A new investment fund is looking to capitalize Clemson University innovators to encourage homegrown talent to remain in the Upstate and amplify the burgeoning entrepreneurial ecosystem that calls the region home.
Fund That Tiger is the brainchild of founding partners Joe Milam and Matt Johnson, two Clemson graduates with venture capital experience who want to empower fellow Tigers to bring transformative ideas off the drawing board and into the marketplace.
The idea is simple, according to Milam.
“We don’t want (Clemson graduates) to get seduced into the corporate world without giving it a try,” he said.
More precisely, Fund That Tiger wants to be an option Clemson innovators have to help keep their ventures — and talent — close to where it was born.
Johnson said the Upstate entrepreneurial ecosystem has grown steadily but gaps remain, particularly in the area of funding. With an initial pool of $10 million targeted specifically toward scaling the most promising ventures, the fund aims to increase the chances a homegrown startup will achieve breakout success.
The fund is agnostic, Milam said, meaning it will not focus on any particular sector or field of innovation. Johnson added they will specifically look for founders who are trying to solve “hair on fire” problems in the marketplace where success could translate into huge growth.
Although the fund is not focused on any sector, the expectation is innovation could come out of fields where Clemson researchers already play significant roles, such as the life sciences, biotechnology and advanced materials.
Having identified several thousand Clemson alumni-led companies and growing startups, Milam and Johnson said they are confident their targeted approach will pay dividends. Scarcely a month after launching the fund, the two are already getting feedback and leads from others already active in the startup ecosystem.
Although based in downtown Clemson, Fund That Tiger will look at ventures and founders throughout the Southeast and will focus on early-stage investments in those that show the most promise.
For more information, visit fundthattiger.com.
