At Best Startup US we track over 1,000,000 US startups and over 3 million people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top United States based Founder operating in the Consumer space. If you think a Founder is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on editor@beststartup.us.
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
Edward Lando
Co-Founder & CEO of Goody
Edward Lando is the Managing Partner at Pareto Holdings.
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About Alpha, Catalina Crunch, CodeCombat, Conduit, Goody, Horizons School of Technology, Overtime, Pareto Holdings, Svrf: Goody makes sending gifts as easy as sending a text.
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Fabrice Grinda
Co-Founder of FJ Labs
Fabrice Grinda is among the world’s leading Internet entrepreneurs and investors. He has over $300 million in exits and 150 angel investments. Fabrice has served as CEO for three multinational companies and has an impressive track record as an early investor in Alibaba, Lending Club, Delivery Hero and Brightroll. Fabrice is currently investing in startups and building companies through FJ Labs, which he cofounded with business partner Jose Marin. Fabrice is also co-founder and executive chairman of Beepi, a next generation used car marketplace. Beepi recently raised $60 million in series B funding. Prior to FJ Labs and Beepi, Fabrice was co-founder and co-CEO of OLX, one of the largest websites in the world with over 200 million unique visitors per month. The company operates in 40 countries and has over 1,200 employees. OLX is the largest classifieds site in India, Brazil, Pakistan, Poland, Ukraine, Portugal and many other emerging markets. Before OLX, Fabrice was co-founder and CEO of Zingy, one of the largest wireless media companies in the Americas. Fabrice successfully grew the business to $200 million in sales in four years. Fabrice started his entrepreneurial journey in 1998, at 23, when he co-founded and was CEO of Aucland. Soon after, Aucland grew into one of the largest auction sites in Europe. Before his entrepreneurial endeavors, Fabrice worked as a management consultant for McKinsey & Company. Fabrice holds a BA in Economics from Princeton University. He graduated Summa Cum Laude in 1996, and was awarded the Halbert White prize, given to the most distinguished economics student, as well as The Wolfe Balleisen memorial prize, awarded for best thesis. In his free time, Fabrice likes to travel the world, kitesurf, play tennis, and blog about his personal and professional life at www.fabricegrinda.com.
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About FJ Labs: FJ Labs is a stage-agnostic investment firm that focuses on marketplaces and consumer facing startups.
Itai Tsiddon
Co-Founder of Lightricks
Itai Tsiddon was one of the 5 co-founders at Lightricks, an Israeli unicorn. He leads two deals a year, broadly ranging from 6-60m in size (early A to Pre IPO). Itai serves as a board member at Lightricks, Frame.io, Homesome, and Standard Bots and led Forter’s Series E pre IPO fundraise with Bessemer and Felix capital joining his TS as a solo capitalist.
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About Lightricks: Lightricks develops creativity tools that enable its users to craft and share visual content on mobile devices.
Whitney Wolfe Herd
Founder & CEO of Bumble
Whitney Wolfe Herd is the CEO + Founder of Bumble, a global group that builds and operates leading dating and social networking apps including Badoo, the first free dating site with over 500 million users worldwide, and Bumble, the women-first social networking platform with over 100 million users globally. In 2014, Wolfe Herd launched Bumble as the only connection platform where women make the first move and control the interaction. As the company has grown, Wolfe Herd has executed upon her vision of making Bumble the first social network where women make the first move to create empowered connections across all areas of life. The company launched Bumble BFF in 2016 as a friend-finding feature and launched Bumble Bizz for professional networking in 2017. In five years, her vision has led to Bumble’s growth of over 100 million users worldwide in 150 countries. In January 2020, Wolfe Herd welcomed Blackstone as Bumble’s new majority owner with a shared vision of growth for Badoo and Bumble. Prior to Bumble, Whitney Wolfe Herd co-founded Tinder, where she served as the Vice President of Marketing. In 2018, Wolfe Herd was named to TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, Forbes “30 Under 30” list, the Bloomberg 50 and InStyle’s 50 Women Who Are Changing the World. Wolfe Herd was also recently on the cover of Fast Company, Forbes and WIRED magazines.
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About Bumble: Bumble is an app that brings dating, friend-finding, and career-building into a single social networking platform.
