Below are nine awesome early-stage tech startup founders who are black women. These entrepreneurs have the same strategic vision, technical skills, and experience investors look for in every founder–with additional problem-solving and network-building skills.
Kellee James
Founder & CEO, Mercaris
Mercaris is a market data service, and trading platform for organic, non-GMO and other certified agricultural commodities. It does not cater to the typical Silicon Valley crowd, striving instead to create meaningful impact on the lives of their atypical clients: farmers, grain millers, etc.
When she was in her 20s, Kellee was appointed by President Barack Obama as a White House Fellow and proceeded to consult for the Secretary of Agriculture.
Maureen Erokwu
Maureen is the Founder, Vosmap
Vosmap helps brick-and-mortar businesses leverage the visual elements of search marketing to drive revenue. It is the leading provider for Google Maps Business Street View in New York. Vosmap creates beautiful panoramic walkthroughs and seamless image-stitching that is particularly relevant for retail, entertainment, and hospitality businesses.
Mary Farrow
Mary Farrow is the Founder and CEO, Gramsly
Gramsly is innovating inter-generational connection by delivering subscription-based custom care packages for seniors. The service provides an ongoing emotional connection between the seniors and the people they love.
Brit Fitzpatrick
Brittany is the Founder and CEO, MentorMe. Brit has been named among the Top 50 under 40 social enterprise leaders in the U.S. by the American Express Foundation.
MentorMe makes it easier for organizations to manage external and internal mentoring programs. Through a cloud-based SaaS platform, MentorMe cuts the time required to manage mentoring programs in half, reducing operational costs by an average of 28%.
Riana Lynn
Riana Lynn is the Founder of FoodTrace. In 2010, Riana partnered to build what is now one of the most highly rated juice bar chains in the country. She has been featured in TheGrio 100 and Entrepreneur Magazine’s “Top 30 Young Entrepreneurs to Watch.” FoodTrace helps consumers trace, eat, and experience truly good food.
Nichelle McCall
Nichelle is the founder of BOLD Guidance
BOLD Guidance helps students navigate the college application process through their mobile devices, while allowing counselors to track their progress online. Nichelle had challenges navigating the college application process and decided to create a company that would help students navigate theirs easily.
Marlo Rencher
Rencher is a business anthropologist, with applied research experience in community creation, ritual practice, and design anthropology. She earned an MBA from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and a PhD in Anthropology from Wayne State University. She is the Co-Founder of Snapsure.
Snapsure makes personal styling accessible to everyone with an iOS mobile app that lets you quickly tap the people you trust for instant feedback on the things you want to buy.
Nicole Sanchez
Nicole was named one of the Stylish Women in Tech by Lucky magazine and “Black, Fresh. She is the founder of VIXXENN. A company that enables elite hair stylists to provide premium quality hair products to their clients.
