COLABS Partners with 60 Day Startups to Mentor Women-Led Startups

COLABS, Pakistan’s fastest growing flexible workspace, and 60 Day Startups, a business accelerator program for women-led startups, have joined hands for an exciting 6 months partnership. Over the next few months, this collaboration will bring forth a number of initiatives that aim to create avenues for female entrepreneurs in Pakistan and beyond to foster innovation and growth. From online and in-person group discussions, workshops and more, which would take place at COLABS’ flagship in Gulberg, Lahore, this partnership will give women a chance to develop and strengthen their business models in addition to equipping them to take on every stage of their entrepreneurial journey with confidence and courage. Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of COLABS Omar Shah has previously served as Vice President at the Abraaj group, one of the leading emerging market private equity and venture capital firms within various investing roles out of London, Dubai, Mexico, Istanbul and Pakistan. A graduate from SOAS University London, Omar is an experienced investor who has been focused on emerging market private equity and venture capital. 60 Day Startups was founded by Nida Sumar, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charter holder. She is also the CEO of The Table Project, a food community built around a shared passion for food soaked in tradition. With 18 years of experience in the world of finance, food and entrepreneurship, Nida focuses her experience and energy on creating meaningful impact and building communities for good. She regularly mentors startups, advocates for mental health issues and champions sustainable food practices and speaks for women in the world of business. Nida Sumar while commenting on the development, said, “Shifting unfavorable metrics that represent women of color in the world of entrepreneurship is not a job that can be done by any single person or entity. Of the barely 2% capital that is secured by female entrepreneurs, women of color get access to perhaps the smallest fraction, if at all. With a bias so systemic and engrained, a partnership like the one between 60 Day Startups and COLABS becomes almost necessary. Joining hands to work together to create the impact and change we want to see in the world is the first step. We hope to work on several programs and solutions together to bridge as much of the gap as possible in the space of funding, knowledge and time poverty for female founders of color.”