StartOut and J.P. Morgan Welcome New Cohort of LGBTQ+ Owned Companies to Growth Lab Accelerator

Program provides founders with six months of mentorship and training to support growth

Today, StartOut and J.P. Morgan welcomed a new cohort of ten high-performing companies to the Growth Lab accelerator, a six-month program that helps LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs grow their businesses through networking, mentorship, and education.

Now in its sixth year and eleventh cohort, Growth Lab has helped 65 early-stage companies raise more than $763 million in funding and create more than 3,650 new jobs across the United States. This incoming cohort of businesses brings together innovators from across the U.S. and Australia, specializing in fields ranging from healthcare and climate to fashion and education.

J.P. Morgan serves as the co-lead sponsor of Growth Lab, providing expert mentors and educational materials to support participating companies. Additionally, J.P. Morgan is making the newly launched Capital Connect, a digital platform that directly connects founders and investors, available to eligible cohort members.

“We are proud to continue our work with StartOut as we work to accelerate the growth of LGBTQ+ owned businesses nationwide,” said David Barbee, Head of LGBTQ+ Initiatives, JPMorgan Chase Commercial Banking. “Growth Lab offers a unique opportunity for collaboration and community building, and we look forward to the fresh perspectives and innovative thinking Cohort 11 will contribute to this unique community of entrepreneurs.”

The companies selected to join Cohort 11 are:

• A Leading Role (Los Angeles, CA): On a mission to create the most iconic and beautifully designed dress-up and costume brand in the world
• CROOW (Tampa, FL): Built a collaboration platform on software that leverages workflows and efficiencies to streamline video production and change the way that studio-quality video is produced
• Developmate, Inc. (San Antonio, TX): Simplifies site selection for real estate developers by combining data and analytics onto one easy-to-use mapping software.
• Detexian (San Diego, CA): Helps modern workplaces to reduce SaaS spend and risk by empowering IT to be trusted advisors of business teams.
• Dyllen's College Essay Advice (Los Angeles, CA): Empowers students to discover their sense of self and effectively communicate their personal values, experiences, and potential in well-crafted college admission essays.
• Ecotone Renewables (Pittsburgh, PA): Building the tools to make sustainable food and agriculture systems accessible to local communities
• FULL (Middletown, DE): Gives individuals the tools to feed themselves in health-first, tech-enabled community gardens on rooftops and lawns globally
• Mate Fertility (Los Angeles, CA): Solving fertility access issues in the U.S. through its solution-based focus on equality of access and care.
• Netfolios (Sydney, Australia): Provides in-depth climate analytics tools and data to help the global investment community manage and report climate impacts. Netfolios supports financial institutions in assessing climate-related risks and opportunities, and reducing their financed emissions to reach net zero.
• Tinkery (Sydney, Australia): Makes prototyping kits that encourage learners to creatively apply STEM principles and build devices that tackle personal and global challenges

“In partnership with our co-sponsor, J.P. Morgan, we are thrilled to kick-off Cohort 11 with this impressive group of innovators,” said Andres Wydler, Executive Director, StartOut. “The companies who have graduated from the Growth Lab continue to have a substantial impact on their communities. We can’t wait to help accelerate the growth of this next group of passionate entrepreneurs!”

To learn more about the StartOut Growth Lab, including details on the application process for the next cohort, visit: startout.org/growth-lab

For more information on the financial solutions available to guide business growth, visit: jpmorgan.com/commercial-banking

Learn more about JPMorgan Chase’s commitment to the LGBTQ+ community at jpmorganchase.com/lgbtq

About StartOut

Founded in 2009, StartOut, a national 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, is the largest national organization to support LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs with over 21K members nationwide. Its mission is to accelerate the growth of the LGBTQ+ community to drive its economic empowerment, building a world where every LGBTQ+ entrepreneur has equal access to lead, succeed, and shape the workforce of the future. StartOut helps aspiring LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs start new companies; supports current entrepreneurs as they grow and expand their existing businesses; and engages successful entrepreneurs as role models and mentors, on its online portal and through targeted events nationwide. For more information, please visit www.startout.org.

About JPMorgan Chase Commercial Banking

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading financial services firm based in the United States of America (“U.S.”), with operations worldwide. JPMorgan Chase had $3.7 trillion in assets and $292 billion in stockholders’ equity as of December 31, 2022. The Firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing and asset management. Under the J.P. Morgan and Chase brands, the Firm serves millions of customers in the U.S., and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients globally. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.

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