LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--First paragraph, second sentence of release should read: The new investment round was supported by Cake Ventures, Portfolia Rising America Funds I and II, and Evolution VC, with both W Fund and Gaingels participating after their Pre-Seed investments. (instead of The new investment round was supported by Cake Ventures, Urban Rising Funds I and II, and Evolution VC, with both W Fund and Gaingels participating after their Pre-Seed investments.)
The updated release reads:
SNEAKER INVESTMENT APP RARES ANNOUNCES $4 MILLION SEED FUNDING ROUND, LED BY MAC VENTURE CAPITAL
Rares, an innovative social investing platform and the first alternative asset marketplace exclusively for sneakers, announces today that it has raised $4 million in a seed funding round led by MaC Venture Capital. The new investment round was supported by Cake Ventures, Portfolia Rising America Funds I and II, and Evolution VC, with both W Fund and Gaingels participating after their Pre-Seed investments.
The new funding will support the growth of the Rares team, expansion of its product/inventory, and further enhance its ability to deliver ultra-rare and valuable assets to the cultures that made them popular.
MaC Ventures is one of the leading VC firms investing through a cultural lens across a wide range of business sectors including fintech, e-commerce and marketplaces, interactive media, connectivity, enterprise SaaS, space, and aerospace. Their overarching goal is to empower overlooked communities who are creating shifts in culture and behavior, helping them reach their breakthrough moment.
“Sneaker culture was born out of the Black community, but today many folks are priced out of the market,” said Marlon Nichols, Co-Founder and Managing General Partner of MaC Venture Capital. “Rares is making participation in the collectible sneaker space once again accessible to everyone, enabling the minorities and individuals that helped create the culture to build wealth from it. I'm grateful to be a part of this exciting chapter for the Rares team as we work to empower communities passionate about sneaker culture and building cultural and financial equity in the massive collectible sneaker market.”
Launched in April of 2021, Rares has taken the concept of traditional investing and merged it with the highly sought-after sneaker market to create a one-of-a-kind platform where users can buy and sell shares of the highest valued sneakers in existence. Its goal is to financially empower sneaker culture and its participants. Their first major acquisition before this seed round was the Air Yeezy prototype, which they acquired for $1.8 million.
“Access to significant capital has been the achilles heel for many entrepreneurs, especially women and other minorities,” explains Rares Co-Founder, Gerome Sapp. “So as a minority, being able to close this significant SEED investment round with MaC Venture Capital leading provides my incredible team and I with a new inspired enthusiasm for the bright future ahead for Rares.”
Rares now seeks to reach yet another groundbreaking stage in its product offering and investment potential. As they continue to position themselves as the latest emerging standard in an exploding billion-dollar global sneaker market, Rares wants to utilize its fractional ownership capabilities as an inroad towards investing for the average consumer, creating a new class of sneaker enthusiasts powered by financial literacy and cultural equity.
For more information please email Hanif Sumner, press@rares.io
About MaC Venture Capital
MaC Venture Capital is a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in technology startups leveraging shifts in cultural trends and behaviors. Our diverse backgrounds in technology, business, government, entertainment, and finance allow us to accelerate entrepreneurs on the verge of their breakthrough moment. We provide hands-on support crucial for building and scaling category-leading companies, including operations strategy, brand building, recruiting, and mission-critical introductions.
About Rares
Rares is an innovative social investing platform and alternative asset marketplace exclusively for sneakers. Regulated by the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (S.E.C.) it provides a safe and secure environment for sneaker investors to buy and trade fractional ownership of extremely rare assets (i.e. sneakers). It is the only S.E.C. regulated stock market exclusively for sneakers.
