Megan Holston-Alexander is shifting the investment mindset of cultural leaders.
The Montgomery, AL, native is a partner at Andreessen Horowitz’s Cultural Leadership Fund, which connects global leaders such as athletes, entertainers, musicians, and C-level executives with emerging technology companies and champions the next generation of Blacks in technology.
According to TechCrunch, Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has a stake in at least 300 companies in sectors that include crypto, consumer, enterprise, fintech, healthcare, and biotech. It is also “Silicon Valley’s first venture capital fund consisting exclusively of Black cultural leaders and organizations,” its website mentions.
Holston-Alexander is dedicated explicitly to wealth generation in technology for the Black community and is tasked with finding and sourcing deals. She has remained in her role at Andreessen Horowitz since 2020.
“When you think about companies that have grown and IPO that we all talk about, the Facebooks and the Airbnbs and the Instacarts of the world. A lot of people who made money when those companies went public were investors 10 years before that. So they were in the seed, series A, and then series B. So one of the core things that I do in my role is help Black investors get on those early cap tables,” Holston-Alexander explained on the “Black Tech Green Money” podcast hosted by AFROTECH™ Brand Manager Will Lucas.
The Cultural Leadership Fund was instrumental in connecting live shopping marketplace Whatnot with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes. Whatnot, a rapidly growing platform that allows users to buy and sell collectibles through live-streamed auctions, was seeking to scale their impact on the nonprofit end. This partnership aligns with Patrick Mahomes’ foundation, 15 and the Mahomies Foundation, which, according to its website, is dedicated to promoting health, wellness, and strong communities while improving the lives of children.
According to a 2023 news release, 15 and the Mahomies Foundation live-streamed an auction and a hole-in-one charity challenge on Whatnot for its yearly Aloha Golf Classic. Viewers could cash in on prizes for each shot attempt by Mahomes. If he made a shot, Whatnot also donated, and they committed to giving away $1 million if he succeeded in a hole-in-one.
“It’s really great for the company because who doesn’t want to tune in and watch Patrick Mahomes try to hit 25 hole-in-ones? And obviously missing every single one. That’s really exciting for the company and for that team to have him involved,” Holston-Alexander explained. “But also really great for Patrick because he wants to bring more attention to his nonprofit. It’s called 15 and the Mahomies [Foundation], and he wants to raise more money for them. And so it’s about matching the right person with the right company on the right initiative…It was really a win-win for both of them.”
While on the podcast, the Cultural Leadership Fund also discussed leveraging leadership to create generational wealth. Holston-Alexander applies this to her responsibilities, which include shifting the investment mindset of athletes and entertainers. As it relates particularly to venture capital, she admits it is a risky game while acknowledging that with great risks come high rewards.
“I tell people when they’re thinking about investing in the fund, I say, ‘If you’re going to be looking for this money in two years, don’t give it to me,'” Holston-Alexander states.
She further elaborated: “Venture is high risk, high reward. So you’re investing your money into companies that may not be operationally proven yet. A lot of times, when investing in companies that have no product, you don’t know if people are going to like it or hate it, but maybe you really believe in the team, etc. And so teaching them about the holding period, teaching them about the level of risk, meaning most of your companies that you invest in will fail in the early stage, but you’re hopeful that those two or three or five that you invest in out of the 50 will really knock it out of the park. That is the goal. And then we also tell people third, like the lingo, once you learn the lingo of venture and of tech and of investing, you’re really 90% of the way there. You can start making some really thoughtful decisions around where you want to put your money once you know how all of these things work together.”
