CHANGING THE PARADIGM

Alum Brandon Allen ’12 reflects on his path to success founding one of the few Black-owned VC firms in the country.

In December, Forbes released its annual 30 Under 30 list, which “highlights bold, innovative young leaders who are changing the course and face of business and society.” The Brimmer community was thrilled to learn that 2012 alumnus Brandon Allen was featured on the list of distinguished venture capital (VC) professionals. Allen was recognized alongside his cofounder and college roommate Marcus Stroud for their work leading TXV Partners, an early-stage venture capital fund focused on software and human performance.

While at Brimmer, Allen was known to be fiercely curious with an exceptional intellectual mind. Reflecting on his time here as a student, Head of School Judy Guild recalls that Allen always enjoyed a challenge, choosing to read various philosophers for pleasure and then seeking opportunities to debate his new knowledge. That quest for knowledge also showed itself on his Winterim trips to China and South Korea, where he was fascinated by the nuances of governments different from what he was used to in the United States. It is no surprise that Allen’s curiosity and educational accomplishments landed him at Princeton for his undergraduate work, where he majored in politics.

Over the last two years, Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Jessica Christian became acquainted with Allen through her communication with alumni of color. In their conversations, Allen made clear how his racial identity has always been something that has influenced his educational, social, and professional experiences. He has spent much of his short career reflecting on the intersection of race and career pursuits. It is, therefore, not lost on Allen nor is it insignificant that his firm is one of only a few Black-owned VC firms in the country.

We had the pleasure of sitting down in December with Allen to reflect on the path to his current success. It was wonderful to hear him talk about his work, what it means to him personally and professionally, and how he is able to navigate the challenges of being a young Black man in his industry.

Tell us about your career path leading up to where you are now.

I graduated Princeton with a degree in politics. My academic area of focus was comparative politics, which culminated in my thesis. I undertook an analysis of 20th-century theories of macroeconomic development, and how they may be interpreted in the context of the postindustrial age. After considering my options, I ended up in consulting, working for two firms in Boston. The first, Stax, specialized in doing due diligence for over half of the top 20 PE LBO firms, ascertaining market dynamics as it related to acquisitions and operational improvements. I then moved to Chartic, a firm that focused on consulting in industrials, mostly for clients with over $1B in revenue.

You were recently featured with your business partner on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. Congratulations! How is it for you to have been this successful at such a young age?

I suppose my impulse is twofold when I hear questions like this. The first impulse is to say thank you for characterizing what we’ve accomplished so far as such, and it was incredibly gratifying. The second impulse is that there is so much work yet to do. We sought to establish a diverse-led firm in Texas that would change the paradigm of who could be a venture capitalist and democratize access to venture capital. While we as a country and an asset class have made strides in creating more opportunities, we still fall well short of the goal.

On a personal level, I never want to lose sight of the fact that we stand on the shoulders of giants. If it weren’t for the venture capitalists in Texas and others of similar heritage to mine who came before, we could have never accomplished what we did. Moreover, if it weren’t for the ambition, vision, and, above all, sacrifice, of my parents, John and Betsy Allen, I never would have gotten out of the gate. My success is not as much mine as it is theirs. Finally, as a person of faith, I am sustained and healed by a power that transcends my understanding.

You and your business partner Marcus founded one of the few Black-owned VC firms in the country. To what extent is that distinction important to you, and how does it inform how you run your firm?

It’s extremely important to me personally. The statistics are clear. By my back-of-the-envelope calculations, African American owned firms control less than 1% of the total assets under management in the private markets. As the private markets and venture-tech investment have been the primary driver of economic growth in this century, it amounts to a near systemic exclusion of African Americans from the largest legal creation of wealth in our lifetime. This is wrong. There are reasons both nefarious and not so nefarious that this is the case. However, it was never our desire to be the Black venture capitalists, but the best venture capitalists who happened to be Black. I hope that in coming from my community, one which is capable of so much brilliance and resilience, and that, frankly, has experienced so much pain allows us to be better investors by accessing networks and perspectives that may be missing in homogenous firms.

Our commitment and our purpose is rooted in the fact that people invest in our firm for excellent returns. That is what, above all, we promise and commit to producing. Some may heavily weigh the fact that we are Black in why they want to allocate money with us. But frankly, I know others who don’t at all. Regardless, I know what my job is.

