Endeavor Catalyst’s 21 Predictions for 2021
By Allen Taylor, Jackie Carmel, and Anisha Mudaliar
This article was originally published from Endeavor Global.
2021 is off to the races, and while the macro-economic backdrop continues to be challenging for many, there has never been a better time to back great entrepreneurs who are leveraging technology to create the jobs of the future. As our friends at Lux Capital put it recently: “The directional arrow of technology progress continues to point to the world getting better — in spite of our human chaos.”
At Endeavor Catalyst, we invest in the visionary entrepreneurs supported by Endeavor in more than 35+ emerging and underserved markets around the globe. This gives us a unique vantage point on how these different markets are developing, including which business models are seeing increased traction, where other smart investors are focusing, and why certain companies — and certain entrepreneurial ecosystems — are able to achieve outsized success.
Seen through the “Endeavor lens” of high-growth entrepreneurship and venture capital in emerging and underserved markets, we see the world moving boldly ahead in 2021, in what we believe economic historians may someday look back on as the “real beginning” of the 21st century.
With this in mind, here are 21 predictions for what we believe will happen with emerging ecosystems, business models and sector trends in 2021.
For full disclosure, with over 160+ investments, we are investors in many (but not all) of the companies mentioned below. Endeavor-supported companies are noted in BOLD.
1. The “decoupling” of capital and geography will continue.
The flow of capital into markets once ignored by leading venture capital and growth equity investors has been greatly accelerated by COVID-19, and will continue to grow in 2021. For a more in-depth look at how and why this is happening, check out our post earlier this month on “Redrawing the Map” here.
2. US investors will look between the coasts.
In 2013, after 15+ years supporting entrepreneurs in emerging markets around the globe, Endeavor made the bold (and controversial!) decision to open an office in Miami, as showcased in the Harvard Business School Case Study: “Endeavor: Miami Heats Up”. In 2021, with burgeoning tech scenes in cities like Miami getting more attention than ever, we expect to see more companies scaling up — and getting funded — in cities like Miami, Denver, Atlanta, and Detroit, but also further afield in places like Louisville, Kentucky; Birmingham, Alabama; Western New York, and Northwest Arkansas.
3. In the US tech community, underrepresented groups will be (slightly) better represented.
Thanks to groups like AllRaise, BLCK VC, Lightship Capital, Collab Capital, Base10 Partners, and Backstage Capital, as well as new initiatives from industry leaders ranging from a16z to Flybridge to Softbank, the movement to back more BIPOC and female founders and investors will continue to build momentum. “Better, but not enough!” is the review we expect to hear 12 months from now. This will take sustained work by all of us over the coming years. For our part, Endeavor will seek to continue to back great founding teams like Dave Salvant and Songe LaRon from Squire, George Azih from LeaseQuery, Mark Wilson from Chime Solutions, Rodney Williams and Travis Holoway from SoLo Funds, Nicky Goulimis from Nova Credit, Trina Spear and Heather Hasson from FIGS, Robin McIntosh and Lisa McLaughlin from Workit Health, and Melissa Butler from The Lip Bar.