Arlan Hamilton of Backstage Capital to Speak in St. Louis

4 Min Read
mm
Jonathan Allen
Arlan Hamilton
is Founder and Managing Partner at
Backstage Capital.

On Friday, October 19, 2018, the VISION conference returns to St. Louis. VISION 2018 is St. Louis’ annual conference for women, minorities, immigrants and anyone interested in starting or growing a business in science, IT, or manufacturing.

This year’s event is particularly special as Dr. Cheryl Watkins-Moore, Director of BioSTL’s Inclusion Initiative will host a Keynote Conversation with Arlan Hamilton, founder of Backstage Capital.

National attention around Arlan Hamilton’s work is at its apex right now. She was recently featured in Fast Company and Forbes, as well as Fortune’s 40 Under 40.

Hamilton built a venture capital fund from the ground up to minimize funding disparities in tech by investing in high-potential founders who are of color, women, and/or LGBT. Since 2015, Backstage has invested $5 million into more than 80 startup companies led by underestimated founders.

If you follow her on Twitter, you’ll notice some delightfully down-to-earth tweets as you follow her recent ascent into the public eye.

Arlan Hamilton is championing the transformation of startup values that we all want to see in St. Louis – a sector the city stands to lead nationally too.

About the Event

VISION aims to build a wholly-inclusive, diverse innovation community that can take advantage of small business and entrepreneurial opportunities in STEM.

You do not have to be a rocket scientist, coding expert or master craftsperson to attend this symposium; merely bring your curiosity in learning more about what business opportunities are available.

The insights available at VISION are applicable to companies that cross many industries that support STEM, from tech-focused companies, to food and beauty formulation businesses to consumer manufacturing companies. Attendees can satisfy their entrepreneurial curiosities through the interactive sessions offered in a multi-track agenda.

Whether you have a business idea you want to test out, or an already-established company you are looking to grow, VISION can help you achieve your business goals.

Event Details

WHEN: Friday, October 19, 2018 from 8 am to 5:30 pm

WHERE: University of Missouri–St. Louis (UMSL campus), J.C. Penney Conference Center
1 University Dr.
St. Louis, MO 63121

The VISION 2018 conference is organized by Asian American Chamber of Commerce, BioSTL, CET, Heartland Black Chamber of Commerce, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, ITEN, St. Louis Community College, St. Louis Economic Development Partnership, St. Louis Makes, St. Louis Minority Business Council, St. Louis Mosaic Project, and WePower.

For more information and to register, visit www.visionstlouis.com and follow updates on Twitter at @visionstlouis.

Call to Action to Readers of EQ

I speak for myself when I say that the opportunity to hear Arlan Hamilton present at this amazing time in her own life, and witness — first hand — her pivotal role in the national discussion around creating diverse startup ecosystems, is one not to miss.

Arlan Hamilton’s Keynote will be at 12:30 p.m.

If you care about creating a startup ecosystem in St. Louis that supports founders from all backgrounds, I strongly recommend you register ASAP for this FREE one-day symposium.

Come and live tweet on the hashtag #VISION2018, and help all of us in St. Louis elevate recognition of the issues and socialize the possible solutions at a local level.

POST UPDATE: Event Recap