— A new venture capital fund called Mastercraft Ventures is launching in Beloit with a $2.4 million investment from the state’s Badger Fund of Funds.
This marks the sixth VC fund to have the Badger Fund as its lead investor and the first in Rock County, according to a release from Mastercraft. The fund manager, Mason Cook, previously led software company RealityBLU in Beloit.
“I’ve always focused on taking career roles and finding experiences that I would love to see in an investor for my own company,” he told WisBusiness.com in a recent interview. “You know, somebody who’s run their own business, they’ve raised funding and they’ve worked in the trenches of a startup. And I don’t think many investors understand the startup journey from both sides of the table.”
Through Mastercraft Ventures, Cook aims to be in the first round of funding for Wisconsin-based startups, with an overall goal of driving economic development at the community level while delivering returns for investors. He expects to start investing by this summer and plans to back 10 to 12 startups over the coming years through the fund.
“Our investment strategy is to write the first $400,000 to $500,000 check size into Wisconsin-based startups,” he said. “We’re reserving a meaningful portion of the fund for follow-on funding, and subsequent rounds, we expect a startup to need to raise two to three, maybe four rounds of funding before exiting.”
While the fund will be investing across the state, it will have a “particular focus” on southern Wisconsin. He says the region already has strengths in advanced manufacturing, health technology, logistics and agriculture, also pointing to the impact of Microsoft’s planned $3.3 billion investment in the state’s southern region.
Cook notes the company has committed to train thousands of Wisconsinites in AI over the next five years, adding this creates “a huge opportunity” for startups in the state.
“We’re already a leader in those industries that I mentioned, but with Microsoft’s unique investment, I think there’s an opportunity for Wisconsin to become a leader in artificial intelligence as well,” he said.
He also emphasized the opportunity presented by the Badger Fund support, noting the state will match 40 cents to every 60 cents raised after the first $2.4 million, capped at $5 million.
Because Mastercraft Ventures will be leading funding rounds, it will be setting the terms of funding, Cook said, pointing to a “gap in the ecosystem” for startups raising their first round and seeking a lead investor.
“The number one reason that startups fail is they run out of money,” he said. “A startup will typically need to raise multiple rounds of funding before they exit … a large part of what I’ve done before is build a large network of regional investors. And so I’m excited to use that network to help startups we invest in raise additional rounds of funding.”
The VC fund plans to register with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. to get qualified venture fund certification, according to the announcement, providing tax benefits for eligible investors in the fund when it invests in Wisconsin startups that are recognized as qualified new business ventures.
See the release.
— Madison’s housing market has seen the most growth out of any Wisconsin city over the past two decades, according to a recent analysis from online resource StorageCafe.
The report spotlights Wisconsin’s capital city, noting it’s also the 6th best in the Midwest for this metric. Since 2005, Madison’s housing inventory has increased by 37%, more than a dozen percentage points higher than any other city in the state.
Report authors note that growth rate “aligns closely” with the city’s 38% population growth over the same period, demonstrating “a well-planned approach to development.”
Over the study period, Madison’s single-family housing stock rose 28% while multi-family housing stock soared 87%, reflecting the city’s development trend of building more apartment complexes.
At the same time, middle housing such as townhomes and duplexes grew by 20%. These residences now make up 31% of Madison’s housing stock, which authors note gives young professionals and families more options when seeking a starter home.
Rounding out the top five Wisconsin cities for housing stock growth, Waukesha gained 14% since 2005, Kenosha gained 13%, Appleton 8% and Green Bay 2%. For each of those cities, multifamily housing grew substantially more than single-family or middle housing options.
For example, Waukesha saw a 20% increase in single-family while its multi-family grew 34% and middle housing declined 3%. For Kenosha, those figures were 15%, 37% and 3%, respectively.
In Appleton, the difference was even more stark — single-family increased just 5% while multi-family grew 54% and middle housing grew 7%. And in Green Bay, single-family rose 20% while multi-family rose 46% and middle housing declined 27%.
At the national level, Sioux Falls, S.D., was the only Midwest city to break the top 50 cities for housing stock expansion listed in the report. The city’s population has grown 56% since 2005, matched by a 60% increase in housing stock over the same period. Still, single-family homes in Sioux Falls “saw the slowest growth” of any category, report authors noted.
See the full U.S. report here.
— Metropolitan Milwaukee’s 2024 home sales growth was “essentially flat” compared to 2023, according to the Greater Milwaukee Association of Realtors.
The group reports 17,058 homes were sold across Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Waukesha and Washington counties last year — 2.8% more than in 2023, when sales totaled 16,586. GMAR says that’s well below the 20,000-unit threshold for a “normally functioning” local market.
But sales in December alone were 15.2% higher over the year, “possibly indicating a more robust 2025 housing market,” report authors wrote.
Meanwhile, prices in the metro area rose 6.2% over 2024, rising from $417,800 to $443,600. Rising prices are being driven by demand outpacing the region’s supply of homes, according to the report. GMAR says the 21,297 listings from last year are about 5,000 fewer than needed for the market to reach “equilibrium,” despite the 4.8% increase for the year.
Fewer listings along with “insufficient” levels of new home construction constrained sales numbers for 2024, per the report.
“With new construction down dramatically for years, there could not have been a worse time for would-be sellers to get out of the market,” authors wrote.
See the report.
— The recently approved 260-megawatt Maple Grove Solar Project will produce enough energy for more than 30,000 homes once operational, project advocates say.
Madison-based Renew Wisconsin on Friday announced the state Public Service Commission has greenlit the Barron County development, which also includes 50 megawatts of battery storage capacity.
The project is expected to create more than 600 jobs over the construction phase and about 30 long-term positions, including 18 local positions.
The group says projects like this “produce significant economic benefits” in the communities where they’re located, noting Maple Grove will deliver $1.3 million in annual tax revenue for the county and towns.
See project details here.
— WEDC is promoting free advice and training for Wisconsin small businesses, offered under a partnership with the UW Office for Business and Entrepreneurship.
The agency recently announced the Main Street Bounceback Technical Assistance and Training Program is offering services to businesses with fewer than 500 employees, including classes and consultations with experts in financial planning, marketing and more.
WEDC says its Main Street Bounceback Grants program provided $1,000 grants to about 9,400 companies in 2021 and 2022, helping them find a new or expanded space in downtown areas.
The agency and Wisconsin’s Small Business Development Centers started providing training and technical help to these recipients last year, and now these resources can be accessed by any qualifying small business in the state, according to the release.
See more in the release.
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