While nonprofit organizations aren’t revenue-driven, they’re businesses in the sense that their progress can be measured—more precisely, how much money they raise from donors to support their visions. Irvine-based Givsum Inc., whose platform consolidates elements of philanthropy onto a single platform, is building a community “to solve the big problems of the world,” said Chief Strategy Officer and General Counsel Robert Kollar.
He and Chief Executive Shawn Wehan founded Givsum in 2013.
Wehan said the challenge for people who want to give is that “they don’t always know where to start,” and Givsum fills the gap by connecting givers and charities on a single platform.
Users can quickly find opportunities to engage in their communities, and nonprofits can use the platform to find people to engage with, whether finding volunteers, soliciting donations or selling tickets to events.
“Individuals can create a profile of their interests, and you are provided with ways you can get involved within a 50-mile radius,” said Kollar, adding that philanthropy starts at the local, community level.
U.S. charitable donations rose to over $390 billion in 2016, increasing 2.7% year-over-year, according to the Giving USA Foundation. The increase came largely in individual giving, which rose nearly 4%, higher than estates, foundations and corporation giving.
The platform also allows users to follow friends and charities to stay updated on the latest events and opportunities; studies have shown charitable giving is contagious and influenced by others.
Over 120 charities are listed, according to Kollar.
He and Wehan bootstrapped the company with loans and their own cash. It plans to close a $500,000 seed round this month and raise a series A round later this year.
Givsum stands for “giving summary.” It puts together a philanthropic resume—dollars donated, hours volunteered—resulting in a “Givsum Score.” Kollar said he hopes that its rating system will be as valuable to corporations as a Zagat rating is to restaurants.
Data generated from user activity can be anonymized and shared with institutions and businesses. The platform currently has 6,500 individual users, Kollar said.
He said the company also wants to work with higher-education institutions. It’s in discussion with the University of California-Irvine to continue using its platform to help UCI track students and alumni’s social impact.
“The goal is to encourage them to give back and allow re-engagement,” he said, adding that if the model’s successful it could be adopted by the other nine UCs. “You can build this reporting structure, data can be shared upward … all the way to the Board of Regents about what impact each school is having.”
The company has four employees and plans to hire additional workers if it completes the series A round.
Givsum charges a credit card fee and platform processing fee on nonprofits’ transactions. It said 95% of users choose to cover the fees for the nonprofits.
— Sherry Hsieh
2nd WeWork
Shared-workspace firm WeWork Cos. Inc. opened its second Orange County location last week, a nearly 40,000-square-foot space at Pacific Arts Plaza office campus in Costa Mesa owned by Newport Beach-based Irvine Co.
The 3200 Park Center Drive office can accommodate nearly 700 workers, according to the New York-based company.
The smallest private offices, which fit one employee each, go for $740 a month, according to the company’s website. That’s slightly more than at WeWork’s other OC location, also owned by Irvine Co., in the Irvine Spectrum.
The company, founded in 2010, already had more than 234 locations in 73 cities and 22 countries as of March 1, according to debt rating agencies. It has $5 billion in lease payments due through 2022, a figure that jumps to nearly $18 billion the following year, according to Bloomberg reports. It raised about $700 million in junk bonds last month.
Its existing space is about 81% occupied, according to national news reports. The seven-year unsecured notes that are part of the company’s latest fundraising efforts were priced to yield 7.875%, according to Bloomberg.
“WeWork has billions in cash and deep-pocketed private equity backing, but spending on its ambitious global growth plans mean it will likely be years before there are consolidated profits or free cash flow,” a Moody’s report noted following the debt offering.
— Mark Mueller
