BY KATE DELHAGEN, OSA FOUNDER
Ours is one of those serendipitous founding stories with an unassuming beginning: A day at the University of Oregon Sports Product Management Program.
It was early 2017 and a handful of sports industry veterans—myself included—were invited to listen to new product pitches from UofO students as they shared their ideas for sports shoes, clothing, and equipment. Over the course of the day, we got to see and touch so much innovation and offer feedback directly to the students. Their passion was palpable, and we walked away feeling totally inspired by their entrepreneurial spirit. We recognized the fact that we have serious talent right here in Oregon, and it naturally raised the question: What if we could organize some investors to seed these companies?
As the saying goes, “jump and the net will appear.”
I sent a text to a group of 10 sports industry vets and a few local angel investors and we ultimately gathered enough cash to seed a backpack company led by some recent graduates. The realization that we could—and wanted—to do this turned into a whiteboard session and a whole lot of work that summer and fall as I enlisted new angels, met dozens of founders, and finally set up Oregon Sports Angels as a non-profit angel investor network.
I shook with excitement and a bit of fear as I opened the doors for our first Pitch Day on December 6, 2017. Fifteen prospective angel investors gathered in a Portland wine bar and listened to pitches from four early stage sports companies. Three companies received enough interest and ultimately some funding (which was awesome), but even better, at the end of that evening, the attendees asked, “when is our next meeting?”
Our first Pitch Day on December 6, 2017.
One of the earliest “whiteboard” sessions.
We knew we had something. So, we started building.
We scheduled more Pitch Days, collaborated with other investor groups, and cultivated a network of angel investors. Over time, our experience grew, the quality of companies improved, and we got better at doing the thing called “Angel Investing.” We became a nationally recognized brand with an amazing team culture, and we invested millions of dollars in promising early-stage companies, watching many grow, some sell, and a few fold.
When I look back, I’m so happy that our idea became reality, and that we continue to invest our time, talent, and treasure in the future. As an eternal optimist, I’m grateful for the skeptics who help make me a better investor. And as a human, I’m even more grateful to my founding teammates for what we built, and to today’s members and partners who continue to build our brand and our legacy.
Here’s to another ten years of Oregon Sports Angels and the success of the next generation.