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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 27: Serena Williams attends the 94th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on March 27, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
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HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 27: Serena Williams attends the 94th Annual Academy Awards at Hollywood and Highland on March 27, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
It has been an interesting journey for women as far as tennis is concerned. American legend Billie Jean King led the fight for the equality of women in this sport. She famously won the ‘Battle of the sexes’ in 1973 against Bobby Riggs. Subsequently, in the same year, she formed the Women’s Tennis Association to provide a structure to the women’s game. Apart from her, players like Venus Williams and Serena Williams have also advocated for equality for women.
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Apart from her on-court achievements, Serena has achieved tremendous success in her off-court commitments. She is a successful businesswoman across a wide range of portfolios. However, one thing that remains in common between her on-court and off-court success is her push for gender equality.
Her Venture Capital firm, Serena Ventures, is on a mission to invest in diversity and women. Further, it recently bagged USD 111 Million as an inaugural fund. A start-up backed by Serena Ventures has recently made the headlines for its innovation.
Serena Williams’ VC firm invests in women-led start-up Parfait
Parfait, backed by Serena Ventures, is a women-led start-up that is using artificial intelligence to customize wigs. It aims to disrupt the $13 billion wig market using technology. Parfait will allow customers to click various selfies at different angles. The platform will then use AI to customize the wigs for its customers. The company received $5 Million in a Seed round that was led by Upfront Ventures and Serena Ventures. Serena Williams shared this exciting news via a story on her official Instagram handle.
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Serena Williams in action during her first round ladies’ singles match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich on centre court on day two of Wimbledon at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, Wimbledon. Picture date: Tuesday June 29, 2021. (Photo by Adam Davy/PA Images via Getty Images)
Expressing the motivation behind the launch of Parfait, Isoken Igbinedion, the company’s CEO, said, “In an era where technology began making the lives of everyday people easier with driverless vehicles, smartphones, improving our ability to connect with people, there’s little attention being paid to solve problems for marginalized communities. And that problem is deeply felt by Black women, especially in the beauty industry.”
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Parfait is another valuable addition to Serena Ventures’ portfolio. With the company’s principles aligning with that of Serena Ventures, it will be an interesting road ahead for Parfait with the backing of Serena’s VC firm.
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Edited by
Ajinkya Aswale