Here’s the announcement from the Venture Asheville entrepreneurship initiative. The news was recently reported on the popular national Tech Crunch website.
Asheville Angels, a group of angel investors formed in 2014 to invest in startups and high-growth companies in Asheville and across the Southeast, today announces that it has made its first investment, which is in Plum Print Inc.
Plum Print, based in Asheville and New York, helps parents to transform the overwhelming piles of artwork children produce into elegant personalized coffee table books (and digital archives) to commemorate their children’s creativity forever.
Since Plum Print was founded in 2012, it has delivered over 2,500 books to thrilled parents. In January 2015, it completed its seed round, raising $1 million from venture capital and angel investors to support the company’s expansion.
Plum Print is Asheville Angels’ first investment since its members began meeting in late 2014. Its investors contributed over $100,000 to the fundraising. “We are delighted that our inaugural investment is in an exciting local company led by such talented entrepreneurs,” said Josh Dorfman, Managing Director of Asheville Angels. “We look forward to helping Plum Print continue its impressive growth by providing local capital, expertise and mentorship.”
The investment was in partnership with some of the most prestigious angel investors in the US, and led by venture capital fund Brooklyn Bridge Ventures in New York. “We are thrilled that Asheville Angels are an integral part of our seed round,” says Meg Ragland, co-founder of Plum Print. “Having strategic investors here in western North Carolina, where our studio operations are based, along with other nationally-recognized investors, gives us a solid foundation on which to continue building our rapidly growing business.”
Asheville Angels seeks to grow its membership as it continues to scale up its funding activity. According to Dorfman, “This deal marks a new chapter in the growth of Asheville’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. Asheville Angels offers investors the opportunity to energize the local economy while pursuing a strong return on investment by funding Asheville’s top entrepreneurs building world-class companies.”
To learn more or become a member of Asheville Angels visit www.ventureasheville.com/angel- investors; and to turn your children’s art into a beautiful custom coffee table book visit Plum Print at www.plumprint.com.
The announcement comes amid a rising chorus of accolades and developments in the local startup community.
To help keep the momentum up, Venture Asheville is hosting an event this Wednesday. Details:
Asheville Angels Seminar:
Understanding Investment Term SheetsWednesday, 1/28, 3pm-5pm
Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce
36 Montford Ave, 2nd floor BoardroomInterested in raising money from investors for your startup? Or making investments into emerging new opportunities? Understanding the term sheets that govern investments is crucial. The workshop will cover the key features of investment term sheets, examine their implications for investors and entrepreneurs, and show how to effectively structure them. Presented by Josh Dorfman (Managing Director of Asheville Angels), Matt Dunbar (Managing Director of the Upstate Carolina Angel Network), and Paul Clark (Director of the South Carolina Angel Network).
ABOUT ASHEVILLE ANGELS
Asheville Angels is a professionally managed angel investor network that finds and funds innovative startups and high-growth companies in Asheville and across the Southeast. Formed in 2014, members meet monthly to evaluate investment opportunities in Asheville’s most promising scalable, high-growth ventures. Membership is open to all accredited investors (who satisfy the SEC’s rules on accreditation). Asheville Angels is a partnership between Venture Asheville, an initiative of the Economic Development Coalition for Asheville-Buncombe County to catalyze Asheville’s high-growth entrepreneurial ecosystem, and the South Carolina Angel Network, an operator of angel investor networks and funds across South Carolina and Western North Carolina.
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