Influential Colorado Investors Colorado Impact Fund, Foundry Group, and Greenmont Capital Join Global B Corporation Community, Walking the Talk in Both Investments and Operations
(Boulder, Colo.) – May 18, 2016 – Yesterday, at the Techstars 2016 Demo Night during Boulder Startup Week, three leading Colorado-based venture investment firms — Colorado Impact Fund, Foundry Group, and Greenmont Capital Partners — announced that they have achieved B Corporation Certification.
The Certification, awarded by the global nonprofit B Lab, recognizes companies meeting the highest global standards for corporate transparency, accountability and social and environmental performance. Colorado’s newest B Corps join 75 others in Colorado and over 1,700 in nearly 50 countries around the world, including well-known leaders New Belgium Brewing, Patagonia, Seventh Generation, Ben & Jerry’s, Kickstarter, Etsy, Warby Parker, Method, Laureate, Hootsuite, and many others, as well as nearly 30 investors including Renewal Funds, Equilibrium Capital, City Light Capital, Iroquois Valley Capital, Farmland LP, Beartooth Capital, SJF Ventures, Sonen Capital, Bridges Ventures, Vox, and Generation Investment Management.
“Colorado is home to some of the most innovative and inspiring companies in the world,” said Governor John Hickenlooper. “As Coloradans, we believe our bold capitalistic aspirations can be in harmony with our obligations to our community and the planet. Seeing three of our most influential venture investors deepening their commitment to positive impact by becoming Certified B Corps is a testament to their commitment to making our state an even more vibrant and prosperous place.”
“We are very proud to have joined the global community of Certified B Corporations,” said Colorado Impact Fund Managing Partner, Jim Kelley. “We invest in Colorado entrepreneurs and brands that have a positive impact in our state so it’s only natural for us to model those aspirations in our own fund management company. The Colorado Impact fund was founded to support businesses doing good things in our communities while generating attractive returns for our investors. Our B Corp certification serves only to reinforce the standards we set for ourselves and our portfolio of companies.”
“At Foundry, we’ve always believed that companies should give back to the communities in which they build their businesses – as well as to the broader entrepreneurial ecosystem. We also believe that a group of people acting together towards a common goal can have a far greater impact than when they act alone,” said Foundry Group Managing Director, Seth Levine. “By joining the B Corp movement, we are formalizing these beliefs and making a very public statement about our priorities as well as the responsibility we have to actively work for positive change in the world. We hope other companies, and importantly other investment firms, will join us in this movement.”
“Integrating social and environmental performance indicators into both our investment decision-making and our own operations reduces risk and creates further opportunity for our investors to align their resources with their values,” said Greenmont Capital Managing Director, David Haynes. “We know that becoming a B Corp is an affirmation of our longstanding commitment to making competitive investments that have measurable impact and to being a positive example within the investment community at large.”
“Investors of this caliber choosing to become B Corps marks a major milestone in the business and investing landscape. These are investors who are thinking deeply about how they can make a positive impact, both through their portfolio investments and their own business operations. They’re embracing impact to the core of their business strategy,” said B Lab Colorado Director Kim Coupounas. “Their certification represents a convergence of the innovation and impact communities, and together they are helping lay the foundation of the emerging economy where profit and purpose are interdependent, not mutually exclusive.”
These investors are no stranger to investing in positive impact: Greenmont Capital Partners is not only invested in two Certified B Corporations, Door to Door Organics and Madhava Sweeteners, but they are also a GIIRS-Rated fund, utilizing B Lab’s comprehensive impact management system to benchmark their fund’s social and environmental impact. Colorado Impact Fund’s initial fund investment was in Bhakti Chai, a Colorado-based Certified B Corporation. Foundry Group is invested in a wide range of successful tech startups, including ad-free social media company Ello, a Delaware benefit corporation.
Certified B Corporations and benefit corporations are attracting investment from other mainstream investors like Andreessen Horowitz, KKR, Union Square Ventures, Benchmark, Founders Fund and First Round Capital. Colorado has one of the highest concentrations of B Corporations in the world. In addition to Colorado Impact Fund, Foundry Group, and Greenmont Capital, investment- and startup-related Certified B Corps in Colorado include First Affirmative Financial, Gary Community Investments, Green Alpha Advisors, Colorado Capital Management, Unreasonable Group, Greenline Community Ventures, Impact HUB Boulder, New Resource Bank, and Veris Wealth Partners.
Contact Information
For further information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Courtney Lis, Voca PR, courtney@vocapr.com or 970.581,6231 (on behalf of Colorado Impact Fund)
David Haynes, Greenmont Capital Partners, david@greenmontcapital.com
Micah Mador, Executive Assistant, Foundry Group, micah@foundrygroup.com, 303-642-4082
Kim Coupounas, Director, B Lab Colorado, kim@bcorporation.net, 303-884- 8658
ABOUT
The Colorado Impact Fund is a venture capital fund, managed by an affiliate of Vestar Capital Partners, which is dedicated to supporting local Colorado companies that generate consistent investment returns in addition to positive community outcomes. Investors in the Fund include some of Colorado’s most respected executives, families, foundations and corporations, each of whom is committed to making a difference in the State of Colorado and beyond. Targeting investments of $2 million to $6 million in the areas of community health, natural resource conservation, education and workforce development and economic development, the Colorado Impact Fund leverages its collective experiences, resources and networks to help Colorado entrepreneurs create exceptional and lasting companies. For more information visit www.coloradoimpactfund.com.
Foundry Group is a venture capital firm focused on making investments in early-stage information technology, internet and software startups. Their passion is working alongside entrepreneurs to give birth to new technologies and to build those technologies into industry-leading companies. They are centrally located in Boulder, CO, but they invest in companies across North America. www.foundrygroup.com
Since 2004, Greenmont Capital Partners has been making impact investments in the $500 Billion Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability (“LOHAS”) market. A GIIRS pioneer fund which is headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, Greenmont receives optimal flow of information, contacts, resources and impact investment opportunities in a city widely regarded as the epicenter of the natural products industry. www.greenmontcapital.com
B Lab is a nonprofit organization that serves a global movement of people using business as a force for good™. Its vision is that one day all companies compete not only to be the best in the world, but the Best for the World® and as a result society will enjoy a more shared and durable prosperity. www.bcorporation.net