Edward W. Stack
Chief Executive Officer & Founder of Dick’s Sporting Goods
Edward W. Stack has served as our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since 1984 when the founder and Edward Stack’s father, Richard “Dick” Stack, retired from our then two store chain. Mr. Edward Stack has served us full time since 1977 in a variety of positions, including President, Store Manager and Merchandise Manager.
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About Dick’s Sporting Goods: Dick’s Sporting Goods is an authentic full-line sporting goods retailer offering a broad assortment of brand name sporting goods equipment
Shawn Carter
Founder of Marcy Venture Partners
Jay-Z is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer and entrepreneur. He has sold approximately 50 million albums worldwide, earned 14 Grammy Awards, leading him to become one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America with a net worth of approximately $450 million as of 2011. Since 1996, 10-time Grammy award winner, Carter has dominated the rap industry and set trends for a generation. Founder and chairman of Rocawear, he is also co-owner of the NJ Nets, 40/40 sportsclubs, Translation Advertising and Carol’s Daughter skin line, as well involved in a partnership with Iconix Brand Group. After three successful years as President and CEO of Def Jam Recordings, where he fostered the careers of international stars Rihanna, Ne-Yo and Kanye West, he entered into a partnership with Live Nation to form Roc Nation. Through Roc Nation, he released the Blueprint 3, his 11th #1 album, putting him ahead of Elvis for most #1 albums by any solo artist. In 2010, he added author to his resume and claimed a spot on the New York Times bestseller’s list with his critically acclaimed debut book, “DECODED.” He continues his philanthropic work through his Water For Life initiative and the Shawn Carter Scholarship Foundation.
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About Marcy Venture Partners, Project Panther, Roc Nation, Shawn Carter: Marcy Venture Partners is a venture capital firm investing on consumer, culture, and mass-market brands.
Jay Brown
Co-Founder & Managing Director of Marcy Venture Partners
Jay Brown has served as a member of our Board since January 2014. Jay Brown, a 20-year music industry executive veteran, fostered the careers and discovered countless superstars including Rihanna and Ne-Yo and worked with artists such as NAS. Jay Brown is the Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Roc Nation, a full-service entertainment company started in 2008. Mr. Brown currently overseas the careers of a diverse Roc Nation roster comprised of Grammy award winning and critically acclaimed recording artists, writers and producers including Rihanna, Shakira, Timbaland, Kylie Minogue and Santigold. Prior to Roc Nation, Mr. Brown served as Executive Vice President for Def Jam Recordings from 2005 to 2008 and as Senior Vice President of Elektra Records from 1999 to 2004. Our Board has concluded that Mr. Brown should serve on the Board based upon his experience as an entrepreneur and senior executive and his broad knowledge of the music and entertainment industries.
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About Marcy Venture Partners, Roc Nation: Marcy Venture Partners is a venture capital firm investing on consumer, culture, and mass-market brands.
Larry Marcus
Co-Founder & Managing Director of Marcy Venture Partners
Actively making new investments in consumer and culture with Marcy Venture Partners, a VC firm co-founded with JAY-Z and Jay Brown. Managing Director at Walden Venture Capital Investments include: Savage X Fenty, Pela, Hungry, Wheels, Hipcamp, Partake Foods, Pandora (founding investor – IPO, exit to Sirius XM) , SoundHound, Aarki, goTenna, Hatch Baby, TouchBistro (exit), Robust Wealth (acquired by Principal Financial Group), Terayon (acquired by Motorola). Angel investments: include Netflix (IPO), BandPage (acquired by Google), Maestro, Jukely, LyricFind. Prior to Walden, Larry was a digital media sell-side Equity Research Analyst at Deutsche Bank Alex. Brown. Led IPOs of Terayon, CBS MarketWatch, Netflix (initial S-1 IPO filing), Maxis (acquired by Electronic Arts), Edmark (acquired by IBM) and among other equity and debt financings (Broderbund, Sierra On-line, Excite@Home, Spectrum Holobyte, CBS Sportsline). Prior experience includes Robertson Stephens & Company, Education: Larry received a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Business Administration from the University of California at Berkeley. See the music he loves at www.pandora.com/people/larry. He was named to the Billboard Power 100 in music and the Twitter 140 to follow.
