All-Female Accelerator Launches in West Midlands with £2M Investment Opportunity
By Anushka Malhotra
1 minute 36 seconds
Women in Tech
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Quick Read: The Fortuna Fellowship, a new West Midlands accelerator, has unveiled its first all-female founder cohort with a chance to secure part of £2M in investment for their innovative startups.
An ambitious new accelerator programme aimed at supercharging female-led innovation in the West Midlands has revealed its first-ever cohort of founders—with a chance to secure a share of £2 million in investment.
The Fortuna Fellowship, created by The 51% Club in partnership with Midven (part of Future Planet Capital), is set to support five female-led startups over the next 12 months through intensive mentoring, funding access, and growth strategy development.
Photo Credit: The 51% Club
Selected from a competitive application and pitching process, the first five companies in the Fortuna Fellowship are:
- Cubbi – a money-saving app tailored for new parents
- Find Me A Solicitor – a platform offering free legal connections for personal and business needs
- MyBliss – a sexual wellness brand prioritising women’s health
- Visionary Farms – a sustainable indoor farming solution for homes and businesses
- Homewrecker – the UK’s first and only brand dedicated to pimento cheese
The programme is designed to address the stark funding disparity for women in entrepreneurship, with only 1.8% of venture capital investment currently going to female-led businesses. Through the Fellowship, participants gain access to expert mentors and have the chance to pitch for funding backed by £1 million from the West Midlands Co-Investment Fund (WMCO) and matched private capital.
Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands and Chair of the WMCA, praised the initiative:
“This impressive line-up of women founders reflects the innovation and drive powering our region’s future. Supporting start-ups like these is central to our economic growth strategy.”
Rupert Lyle, Fund Principal at Midven, added:
“We were looking for founders with that special spark – something truly original. But it’s their adaptability and hunger to grow that will set them apart.”
The 51% Club, led by founder Tara Attfield-Tomes, hopes to build a platform with global impact:
“We’re not here to do things by halves. The Fortuna Fellowship is designed to become the Y Combinator of female innovation, and this cohort is just the beginning.”
Backed by the £25 million WMCO Fund, which is managed by Midven on behalf of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and the West Midlands Pension Fund, the Fellowship is a bold step toward levelling the playing field for female entrepreneurs.
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