Lunar Accelerator Acquisition: FAQs
On August 15, we announced that the Lunar Accelerator has been formally acquired by ConnectUP! Institute. Read our formal announcement here.
To learn more about this transition, read on.
Why is this happening?
Since our launch in 2018, Lunar has emphasized that access to capital is a key ingredient for creating real, sustainable change in the ecosystem for BIPOC, LGBTQ+, women, and non-binary founders. We have always understood that our high-quality accelerator program wouldn’t achieve its highest potential without a capital allocation vehicle of our own.
In order to sustain the Lunar Accelerator’s role as an on-ramp to the entrepreneurial ecosystem for underestimated entrepreneurs, we decided to explore partnering with an organization that would both a) connect our cohort members and alumni to much-needed capital and b) prove compelling to a shifting philanthropic market.
Does this mean that Lunar Startups wasn’t successful?
Quite the opposite. We feel this is a critical milestone on our journey to create a more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The state of inclusive entrepreneurship looks so much different than it did when we started Lunar five years ago. We set out to close access gaps in financial, social, and inspirational capital for founders in the Twin Cities… and for 77 startups, we did! To date, Lunar alumni have generated nearly $250 million in regional impact.
In 2018, we were one of the few organizations explicitly welcoming underestimated founders to the startup ecosystem. Today, we’re proud that a host of other entrepreneur support organizations have followed our lead and have joined us to create more inclusive entrepreneur experiences.
To best support our cohort members and alumni, it’s time for the Lunar Accelerator to be situated within a capital allocation vehicle that will continue to expand our community’s economic impact and create more high-quality jobs and community wealth in Minneapolis-St. Paul.
How did you come to this decision?
In January, the Lunar leadership finalized a strategic analysis of the local ecosystem, the offerings available to entrepreneurs, the talent available, and the core competencies of the organizations. The result was a recommendation to pursue an acquisition by ConnectUP! Institute.
ConnectUP! Institute is a non-profit social finance and enterprise development studio that provides education, consulting, and collaboration on innovative social finance as well as enterprise development for entrepreneurs from underinvested communities, with an emphasis on Black and Brown women and their lived experiences.
Our decision to pursue acquisition by ConnectUP! was due to (but not limited!) to the following:
Exceptional Leadership
ConnectUP! Institute is led by Founder and Executive Director Y. Elaine Rasmussen, who has extensive experience in building transformational relationships in a wide range of sectors: for-profit, philanthropy, government, education, and finance.
Elaine has been recognized for her innovation in driving impact & organizational effectiveness numerous times. She is a Cordes, Boston Impact Initiative, and RSF Social Finance Integrated Capital Fellow where her Integrated Capital Fund project was named a MetLife Foundation Inclusion Competition semi-finalist. Rasmussen was featured in Fearless Commerce Magazine and received the NAWBO Achieve! Innovation Award for her work on inclusive economic development. Rasmussen was named Finance and Commerce’s Top Women in Finance, AARP/Pollen’s 50 Over 50. Rasmussen’s board service includes Minnesota Diversified Industries (MDI) and serves on the investment committees of Opus Group, Nexus Community Partners, and Swift Foundation.
We can’t think of a better person to lead the Lunar Accelerator into the future.
Pre-Existing Capital Allocation Vehicle
The Integrated Capital Fund (ICF) is a charitable investment fund within ConnectUP! Institute that provides early second-stage Black and Indigenous entrepreneurs with flexible and patient hybrid capital of $25-60K (grants, debt, equity), fractional executive FTE support, and mindset coaching. ICF disrupts the traditional capitalist credit system, which has failed Black and Indigenous entrepreneurs, and it is the ONLY woman-led fund driven by economic justice, with wealth creation and restorative finance as its core values.
For Lunar founders and alumni who are not pursuing venture-backed funding, ICF is an incredible opportunity to acquire much-needed capital. Lunar alumni will experience a more immediate path to funding opportunities, and the Accelerator program will support more founders to be eligible and qualified to receive ICF funds.
What is happening to Lunar Startups? Will the organization continue to exist?
The Lunar Accelerator will be embedded within ConnectUP! Institute. As a result, the Lunar Startups nonprofit entity is dissolving.
The name “Lunar Startups Accelerator” will not change and you will still be able to access our web resources at lunarstartups.org and lunareverywhere.com, as well as our @lunarstartups social media channels.
Can I still donate to support the Lunar Accelerator at ConnectUP!?
Yes! Click here and in the dedication, write Lunar Accelerator.
What’s happening to the Lunar Startups team?
Lunar Startups Executive Director, Danielle Steer, will remain involved in the Lunar community and accelerator in her role on the Board of Directors at ConnectUP!. As a Managing Partner of Tundra Ventures, we know that Danielle will always be a valued member of the Lunar Orbit and #hypesquad.
What will happen to Lunar Alumni?
We meant it when we said that participating in our programs gets you a hype squad for life! Lunar Alumni will be integrated into the ConnectUP! Community, receiving access to new resources and support from the ConnectUP team and platform!
What’s happening to Cohort 7 of the Lunar Accelerator?
Cohort 7 will proceed as planned! Accelerator participants can expect the same community support, resources, and programming as past cohorts. Cohort 7 Applications will open in early 2024 – to get Accelerator Alerts, sign up here.
We look forward to seeing how future cohort experiences will continue to evolve and improve as part of ConnectUP!
Who can apply for #Cohort7 of the Lunar Accelerator?
The lens through which ConnectUP! executes all of its programs is through the lived experience of Black and Brown women, but all underestimated and underinvested entrepreneurs are welcomed and encouraged to apply for the Lunar Accelerator, including folks who identify as LGBTQIA+, women, and non-binary.
Will the Lunar Accelerator continue to support queer entrepreneurs?
Absolutely. ConnectUP! will continue the Lunar Accelerator’s commitment to supporting queer entrepreneurs.
What happens to the previously awarded grant dollars?
Any grant funding that Lunar received for the purpose of supporting the general operation of Lunar Inc. or in support of the Lunar Accelerator Cohort 6 has or is in the process of being spent down by Lunar Inc before September 30th, per our grant agreements. Although we don’t anticipate the need to do this, any unspent grant dollars will be returned to grantors. We will be submitting final grant reports to all grantors prior to our dissolution.