Angel Investor Groups for Women in Wisconsin

The women are coming! The women are coming!

Angel investor groups for women in Wisconsin are now a reality.

Wisconsin. Wow. You kind of expect New York and San Francisco. But Wisconsin -- the true heartland of the U.S. -- now has its first angel group comprised of women.

The Wisconsin Women's Angel Fund is loosely affiliated with the amazing women-led Phenomenelle Angels Fund. The Wisconsin Women's Angel Fund will initially make available $2.3 million in capital to early-stage companies, and its eventual goal is to have $10 million in the fund.

Fittingly, Wisconsin-based companies will be the first priority, but investors also may look for worthy investments elsewhere in the Midwest.

The Women's Angel Fund fills an important gap in the investment stream for entrepreneurs, and provides capital and access to mentors who are experienced entrepreneurs and investors.

Reports are that there are only six women angel networks in the entire country, and only 8 percent of all angel investments made in 2005 included women angel investors.

Those figures are truly depressing, especially in light of the fact that well over half the new businesses coming alive are led by women entrepreneurs.

Having a diverse group of decision-makers in the boardroom or in an angel network provides a receptive audience for entrepreneurs with innovative business ideas, which will stimulate job creation in Wisconsin.

"Realizing our state's potential requires higher growth rates, including among women entrepreneurs," said Heinemann, who chairs the Wisconsin Technology Council's Angel Advisory Committee.

In Wisconsin, angel investors have access to tax credits under Act 255, which established the Wisconsin Angel Network (WAN). The act is credited with increasing the number of angel networks and angel investments in the state. Angel investors claimed all of the available 2005 tax credits ($3 million), which resulted in investments totaling $15.5 million in qualified new business ventures. Overall, angel investing in Wisconsin in 2005 exceeded $19 million.

Angel investor groups for women in Wisconsin are very open to new companies. In fact, early-stage women and minority owned companies interested in attracting angel funding may post a 1,000-word executive summary on their business on the WAN web site, which promotes deal flows. "Member investors are automatically notified of the executive summaries," said Joe Kremer, director of WAN.