Friday, November 15th marks the ninth semi-annual RAISE (Retention and Advanced Investment for the Southeast at Emory) Forum, presented by Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. This invitation-only event, now accepting applications, brings together startups and investors from across the Southeast with the goal of closing the region’s funding gap at higher levels of funding.

“Our highly disciplined approach to matching investors with startups has fostered 18 successful funding stories since we began a little under four years ago,” states RAISE Forum Founder, Barry Etra. “All 18 companies are still here in the Southeast, fulfilling our goal of keeping our best companies local. As well, we had our first exit (in only 3 years) this year!”

Call for Startups

The Forum is accepting applications from post-revenue startups based in the Southeast (Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina) seeking funding between $500K and $5MM. Eight startups will be selected to present to active, accredited investors at the November event. To be considered as a presenting startup, a company must have some revenue, as well as participate in a short training afternoon which will prepare applicants for investor presentations. Applications will close Friday, September 27^th.

Roughly one in five presenting companies go into funding through the Forum’s efforts, and all have remained in the Southeast. Startups (in any field) are encouraged to apply to present at the Forum by visiting www.raiseforum.com/entrepreneurs.

Investor and Community Support

Current investor support for the Forum comes from across the region, with investors from Alder Group, BIP, VentureSouth, AIM Group, Fulcrum Equity, 11-11 Ventures and many more.

Advisory support includes a mix of the region’s most influential startup ecosystem influencers and investors, including:

Patrick Taylor, Tech Operators

Shaun Randolph, Launch Tennessee

Jim Corman, AIM Group

Frank Dalton, Fulcrum Equity Ventures

Keiretsu Forum Southeast

Ed Rieker, head of Emory Startup Launch Accelerator Program

Charlie Goetz, serial entrepreneur, investor and Distinguished Lecturer in Entrepreneurship at Goizueta

Additional support comes from Georgia Bio and other influential Southeastern startup incubators and influencers, as well as sponsors. Active investors or regional organizations interested in supporting the Forum should visit raiseforum.com/investors or raiseforum.com/sponsors to learn more about sponsorship opportunities and registration.