Cowles Company

Cowles Company is a fourth-generation, family-owned enterprise operating a diversified portfolio of legacy businesses in publishing, media, real estate, and manufacturing, alongside a growth-equity investment arm, Cowles Ventures. Founded in 1890 and headquartered in Spokane, Washington, the company is led by Chairman Elizabeth "Betsy" Cowles and President William "Stacey" Cowles. Beyond direct investing, Cowles operates legacy divisions including The Spokesman-Review newspaper, NBC/ABC/Fox broadcast affiliates across Washington, Idaho, and Montana, Inland Empire Paper Company, and prime Spokane-area real estate holdings such as River Park Square. Cowles Ventures focuses on early-stage companies leveraging disruptive technologies and business practices, with sector interests in healthcare, media, environmental advancement, and B2B SaaS. Its direct portfolio includes Chord, Hyper Sciences, Cato, Qualterra, Safeguard Equipment, SheerID, Spiceology, Gestalt Diagnostics, Medcurity, Quintar, Treasury4, and Vega Cloud, alongside exits like BuildDirect, Etailz, Cardiac Insight, and StemCentrx (acquired by AbbVie for $9.8 billion). Its typical first check is $250,000 to $1 million at the Series Seed to Series A stage. Cowles also invests through managed funds including Voyager Capital, Clear Ventures, Fuse, and HCVC, reflecting an approach centered on defensibility, market validation, and scalability, paired with the firm's long-standing values of stewardship, integrity, and long-term partnership.