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About Marcy Venture Partners, Scientific Revenue, TouchBistro, Walden Venture Capital: Marcy Venture Partners is a venture capital firm investing on consumer, culture, and mass-market brands.
Sunmeet Jolly
Founder & CEO of GROTU
Founder and Patent holder – GROTU mobile app @ 101 Islands LLC. Angel investor in 40 pre-IPO technology startups. Frequently invited by accelerators and angel forums to Judge startup competitions and discuss technology innovation. Former IT Consulting industry executive who sold hundreds of millions of dollars in consulting services to Fortune 500 companies working for Cap Gemini, HCL, L&T, NTT data.
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About GROTU: Patented GROTU app provides a much needed “private” collection of productivity and communication tools for friends and family social groups
Jeff Clavier
Founder and Managing Partner of Uncork Capital
Jeff Clavier Is The Founder and Managing Partner At Uncork Capital.
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About Uncork Capital: Uncork Capital is a seed-stage venture capital firm that focuses on SaaS, consumer, marketplaces, hardware, and new technology startups.
Paul J. Ferri
Founder & Partner Emeritus of Matrix Partners
Paul Ferri is the Founder of Matrix Partners, and one of the most respected investors in the venture capital industry. Like many of the entrepreneurs with whom he has worked over the years, Paul was born in another country and built his legacy from scratch, persevering through adverse conditions and making the best of the opportunity and luck that came his way. Born in Rome, Italy, Paul immigrated to the U.S. at the age of seven. It was 1944, the height of World War II, and neither Paul nor anyone in his family spoke English. His family settled in Virginia where his father worked for the government as an aeronautics engineer. They ultimately moved to the suburbs of New York, where Paul grew up. Paul studied engineering at Cornell University and the Polytechnic Institute of New York, and business at Columbia University. In 1977 Paul and Warren Hellman co-founded Hellman Ferri Investment Associates. The duo initially invested across multiple stages and in multiple sectors, and after five years Paul and Warren decided the best approach would be to develop distinct areas of expertise. Warren started a late stage private equity fund in San Francisco, which became Hellman & Friedman; Paul focused on early stage deals and established Matrix Partners in 1982. Over the next few years, Paul began to direct the firm’s investments toward information technology start-ups. One of the most significant companies Paul supported was Cascade Communications. The company, founded by Desh Deshpande and run by Dan Smith, became an industry leader that spawned new innovations. The company sold to Ascend, which was later bought by Lucent. Cascade’s founders and employees went on to found some of the most significant companies of the era, including ArrowPoint, Sonus Networks and Sycamore Networks—all of which were Matrix portfolio companies. Paul has led more than twenty portfolio companies to the public markets, and another twenty to profitable acquisitions. He continues to invest on behalf of the firm and guide his entrepreneurs through the ups and downs of start-up life on the path to success. Education: Cornell University, B.S. Electrical Engineering Polytechnic Institute of New York, M.S. Electrical Engineering Columbia University, MBA
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About Matrix Partners: Matrix Partners is a venture capital firm that focuses on seed and early-stage investments.
Greg Kidd
Co-Founder, Chief Executive Officer of GlobaliD
Believer that ones identity credentials should be truly portable and owned by individuals themselves rather than corporations or governments. The trade-off between security and privacy can meet the needs of both traditional institutions worried about compliance and risk, but also consumer protection advocates who care about the underserved and underbanked. Adviser/Investor via hardyaka.com for numerous startups in the exchange space including Shift, Ripple and 3taps, and previously Square and Twitter. Previously a director at Promontory Financial and a senior analyst for payments at The Board of Governor of the Federal Reserve. Senior Associate at Booz Allen. Founded and took Dispatch Management Services Corp public on the NASDAQ. Have worked as an instructor/leader for Outward Bound and the National Outdoor Leadership School. Specialties: Portable identity, digital currencies and exchange markets for goods, services, and information with functional emphasis on messaging, payments, and reputation/trust/risk. Well versed in visualizations for risk reporting and controls.
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About Apto Payments, GlobaliD, Hard Yaka: Create and manage your own portable, digital identity with globaliD.
