How can you break barriers in VC? With Julia Collins, Founder, Planet FWD

At SuperVenture, Julia Collins, Founder, Planet FWD talked through her journey as a pioneering entrepreneur founding multiple food-tech companies to now helping businesses lower their carbon footprint. With candid insights on the venture capital landscape - where only 0.2% of funding goes to Black women - she reveals what she looks for in VC founders, and why grit matters more than credentials.

Julia's key takeaways:

• Building capacity beyond balance
  Rather than pursuing work-life balance, Julia focused on increasing her capacity: "I had to work on not doing less, but increasing my capacity for building these companies, increasing my capacity for building my family." Her breakthrough came through embracing radical self-acceptance and letting go of perfectionism.
• Food innovation journey
  Julia's entrepreneurial path has consistently centered on food systems: From robot-enabled pizza at Zume Pizza and regenerative snacks with Moonshot, to addressing food-related emissions at Planet FWD. Today, she's excited about "the AI transformation of food systems and supply chains" to create better outcomes for everyone.
• Confronting VC funding disparities
  Julia highlights a stark reality in venture capital: "Less than 0.2% of all venture funding goes to Black women like me. That is... closer to zero than it is to any whole number." Her message to investors is clear: "The answer really is you have to write the check."
• Difference as strength
  Early in her Silicon Valley career, Julia often felt like an outsider. Now she recognizes: "My difference was always an advantage. Being different meant that I wasn't forgettable, being different meant that I brought an innovative perspective."
• The grit factor
  For aspiring entrepreneurs, Julia emphasizes the importance of determination: "I look for people who have so much grit that even if I were to tell them no, they would just keep going anyway."