Susanna Hong

Brilliant Friends—co-founded by Joy Marcus and Lynda Clarizio—is a C-Suite women’s investing group focused on late seed or early A investments in disruptive companies founded or led by women. We leverage our collective expertise in commerce, media, data, fintech, and healthcare to identify and pursue investment opportunities in these sectors. We act as mentors in driving the value and growth of our portfolio companies. Our mission is to provide ROI to investors while changing the face of start-ups. We are correcting the inefficiencies in the current capital market where the amount of VC dollars women are attracting is low and decreasing (2.3% in 2020 per Crunchbase). This is an anomaly as gender diverse businesses deliver a higher return and women-led companies are the fastest-growing entrepreneurship segment in the US. The members of Brilliant Friends are successful, sought after women who have had leadership roles at Google, Peloton, Sony, Blackstone, CNBC, Condé Nast, Bumble, Nielsen, CBS, Compass, Facebook, WeWork and more. A third are Princeton alumnae. Together, Lynda and Joy steer deal flow, vision, and investment strategy, bringing their in-depth industry knowledge and investing experience. To date, Brilliant Friends has invested in these winning companies: * Sarah Flint: DTC women’s shoe and lifestyle business * Sawyer: SaaS reservations platform and marketplace connecting parents to providers of children's camps and activities * The Inside: DTC furniture business disrupting the market with custom upholstery at mass-market prices * Hatch: Next-generation maternity brand for women before, during and after pregnancy * Supernatural: Provider of natural baking products sold DTC and at leading retailers * Realworld: Platform that simplifies starting adulthood for young adults For more information, contact Joy Marcus or Lynda Clarizio via LinkedIn.

Avance is a private equity firm guided by partnership, experience, diversity and growth. The Avance team has over 100 years of collective private equity experience and a long history of partnering with founders, industry executives, and management teams to acquire and grow dynamic businesses in the lower middle market in the U.S. The firm is focused on transformational opportunities in the Services, Technology and Consumer sectors and businesses experiencing inflection points that can lead to accelerated growth opportunities. Avance welcomes opportunities to work with business owners to customize transaction solutions and build strong partnerships. We work collaboratively with management teams, board members and functional experts with the goal of increasing the EBITDA and enterprise value of each underlying portfolio company, utilizing a value creation process called STAGE™. Avance has offices in New York and Miami.

The 98 is an early stage venture capital firm dedicated to funding technology businesses led by women. Women-led start-ups receive only 2% of venture capital dollars despite generating higher returns on invested capital and quicker exits. The 98 aims to change the funding ratio by providing exceptional women founders with capital, operating expertise and network resources to build great companies and generate superior returns. We are operating executives who work closely with our founders, using our experience to drive unique value. We are leading executives with decades of operating and investing experience, particularly in media, marketing, commerce and data analytics. We leverage our collective expertise to identify and support technology businesses led by women in commerce, media, health and wellness, finance and law.

Founded in 1982 as the New York Asian Women’s Center and renamed in 2017, Womankind works tirelessly to create a future where we Rise Above Violence and our communities can innovate towards collective well-being, restoration, and social justice. We use the multidimensionality of our Asian heritage to work alongside survivors of gender-based violence as they build a path to healing. All services are rooted in Womankind’s philosophy of supporting survivors’ rights to self-determination and self-sufficiency in building their futures (i.e., their own agency). Womankind is one of the largest Asian-focused domestic violence organizations in the United States and is a leader in providing innovative and award-winning multilingual and culturally-responsive services. Womankind offers a wide variety of services in 18+ Asian languages and dialects, including: a toll-free 24/7 multilingual helpline, safe and confidential emergency residences (shelters), counseling, family law and immigration legal assistance, wellness activities, creative arts therapy, support groups, and economic empowerment workshops.

Brilliant Friends—co-founded by Joy Marcus and Lynda Clarizio—is a C-Suite women’s investing group focused on late seed or early A investments in disruptive companies founded or led by women. We leverage our collective expertise in commerce, media, data, fintech, and healthcare to identify and pursue investment opportunities in these sectors. We act as mentors in driving the value and growth of our portfolio companies. Our mission is to provide ROI to investors while changing the face of start-ups. We are correcting the inefficiencies in the current capital market where the amount of VC dollars women are attracting is low and decreasing (2.3% in 2020 per Crunchbase). This is an anomaly as gender diverse businesses deliver a higher return and women-led companies are the fastest-growing entrepreneurship segment in the US. The members of Brilliant Friends are successful, sought after women who have had leadership roles at Google, Peloton, Sony, Blackstone, CNBC, Condé Nast, Bumble, Nielsen, CBS, Compass, Facebook, WeWork and more. A third are Princeton alumnae. Together, Lynda and Joy steer deal flow, vision, and investment strategy, bringing their in-depth industry knowledge and investing experience. To date, Brilliant Friends has invested in these winning companies: * Sarah Flint: DTC women’s shoe and lifestyle business * Sawyer: SaaS reservations platform and marketplace connecting parents to providers of children's camps and activities * The Inside: DTC furniture business disrupting the market with custom upholstery at mass-market prices * Hatch: Next-generation maternity brand for women before, during and after pregnancy * Supernatural: Provider of natural baking products sold DTC and at leading retailers * Realworld: Platform that simplifies starting adulthood for young adults For more information, contact Joy Marcus or Lynda Clarizio via LinkedIn.