greater Madison, concluded the inaugural gBETA Urban League cohort on Nov. 18. The annual accelerator focuses on five early-stage companies led by founders of color who are working in the Madison region. The partnership between gener8tor and Urban League is part of the Madison Urban League’s Black Business Hub and Black Business Hub Accelerator program.
gBETA Urban League is a free seven-week, no-equity accelerator program that provides startup founders with intensive concierge coaching and access to the gener8tor and Urban League national networks of mentors, customers, corporate partners and investors. The program is designed to set a path for startups to participate in equity-based accelerator programs and secure investment and other funding opportunities.
gener8tor and Urban League recruited startups in Madison for the gBETA program in an effort to support homegrown companies founded by Black and other entrepreneurs of color. The program received nearly five times as many applications from BIPOC founders seeking to participate than it was able to enroll into the cohort. These five companies rose to the top in a competitive selection process, which has clearly highlighted the needs and aspirations of an underserved community of Black founders and entrepreneurs of color. See details about the selected companies at the end of this release.
“The Black Business Hub Accelerator program and our partnership with gener8tor aim to address the racial gaps in access to entrepreneurship that exist in the Madison region and which are among the largest in the country,” said Urban League CEO Ruben L. Anthony, Jr.. “I am so inspired by the vision of the five founders who participated in the inaugural gBETA Urban League cohort! This exciting collaboration with gener8tor is leveraging the resources and networks of our two great organizations to further bolster these successful startup companies.”
Together, the Urban League of Greater Madison and gener8tor are working to bring economic diversity and job growth to Madison and beyond. Over 80% of gener8tor startups are located outside of major tech hubs with 67% led by underrepresented founders.
“We’re thrilled to partner with Urban League of Greater Madison to bring these programs to life and support the technology and sustainability industries in Madison,” said Lauren Usher, gener8tor gBETA vice president. “We’ve seen the incredible economic impact of the gBETA program in other parts of the country, and we’re excited to bring that same impact to Madison.”
Startup companies and founders interested in learning more about gBETA’s programming and resources or applying to a future program are encouraged to visit the Urban League of Greater Madison.
gBETA Urban League Fall 2022 Cohort
Chanell Ardor Schools of Beauty and Culture overcomes ethnic boundaries in beauty education and teaches students to work with all hair types. CASBC offers a unique service menu including wigs, weaves and extensions. Chanell Ardor Schools of Beauty and Culture is the first black-owned beauty college in Wisconsin, has maintained a 100% licensure pass rate for program graduates, and has generated over $133K in revenue since its 2017 launch.
Founder and CEO: Tanisha Harbert | tharbert@chanellardor.com | chanellardor.com
Floclaire Group formulates and produces premium, high-performance Moroccan argan oil beauty products that deliver a healthy scalp and beautiful hair. Floclaire Group is also excited to be launching the Ultimate Cheveux brand in the first quarter of 2023. Floclaire Group has generated over $1.2M in sales with its signature Ultimate Moroccan Argan Oil since it launched in 2019. 70% of all sales are export, while 30% are US sales and e-commerce.
Founder and CEO: Richard Muma | richard.m@floclaire.com | floclaire.com
Kosa Ayurveda supports a wellness lifestyle through the ancient medical system of Ayurveda, with products and services inspired by the founder’s Indian family traditions and recipes. At the forefront of the growing Ayurveda trend, Kosa is a first-mover lifestyle brand with a full suite of offerings, including personal care, skincare, functional beverages, immersive spa experiences, and customized online self-care support.
Established in November of 2019, Kosa’s flagship retreat spa has a growing community of almost 4,000 unique customers with 250 new customers/mo. Revenues since launch are $800,000 and growing at a rate of 10% month-over-month. In 2022, Kosa was named one of the Best Midwest Spas by Midwest Living Magazine and has been recognized locally, regionally, and nationally in the media.
Founder and CEO: Shilpa Sankaran | shilpa@kosaspa.com | kosaspa.com
SPEAK.STUDIO makes creating podcasts easy and profitable by providing an all in one social podcast solution. SPEAK.STUDIO captures, organizes and monetizes voice through an AI-driven, blockchain engine. Its end-to-end mobile app and website empowers podcast creators to MAKE revenue through subscriptions and in-app purchases. Its intuitive LISTEN mode enables bookmarking, highlighting, sorting and sharing. SPEAK.STUDIO has generated $60K total from podcast production for Disney and Meta Inc. and ad revenue from our podcast We Have Notes, (winner of Vogue’s 2021 Best Podcast Award).
Founder and CEO: Matt Boatright-Simon | m@speak.studio | SPEAK.STUDIO
Yam Education’s EdTech platform allows instructors to create, launch, market and sell online courses. Yam provides community colleges, non-profit organizations and companies the ability to create custom learning portals for corporate training, diplomas, certificates and
an associate degree track in a new market: Africa. Since its launch in November 2021, Yam has acquired over 1300 active users. Yam recently raised a pre-seed round of $500k+ for sales, marketing and product development.
Founder and CEO: Ousmane Kabre | okabre@yam-edu.com | www.yam-edu.com
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About gener8tor
gener8tor is a global venture firm and accelerator network that supports startups, workers, employers, artists and musicians across race, place and gender. gener8tor partners with companies, governments, universities and nonprofits to operate programs and conferences in more than 41 communities across 22 states and two countries. Fast Company named gener8tor one of the Best Workplaces for Innovators in 2021 and 2022. The International Trade Council recognized gener8tor as Global Venture Capital Firm of the Year in 2022.
About gBETA
gBETA is a non-equity accelerator that facilitates the growth of early-stage companies through a network-driven program. gBETA supports five startups per cohort and requires no fees for startups and takes no equity. Since launching in 2015, gBETA accelerator alumni have raised $536M+ in capital and created 3,530+ jobs across the U.S. and Canada.
About Urban League of Greater Madison
The Urban League of Greater Madison is part of a national movement dedicated to empowering Black and other under-served communities through programs and services, advocacy and civil rights, and community engagement activities. Urban League’s work is aimed at increasing opportunity and eliminating racial disparities in education, economic well-being, housing and other quality of life factors.
The Black Business Hub will be the Madison region’s premiere enterprise center devoted to incubating, accelerating and networking diverse businesses and entrepreneurs. It will offer a one-stop, place-based system of entrepreneurial support, loans, grants, technical assistance, networking and more. The Hub will be transformational for generations of Black entrepreneurism in the Madison region. It will create jobs, generate wealth, incubate new ideas, nurture talent and so much more.
