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Behind the scenes, disruptions have hit Serena Williams’ Wyn Beauty. Wyn Beauty As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Williams founded the beauty brand in 2024, but it had been in the works for nearly six years. The idea stemmed from her tennis journey, as she constantly searched for products with long-lasting wear. She even created her own tinted moisturizer; now the company’s lineup is designed to cater to those with an active lifestyle. Additionally, representation was a key factor in its product lineup. It launched with 10 products in 91 shades to exemplify “beauty in all its forms,” said Monica Arnaudo, former chief merchandising officer at Ulta, according to Beauty Independent. As for how the brand is faring today, it has faced several challenges. Its sales at Ulta Beauty are reportedly on the decline, and some executives have exited their posts, such as former president Shawn Haynes, former VP of global product development Christina Ximenez, and former director of product and...
Serena Williams is shedding light on the current state of raising capital. The tennis legend is a partner in Serena Ventures, a venture capital firm that backs bold founders. Forbes reports that its formation derived from Williams’ recognition that underrepresented groups were an afterthought in venture capital (VC). On X, Williams clarified that Beth Ferreira currently manages and runs the fund. “I remain a partner at Serena Ventures, not in an operational role. To say that Serena Williams, a person, and Serena Ventures, an institution, are one in the same is inaccurate,” Williams wrote. Serena Ventures has raised $111 million, and over 85 companies are among its portfolio investments, according to Business Insider. Sixteen have reached unicorn status, meaning they are valued at $1 billion. Portfolio companies include Esusu, Parfait , HUED, Teal Health, and, most recently, Unrivaled — a three-on-three women’s basketball league founded by Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier. Serena...
Serena Williams is furthering her stake in the sports world. Team Ownership As AFROTECH™ previously told you, Williams has a minority stake in the women’s soccer team Angel City FC; the Los Angeles Golf Club, a team under Tiger Woods’ tech-infused golf league, TGL; and the WNBA’s Toronto expansion team, the Toronto Tempo. Most recently, Serena Ventures — Williams’ venture capital firm that backs bold founders — has been listed among the investors in Unrivaled’s oversubscribed Series B investment round. Unrivaled Unrivaled is a 3-on-3 basketball league founded in 2023 by Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier. It set a new precedent in women’s sports with the highest salaries, with players earning at least six figures, per Front Office Sports. Unrivaled athletes reportedly earned $220,000 last season, compared to an average of $66,000 to $150,000 in the WNBA. Unrivaled also intends to raise its salary cap next season, which is expected to scale from 36 players to 42. Unrivaled granted...
Venus and Serena Williams are teaming up to provide more opportunities in education and tennis. Williams Family Excellence Program According to information shared by the U.S. Open, the tennis stars have partnered with the USTA Foundation to launch the Williams Family Excellence Program. It will provide mentorship, education, and career pathways beyond tennis for under-resourced youth and young adults ages 13 to 25, building on the USTA Foundation’s work, which has assisted more than 200,000 young people this year. “We are honored to have this program named after our family and are proud to partner with the USTA Foundation to help create the leaders of tomorrow,” Venus and Serena explained in a statement, according to the U.S. Open. “Our parents always encouraged us to strive for excellence, and tennis provided us the platform and opportunity to follow our dreams and achieve those moments. We truly believe this program will continue using the sport to provide others the opportunity...
Serena Williams will ramp up efforts to support marginalized entrepreneurs. The retired tennis legend has invested in at least 85 companies, some of which fall under her venture capital firm, Serena Ventures. The firm’s portfolio is made up of 79% underrepresented founders , including 54% women, 47% Black, and 11% Latino founders, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. Fortune noted her portfolio now includes decacorns — companies valued at over $10 billion — and more than 14 unicorns, which are businesses worth more than $1 billion. An alarming statistic on how little venture capitalists allocated money to women motivated Williams to become a serial investor. “I learned that less than 2% of all VC money went to women,” Williams shared via TikTok, adding that she thought it was a misquote. “I thought, ‘Well, they can’t be real.’ Like, we’re talking about trillions of dollars, and what do you mean less than 2% of that goes to women?… I learned that when I first started investing,” she...
