November 8, 2016 Comments (0) Views: 2678 Blog, Startup Buzz

Startup Buzz: San Diego Ranked Second for Women-Led Businesses

Plus: Pot on the ballot, discussions about startup locations, and local companies to watch

Election Day Focus: Pot on the Ballot, Will Investment Follow?

USA Today has an analysis of investment into marijuana-linked companies, noting that a measure on the ballot in California today could have some effect on how those investment prospects are viewed. Cannabis-related investments are on a downhill slant and still a very small part of the overall investment picture. Marijuana-linked businesses took in $150 million in investment in 2015 according to Pitchbook Data, and only $54 million so far in 2016. The article identifies some hurdles to the investments—like the reputational concerns—and identifies ways some are avoiding those challenges, like turning the new industry into a real estate opportunity instead.

Companies to Watch: Cloudbeds

Local company Cloudbeds can point to a few proof points in its growth story. It won the Innovation Award at San Diego Startup Week and was named a Cool Company by the San Diego Venture Group for a second year. If you dig deeper into the data shared by CEO Adam Harris, the company has seen 300% growth in year-over-year revenue and added 70 news employees. In terms of business, the hotel management platform now works with more than 7000 hotel locations in 117 countries.

StockTwits Launches MoneyBadger.com

Fresh off its annual Stocktoberfest event in Coronado, locally-founded StockTwits has launched a new content site for “new and casual investors.” Moneybadger.com will bring the latest news and investing education to its readers. In July, the company took in $2 million in funding and named a new CEO.

San Diego Leans In

Inc. has ranked the top 10 cities for women-led businesses and San Diego is #2. Inc. attributed San Diego’s ranking to 14 “fast growing, women-led companies,” including the fastest growing company in San Diego, Suja Juice, with female co-founder Annie Lawless. New York led the list and San Diego was followed by Austin, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C.

Hacker News Debate about Startup Locations

Anytime a new ranking comes out listing the best cities for anything related to startups or innovation, a conversation gets started on Hacker News, part of the Y Combinator online community. There have been some great conversations about San Diego here before.

The latest ranking story came from the Wall Street Journal in a look at cities outside Silicon Valley that are attracting startups and technology jobs because of the accessibility of space and lower cost housing. I always find these conversations enlightening and interesting if you want to get into the heads of people inside the industry on these topics. Happy reading.