Mitja Simcic
Co-Founder Chief Technology Officer of GlobaliD
Building and empowering people with portable, user controlled identities. Entrepreneur since college. Computer Science and MBA background.
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About GlobaliD, Kupi, Qloud.io: Create and manage your own portable, digital identity with globaliD.
Tim Chen
Founder and CEO of NerdWallet
Tim Chen is the founder and CEO of NerdWallet. A former hedge fund equity analyst specializing in payment processing companies, credit card networks, and technology companies, Tim also worked as an equity research analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston. He is a graduate of Stanford University with a degree in economics. In addition to writing for NerdWallet, Tim regularly contributes to several major personal finance publications.
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About NerdWallet: NerdWallet develops a financial platform to help people find the right credit cards and mortgage rates.
Matt Meeker
Founder and CEO of BarkBox
Mr. Matt Meeker is a Co-Founder of Bark & Co. and serves as its Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Meeker co-founded Wee Web, Inc. and serves as its Chief Executive Officer. He serves as Vice President of Member Experience at MeetUp, Inc. He co-founded MeetUp, Inc. in 2002 and served as its Advisor. He serves as a Venture Partner of Resolute Ventures, Inc. He served as the President at Bark & Co. He was an Entrepreneur in Residence at DogPatch Labs. He is the Organizer of .
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About BARK, BarkBox, Resolute Ventures: Barkbox is a subscription-based e-commerce and content company for dog lovers.
Steven Yang
Founder & CEO of Anker
Steven Yang is the Founder and CEO of Anker Innovations. He holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Peking University and a master’s in computer science from the University of Texas – Austin. He was a senior engineer at Google in California before leaving to found Anker in 2011.
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About Anker, Hunan Ocean Wing: Anker is a multinational team of techies that provides a range of products from batteries and chargers to hubs and readers, and more.
Davis Smith
Founder & CEO of Cotopaxi
Davis is the CEO of Cotopaxi, an outdoor gear brand with a social mission at its core. Davis was named CEO of the Year 2016 by Silicon Valley Community Foundation and is a member of the United Nations Foundation’s Global Entrepreneurs Council. He was previously the Co-CEO of Baby.com.br and Dinda.com.br, Brazil’s Startup of the Year in 2012, which raised over $40M in venture capital. In 2004, he also founded, and later sold, PoolTables.com, America’s largest pool table retailer. Davis holds an MBA from the Wharton School, an MA in International Studies from the University of Pennsylvania’s Lauder Institute, and a BA from Brigham Young University.
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About Cotopaxi: Cotopaxi is an outdoor brand with a humanitarian mission at its core.
Stephan Jacob
Founder & COO of Cotopaxi
Stephan Jacob has been serving as Chief Operating Officer at Cotopaxi since November 2013.
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About Cotopaxi: Cotopaxi is an outdoor brand with a humanitarian mission at its core.
Maneesh Sethi
Founder & CEO of Pavlok
Maneesh Sethi Founder & CEO of Pavlok and Editor-in-Chief of Hack The System I studied at Stanford University, authored 4 books (including an international bestseller, written when I was 14 yrs old), work in Marketing, Psychology, and Information Technology. For the last three years, I’ve run the blog Hack the System — A guide to hacking fame, productivity, travel, languages, exercise, and business. Along the way, I’ve run multiple projects to showcase what I’ve learned and what anyone can do — most spinoffs of HtS.
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About Pavlok: Pavlok is an electronic wristband that helps users create and maintain good habits.
Markus Levin
Co-Founder of XYO
Markus mined his first Bitcoin in 2013 and has been captivated by blockchain technologies ever since. Markus has over 15 years experience in building, managing and growing companies around the globe. Markus is originally from Germany (with English as his second language), and specializes in getting the most out of companies by implementing data-driven systems and utilizing the key talents of each employee to get the best out of his team. After dropping out of his Ph.D. studies at Bocconi University, Markus began working with companies in hyper-growth industries around the globe. Markus has led cutting-edge technology ventures such as Novacore, “sterkly”, Hive Media and Koiyo.
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About XYO: XYO is a decentralized crypto-location oracle network aiming to provide accurate location data from cars to smartphones.
