Founder of Suncoast Ventures Visits Northgate High School

On December 6th, the Managing Partner and founder of Suncoast Ventures, Genevieve LeMarchal, visited Northgate High School to speak about venture capitalism to a number of curious students. LeMarchal recounted her experiences and hardships as a woman in a male-dominated field, and inspired many of the students to never back down from a challenge. She not only described her challenges, but also her accomplishments, including the several successful companies she has invested in. She explained what being a venture capitalist meant and what the occupation consists of. As well, she shared the steps one can take to become one.

LeMarchal discussed the companies Suncoast Ventures invested in and the breakthroughs they are making in the medical field. One company, Next Life Sciences, is producing Plan A, which is a non-invasive, non-hormonal, permanent, and reversible male birth control. CRISPR QC is a platform that simulates gene editing. Users can predict the outcome of gene edits and optimize the results. Sober Sidekick is a sobriety app that aids users recovering from substance abuse by connecting users to a sober community to receive support. The app offers virtual rooms for users to join to give and receive support. Professional support is also available on the app.

LeMarchal emphasized the idea of resilience throughout her talk. This was especially inspiring to the impressionable students, many worried about obstacles they may have to face. She was not afraid to discuss her failures and hardships. This included the feeling of isolation, being a woman surrounded by men. She overcame this feeling by building her confidence and making sure she knew she belonged. LeMarchal connected these failures back to her successes, and how the lessons from the failures contributed to them.

When asked what her biggest personal accomplishment was, LeMarchal stated that she had a startup fail so bad that she had to move back with her parents to clean up the mess. She emphasized that as a low point in her life, but she was able to overcome it and get to the point where she started her own venture capital firm.