Brandon Allen (L) with parents, Trustee John and Betsy Allen at Brandon’s Senior Dinner in 2012.

How, if at all, did your family and your upbringing inform your career decisions and career path?

It’s interesting. I will admit here that there was a little bit of a divergence in terms of anticipated career path. Moving to Texas and starting a venture firm was not necessarily what I believe my parents had in mind when they sent me to Princeton. However, to me, being entrepreneurial is about grit and making it work. My parents set expectations for us and, gosh darn, they weren’t going to change if we thought the burden was a little too heavy. They set moral and achievement standards and demanded that we met them. To this day, I’ll occasionally call my mother to complain, because she might be the only one who will listen. She gives me about five minutes before she tells me she has something better to do. She does the same for my brother. I learned at the feet of my folks.

What is the most important lesson you’ve learned in school (at any level) that has been instrumental to your success?

I believe in the power of language. To be able to read, write and articulate my thoughts clearly, I think, is probably the best skill that I have. My education at Brimmer heavily emphasized this skill, as did my education at Princeton. You have to be able to clearly and succinctly articulate your thoughts in a way that is persuasive. At the end of the day, all we do all day is make persuasive arguments to ourselves, each other, and our stakeholders. I would say the second lesson, and I remember when I started to grasp it in high school, was about the power of initiative and proactivity. We have a saying in the South that “closed mouths don’t get fed.” If you need something, your first step is to ask for it. You might be surprised at the response you receive, especially when you ask politely more than once.

In initial conversations with us, you mentioned that the first eight months of your VC work were extremely hard. Tell us more about how your response to failure played a role in your success, and what kept you motivated to keep going.

The lessons you learn are primarily emotional. The first I learned was about accountability. Your ownership over failure is total, and your ownership over success is shared. That’s just the way it has to be. The second lesson you learn is you have to be able to take a punch. My partner Marcus has a mug that says “nobody cares, work harder.” Things are going to happen.

As a person of faith, I recall the Book of Job. Suffering is a part of life; it is endemic. When Job asks God why he lost every single thing that he had although he was a righteous man, God responds “Where were you when I created the Heavens and the Earth.” I understand this to mean that there are some things that happen to you that will, upon first examination, surpass your understanding. As such, the only real response is to learn to suffer well. Any failures are a reminder that even in spite of not accomplishing something, I am incredibly blessed and there are those that have less. To me, that’s a positive response to adversity. As my partner, Marcus, who had a tough go of it early on in his life says, “adversity is privilege.”

There is no better teacher than failure. Dealing with it may be simple, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. I find it best not to dwell. Go to bed, you wake up, and you say, “let’s get going.” It’s not that complicated.

Are there personal or career goals you have for the future that you’re willing to share?

You know, I just try and keep it simple. I just want to make sure that the people in my corner are taken care of. I serve Marcus by being the best friend, partner, and brother Christian that I can be (not that I’m a good one). I want to support causes that I think will positively impact the world.

Beyond that, I believe the world is in need of leadership. Whether I’m worthy of that will depend on my character. That’s the ball game. ■

Brandon Allen at Brimmer in 2011.

BRANDON ALLEN AND MARCUS STROUD TXV PARTNERS COFOUNDERS, TXV PARTNERS

Brandon Allen (L) and Marcus Stroud; Image by Korey Howell Photography.

ALLEN AND STROUD, COLLEGE ROOMMATES AT PRINCETON, FOUNDED TXV IN TEXAS IN 2019. THE DUO HAVE INVESTED $20 MILLION-PLUS INTO STARTUPS INCLUDING FUTURE FIT, DATA.WORLD, OURA, FUTURE, KAMBR AND TRAX, FOCUSING ON COMPANIES THAT BENEFIT FROM A LOCAL TEXAS PRESENCE. ALLEN WORKED AT CONSULTING FIRMS STAX AND CHARTIC PRIOR TO TXV; STROUD WORKED FOR SEVERAL LOCAL FUNDS AND INVESTED ON BEHALF OF ATHLETES AS PART OF A VEHICLE CALLED THE CLUBHOUSE INVESTMENT CLUB. TXV’S PORTFOLIO INCLUDES FUTURE, KAMBR AND OURA.

Source: Forbes Magazine, November 2021; Edited by Alexandra Wilson with Alexandra Sternlicht