Arie Trouw
CEO & CTO & Founder of XYO
Ten years before Elon Musk wrote his first line of computer code, another young prodigy from South Africa was busy writing software on his TRS-80 Model I. In 1978, at the age of 10, Arie Trouw started developing software on the TRS-80 Model I, moving on to Atari, Apple, and PC. He then ran a series of bulletin boards centering on game-theory modification. Arie is an accomplished serial entrepreneur with a rich history of technological breakthroughs and business successes involving multiple 8-figure exit events. He is a strong believer in decentralization and the creation of the integrated owner/user model. Arie founded XY in 2012 (incorporated as Ength Degree, LLC before it was converted to a C Corporation in 2016). He currently serves as Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors. Prior to starting XY-The Findables Company, Arie was CEO and Chairman of Pike Holdings Inc and Chief Technology Officer of Tight Line Technologies LLC. He received his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the New York Institute of Technology. Fun Fact: He is a member of one of the first Afrikaans speaking families to emigrate to the US from South Africa in 1976.
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About XY Labs, XY – The Persistent Company, XYO: XYO is a decentralized crypto-location oracle network aiming to provide accurate location data from cars to smartphones.
Scott Scheper
Founder, Vice Chairman & CMO of XYO
Scott has worked on many exciting ventures with exceptionally talented people, including the Co-founder of Uber. Scott’s first “real boss” was Arie Trouw, who hired Scott in 2009 during an economic recession, when very few companies were hiring, and even fewer were starting companies. What began as a Facebook app startup with four guys and a ping pong table, grew to over 200 employees and 9-figures in revenue in less than two years. In 2013 Scott took a break from corporate life to pursue the dream of working remotely on a laptop while sipping tropical drinks on the beaches of St. Thomas, Virgin Islands (U.S.). During this period, Scott launched Greenlamp, a programmatic advertising agency specializing in direct-response media buying. The agency was fully automated; built entirely using algorithms to manage the campaigns. The team was built with project-basis software engineers, and had only one full-time employee: that being Scott. The advertising campaigns were managed by an automated system, nicknamed “Stewie” (Family Guy). 24-hours a day, Stewie managed everything, making automated tweaks to the advertising campaigns. He even emailed Scott to chat about the changes made (Stewie’s emails included signature Stewie lines). In its first year of operation, Greenlamp generated over $12M in revenue. When not working, Scott can be found reading books by his idols, Gary C. Halbert and Charlie Munger, or sometimes even outside with friends and family in San Diego, California.
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About XYO: XYO is a decentralized crypto-location oracle network aiming to provide accurate location data from cars to smartphones.
Al Goldstein
Executive Chairman, Founder of Avant
Al is the co-founder and CEO of Avant, an online marketplace lending platform. Avant was named to Forbes America’s Most Promising Companies list for 2015 as well as Forbes Next Billion Dollar Startups list for 2015. Prior to Avant, Al co-founded Pangea Properties, a private REIT invested in distressed and value-add multi-family properties. Al was co-founder, President and CEO of CashNetUSA, now Enova International, from 2004 until 2008. Prior to that, he was part of Deutsche Bank’s Leveraged Finance practice. Al is an active member of the Young Presidents Organization (YPO) and America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and mentors young entrepreneurs.
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About Amount, Avant, Pangea Properties, Spring Labs: Avant is an online lending platform that offers alternatives to its clients with safe financial products.
Frank A. Bonsal, Jr.
Co-Founder of New Enterprise Associates
Mr. Bonsal has been an active advisor to Outcome Capital since its inception in 1998. Mr. Bonsal is a Co-Founder and General Partner at New Enterprise Associates, one of the country’s largest venture capital firms. NEA invests in early-stage companies and works with management to nurture and build companies of real and lasting value. His investment activities focus on a broad range of technical and service-oriented companies. Mr. Bonsal is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Johns Hopkins Hospital and a member of the Johns Hopkins Hospital Endowment Board. Also, Mr. Bonsal serves on the Boards of Directors of Ceratech, CIBERNET Corporation, and COVEGA Corporation, as well as an investment advisory firm, Brown Investment Advisory and Trust Co. Before co-founding NEA, Mr. Bonsal was a general partner of Alex. Brown & Sons.