Serena Williams is supporting innovation in women’s health. Teal Health The tennis star has aligned herself with Teal Health, a women’s health startup founded by Kara Egan (CEO) and Dr. Avnesh Thakor in 2020. According to the company website, Teal Health’s inception trickles back to Thakor’s medical experiences over the years. He observed insufficient innovation around cervical cancer screenings and created a self-collect prototype. With Egan’s two decades of experience in finance, health, and technology, the company was formed with the vision to develop an at-home self-collect cervical cancer screening kit, currently under FDA review. A user can start by requesting a kit, which initiates a vetting process to confirm eligibility. Once approved, the kit will be delivered to your home for sample collection. The sample is then mailed to a lab, and results are shared through Teal Health’s application. Users also have the option to speak with a provider for additional support. Teal...
Serena Williams and her family are investors in what has now become the most valuable women’s sports franchise. In 2020, the tennis star, alongside her husband and Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian , joined a star-studded ownership group to establish Angel City FC, a National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team representing Los Angeles, CA, which officially launched in 2022, according to BBC Sport. Investors at the time included actresses Natalie Portman, Eva Longoria, Jennifer Garner, Uzo Aduba, and America Ferrera. Williams and Ohanian also added their daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., who was just 2 years old at the time, as one of the team’s investors. This led Olympia to make history as the youngest owner of a professional sports team at the time, and she held onto that title until it was taken by her younger sister Adira River Ohanian, as AFROTECH™ previously mentioned. “We come together with a collective passion for bringing about change,” Julie Uhrman, Angel City FC co-founder...
History is being made in the 2024-2025 NFL season. Diverse Representation shares on Instagram that the current season, which kicks off Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024, reportedly has the most Black team minority owners in league history. The list is filled with various trailblazers across entertainment, sports, and business, which you can find below. Venus And Serena Williams Kicking things off are trailblazers Venus and Serena Williams, who made history as the first Black women to become minority owners in the NFL. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, they became minority owners in 2009 when the team was reportedly worth $1.02 billion, per Statista. “I am honored to be a partner in the Miami Dolphins franchise and thankful to owner Stephen Ross for allowing Serena and I to be part of Miami Dolphins history,” Venus said at the time, according to People. Serena added, “I am so excited to be part of such a renowned organization. Having spent so much of my childhood in the area, being involved...
A wise investment made by Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian has greatly benefitted their daughters. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, the couple has been very intentional about investing in their children’s futures. When their first child, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., was 2 years old, she made headlines as the youngest owner of a professional sports team when she was listed alongside her parents as an investor in Angel City, the National Women’s Soccer League team based in Los Angeles, CA. “As someone who spends hours kicking around a football with my two-year-old daughter, I want her to have a front-row seat to this revolution,” Alexis Ohanian said at the time. “I’m personally investing on behalf of my family because creating more opportunities in women’s sports is important to my wife and me, and we want to be a part of making a better future for our daughter.” In August 2023, the couple welcomed the birth of their second child and daughter, Adira River Ohanian, Today reported....
Michael Jordan’s Cincoro Tequila is scaling globally. The company, born in 2016 through a conversation about a shared passion for tequila, was established alongside four other NBA team owners. The founding partners have since created a portfolio of tequilas made with 100% Blue Weber agave derived from Jalisco, Mexico . Cincoro Tequila is an award-winning company and has attracted investments from Serena Williams, Michael Strahan, and Derek Jeter, as AFROTECH™ previously reported. “Cincoro has always been special to me because of the authentic friendships we’ve established around enjoying Cincoro and spending time together, designing it, experiencing it, and tasting it. We are constantly striving for greatness,” Jordan, co-founder of Cincoro Tequila, said in a news release announcing Williams’ ownership stake. “And now that we’re welcoming in some of my closest friends to the business, I’m looking forward to this next era of Cincoro alongside this all-star team.” After expanding its...
