I built Bracket because I kept having the same conversations over and over again. With female founders who were smart, driven, and building real companies... but felt lost when it came to VC or learned the hard way how unforgiving the process can be. 

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VC is opaque in a way that’s almost normalized. You’re expected to know how fundraising works, how investors think, what’s normal, and what’s not. It's so exhausting. And unfair.

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Fundraising isn’t just “hard for everyone in the same way.” Female founders often face different questions and different expectations. Bracket doesn’t pretend this doesn’t exist. But it also doesn’t reduce everything to bias or victimhood. The point is preparation. Understanding what dynamics you’re likely to face.

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Another thing is that raising money isn’t just about getting a yes. It’s about everything that comes after. Negotiation. Terms. Dilution. Legal steps. Bracket talks about that knowledge. To everyone, not only those with the right network.

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The last reason Bracket matters to me is visibility. 8/10 young people cannot name a single female entrepreneur. Of course... a lot of us didn’t grow up seeing women build companies. Not in our families, not in school, not in the media we consumed. And that absence sticks with you, even if you don’t realize it at the time. I think about the next generation a lot. Kids, younger siblings, students, people who are just starting to imagine what they could build. Seeing women create companies, raise money, and stay in control changes what feels possible. It gives people reference points they didn’t have before.  That’s a big part of why the female founder profiles matter. They’re meant to be shared. With students. With sisters. With daughters. With anyone who needs to see that this path exists and that it takes many different forms.

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- Justine