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About New Enterprise Associates, Red Abbey Venture Partners: New Enterprise Associates is a global venture capital firm investing in technology and healthcare.
Lauren Schulte Wang
Founder & CEO of The Flex Co.
Lauren Schulte Wang is the founder & CEO of The Flex Company. Lauren has spent over a decade building leading consumer brands for companies including Coca-Cola, Autodesk, and IBM. She frequently speaks on the topics of women’s health and entrepreneurship and has been featured in The Economist, TechCrunch, OZY, The New Yorker, WIRED, The Washington Post and NPR. Lauren holds a Marketing degree from Georgia State University Robinson College of Business.
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About The Flex Co.: The Flex Co. is the top-selling sustainable period care brand known for creating a more comfortable period for everyone.
Panpan Wang
Co-Founder & Board of Directors of The Flex Co.
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About The Flex Co.: The Flex Co. is the top-selling sustainable period care brand known for creating a more comfortable period for everyone.
Michael Duda
Founder & Managing Partner of Bullish
Mike is one of two Managing Partners responsible for the overall health of Bullish. A relentless business leader, he has a well-rounded and diverse career that includes experience in brand management, business/corporate development, interactive and B2C investing. Over the course of his 20+ years in business, Mike has worked on a wide-range of brands including Birchbox, Casper, Citibank, DirecTV, Google, TripAdvisor, Under Armour and vineyard vines. He has spoken at numerous industry events, named one of Crain New York’s “Top 40 Under 40,” Business Insider’s “Top Investors” and ADWEEK’s “Best Advertising Voices on Twitter.” Prior to founding Bullish and its predecessor firm (Consigliere Brand Capital) in 2010, Mike spent 13 years at Deutsch Inc., where he became the youngest Partner in the company’s 35-year history overseeing business development, marketing and corporate strategy. He has held other industry roles including CEO of WPP-backed Johannes Leonardo.
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About Bullish: Bullish is an early-stage consumer investment firm and strategy-led brand agency.
Alexandra Friedman
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of LOLA
Alexandra Friedman is the co-founder of LOLA, the first lifelong brand for a woman’s body. LOLA aims to address every reproductive life stage with a commitment to product transparency and a community built on candid dialogue about all of the things we don’t openly talk about. Before founding LOLA with her co-founder Jordana in 2015, Alex led analytics at Flurry Analytics (acquired by Yahoo in August 2014) and was a consultant at Boston Consulting Group in New York. She has an MBA from Wharton Business School and received her undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College. Over the years, she has been actively involved in the Young Women’s Leadership Network, an education non-profit.
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About LOLA: LOLA provides a subscription service intended to deliver feminine care essentials.
Jordana Kier
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of LOLA
Jordana Kier is Co-Founder at LOLA and focuses on operations, supply chain, finance, and team-building. She is a native New Yorker, and has been a tampon user since her very first period. She loves Hans Zimmer movie scores, competitive sports, and road trips in foreign countries.
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About LOLA: LOLA provides a subscription service intended to deliver feminine care essentials.
Jake Kassan
CEO/Co-Founder of MVMT
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About MVMT: MVMT (pronounced movement) is a watchmaker company, founded on the belief that style shouldn’t break the bank.
Jake Kassan
CEO/Co-Founder of MVMT
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About MVMT: MVMT (pronounced movement) is a watchmaker company, founded on the belief that style shouldn’t break the bank.
Kramer LaPlante
Co Founder & COO & Co Owner of MVMT
Kramer LaPlante is Co Founder | COO at MVMT Watches.
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About MVMT: MVMT (pronounced movement) is a watchmaker company, founded on the belief that style shouldn’t break the bank.
Kramer LaPlante
Co Founder & COO & Co Owner of MVMT
Kramer LaPlante is Co Founder | COO at MVMT Watches.
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About MVMT: MVMT (pronounced movement) is a watchmaker company, founded on the belief that style shouldn’t break the bank.
Daniel Rotman
Founder & CEO of PrettyLitter
Harvard University’s Center for Public Leadership Fellow. Founder and CEO of PrettyLitter.