When Serena Williams sets her mind on a vision, it transforms into greatness. Before the tennis champion’s retirement in 2022, she launched Serena Ventures in 2014. As previously reported by AFROTECH™, Williams founded her VC firm after learning of the alarmingly low amount of venture capital that goes to women founders, with Black and brown founders receiving even less funds. “I learned that less than 2% of all VC money went to women,” Williams shared via TikTok. “And when I first heard that, I actually thought it was a misquote. I thought, ‘Well, they can’t be real.’ Like, we’re talking about trillions of dollars, and what do you mean less than 2% of that goes to women?…I learned that when I first started investing, I learned that actually was true and that was something that was happening. And so I knew right then and there that one day I wanted to raise a fund or raise money and invest in women.” Under Williams’ mission, the breakdown of Serena Ventures’ investments is 79%...
Serena Williams was playing to win. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, Williams was purely satisfied by the game, and money was an afterthought. So much so that she would often forget to pick up her prize money after tournaments. “When I started tennis, first of all, I’m from Compton, CA, and I remember playing on these courts, and my life was great. I never felt like I needed anything. So for me, money was never a motivation,” Williams explained on Bloomberg Originals’ “The Deal” podcast hosted by Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly. “I remember when I first started, back in the day, they used to write out checks after you won your tournament. And I would always forget to get the checks. And so at the end of the year they would always have to say, ‘Serena, we have all these checks for you.’ I’m like, ‘Oh my God.’ And at the time, I had an accountant who would be like, ‘Serena, they sent me all these checks that you would forget to get from the tournaments.’” While she reveals she was...
A new powerhouse has joined forces with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s tech-infused golf league, TGL. Shonda Rhimes revealed that she has become a part of the ownership group for the California-based Los Angeles Golf Club (LAGC), TGL’s first team. “I’m beyond excited to announce my involvement as the newest owner of Los Angeles Golf Club, the inaugural team in the @tglgolf league,” Rhimes wrote in an Instagram post. “I can’t wait to bring my passion for golf to this incredible venture.” She continued, “Joining this team is an honor and, as someone who believes in the power of storytelling and community, I’m eager to see how we can elevate the game together. Let’s tee off on this new journey. We are LAGC.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Shonda Rhimes (@shondarhimes) The renowned TV producer and creator is now standing alongside fellow Los Angeles Golf Club owners Serena and Venus Williams, Alexis Ohanian Sr., and Antetokounmpo brothers Giannis, Thanasis, Kostas, and...
Serena Williams has positioned herself for a lifetime of success. However, as a mother, her children’s well-being also defines true victory. Williams and her husband, Reddit Founder Alexis Ohanian, have two daughters: Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., who is now 6 years old and was born on Sept. 1, 2017, and Adira River Ohanian, born in August 2023. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) Early on, Williams and Ohanian began making moves to establish wealth for their daughters. When Olympia was 2 years old, she made history as the youngest professional sports team owner. As AFROTECH™ previously reported, she became part-owner of the women’s soccer team Angel City FC (Los Angeles, CA), along with her parents. “As someone who spends hours kicking around a football with my two-year-old daughter, I want her to have a front-row seat to this revolution,” Ohanian said in a National Women’s Soccer League news release at the time. “I’m personally investing on...
Serena Williams learned money management early on in her teens. Thanks to her father, Richard, Serena has received a wealth of knowledge to apply to the business landscape. In fact, during an interview on Bloomberg Originals’ “The Deal” podcast, hosted by Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly, she recalls receiving substantial checks from companies including Puma. Per Andscape, Serena had reportedly received $13 million over a five-year period with the apparel brand. What’s more, the task of managing those earnings fell entirely on her. “Literally, my first checks from whether it was Puma, like I got these huge checks. [My dad], he’s like, you figure it out. We had to figure it out,” Serena said on the podcast. “I’m literally living at his house in the bedroom next to Venus. I was 16 and he’s like, you know, most parents, you know, they take your money. They take something. But you know, he’s like, ‘You figure it out.’ And so I remember having to figure that out and having to learn how to...
