Venture capital firm Slauson & Co. has closed a second fund of $100 million, a big increase from its initial $75 million fund.
“We're investing in everyone,” Ajay Lelan, a partner at Slauson & Co., told TechCrunch, adding that the firm wants to include all perspectives in its products and services. The firm's initial portfolio includes e-commerce platform The Folklore Group and food logistics company Prado. “We're investing in a way that is more reflective of the changing demographics of the country.”
A lot has changed since Slauson & Company partners Lelan Clements and Austin Clements launched their venture fund in 2020.
At the time, the duo had one thing in mind: back early-stage founders focused on SaaS and consumer technology. They didn't have to focus on Ivy League or Silicon Valley grads; they could be any founder, many of whom came from underrepresented backgrounds. The firm eventually closed Fund I for $75 million (surpassing its $50 million target and with participation from investors including Ron Conway) and backed 38 companies, most of which were led by people of color and at least half were led by women.
Fast forward to now, and Slauson & Co. has doubled down on its mission of inclusivity in fundraising, with limited partners appearing to back the company.
Clements and Lelan said they spent nearly a year raising the second fund, given the venture downturn and how a fund focused on social impact (or anything other than AI) has recently become harder to pitch. They met with hundreds of investors and signed with about 40. In fact, Fund II has fewer limited partners than Fund I, despite the larger amount. Lelan said the biggest change is in corporate initiatives, which made up about a third of the firm's Fund I but fell out of favor in 2024.
“We expected that in some ways the pendulum might swing the other way because the tides have shifted,” Clements said, referring to the current climate of less support for minority founders.
Clearly, the key was to prove the company's theory works, and to make limited partners want to back it regardless of social conditions. “What we really wanted was for people to see the merit of what we could accomplish and the opportunities we were pursuing,” Clements continued. “And that seemed to resonate with people.”
Highlights in Slauson & Co.'s portfolio include The Folklore Group, which recently announced the closing of a $3.4 million seed round, and Pressed Roots, which announced it raised a $3.1 million seed round from investors earlier this year.
On the bright side, the duo is pleased to see more institutional investors invest in Slauson & Co. in this round. Corporate-led investments made up less than 1% of Fund II, but many of the fund's other original investors have returned. Relan said Fund I achieved all of the goals they said they had. “We achieved our target ownership. We invested at the pace we committed to,” he continued. “We stuck to our guns and wanted to be very disciplined, and I think that's paid off with the LPs.”
Fund II expects to write checks of $500,000 to $2 million and lead most of the rounds. We will make 30 investments from this fund over the next three years and reserve capital for follow-on rounds. Investing from Fund II has already begun.
Clements and Lelan have always said they seek out oceans of overlooked opportunities for the next generation of founders to seize. Since starting their venture capital firm, they've launched accelerator programs, hosted summer camps for their portfolio companies, and built a network of organizers and investors to help founders.
“We say there's a Slauson Street in every major city across the country, and we want to build a brand and a company that represents those communities,” Lelan said. And if they do their job right, “our hope is that people who have a lot more financial resources than us and don't necessarily have the same interests as us will see the economic opportunity and start fishing in the same waters.”