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About PrettyLitter: PrettyLitter’s lightweight litter monitors feline health by changing colors when it detects potential issues through your cat’s urine.
Michael Leabman
Founder & CTO of Energous Corporation
Mr. Leabman became the Company’s Chief Technology Officer in October 2013. From September 2010 to September 2013, Mr. Leabman served as President of TruePath Wireless, a service provider and equipment provider in the broadband communications industry. From 2008 to 2010, Mr. Leabman served as Chief Technology Officer for DataRunway Inc., a wireless communication company providing broadband internet to airlines. Mr. Leabman received both his Bachelor of Science degree and Master of Engineering degree in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Mr. Leabman’s extensive knowledge of the Company, its technology and the consumer and commercial electronics industry position him well for service on our board of directors.
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About Energous Corporation: Energous Corporation is the creator of WattUp, charging technology for electronic devices.
Stina Ehrensvard
CEO & Co-Founder of Yubico
Internationally awarded entrepreneur, innovator and speaker with an unfaltering energy and passion for making the internet safer for all. Education in industrial product design at the University of the Arts, Crafts and Design, Sweden.
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About Yubico: Yubico offers USB and wireless authentication solutions.
Jakob Ehrensvard
CTO & Co-Founder of Yubico
Built his first computer at the age of 15, self-employed software and hardware engineer since 19, designed the security system for Sweden’s largest nuclear plant at 25. Leading inventor of the YubiKey and FIDO/WebAuthn standards.
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About Yubico: Yubico offers USB and wireless authentication solutions.
David Lortscher
Co-Founder & CEO of Curology
David Lortscher, MD, is a licensed physician and a board-certified dermatologist. While working at a small but very busy dermatology practice in New Mexico, Dr. Lortscher saw that there were economic, geographical, and psychological barriers to seeing a dermatologist. He also noticed how changes in a person’s skin can have a tremendous impact on his or her life both socially and emotionally – and that’s when he had the idea to create Curology. Since its launch in 2014, Curology has been dedicated to removing barriers and helping people feel good about their skin. In addition to seeing patients at Curology, Dr. Lortscher serves as a remote dermatology consultant for the American Academy of Dermatology’s AccessDerm program.
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About Curology: Curology is a cosmetic company that provides actual prescription skincare customized for their skin and delivered to their door.
Glenn Lortscher
Co-Founder and CTO of Curology
Co-Founder and CTO @ Curology
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About Curology: Curology is a cosmetic company that provides actual prescription skincare customized for their skin and delivered to their door.
Benedict Dohmen
Co-Founder of Benitago Group
Benedict Dohmen is the Co-Founder at Benitago. He graduated from the University of Cambridge.
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About Benitago Group: Benitago connects with self-starting Amazon business owners who are looking to sell their businesses.
Santiago Nestares
Co-Founder of Benitago Group
Santiago is the Co-Founder of Benitago Group. He earned a degree in Computer Science, Psychology, and Economics at Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College.
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About Benitago Group: Benitago connects with self-starting Amazon business owners who are looking to sell their businesses.
Vishal Garg
Founder & CEO of Better.com
Vishal Garg is the Founder and CEO of Better.com, a digital-first homeownership company whose services included mortgage, real estate, title, and homeowners insurance. A serial entrepreneur, the day that he came up with the idea behind Better.com, Vishal was simply looking to purchase a home for his growing family (and not start a new company). When Vishal’s effort to buy his family’s dream house was defeated by an antiquated homeownership process, the vision and mission for Better.com was born. Vishal Garg’s Better.com all-in-one digital platform takes customers through the entire home-buying process, from finding an agent to securing a mortgage (or refinanced loan) to shopping for insurance. To date, under Vishal Garg’s leadership, Better.com has done over $46.9 BN in home loans and provided over $16B in cumulative coverage through Better Cover and Better Settlement Services, the insurance divisions of Better.com. Better.com has raised over $400M in equity capital and is backed by L Catterton, Kleiner Perkins, Goldman Sachs, American Express Ventures, Citi and other investors. In December 2019, HousingWire honored Vishal Garg with the “2019 Vanguard Award”, which recognizes leaders of businesses contributing to the growth of the housing economy. In July of 2020, Comparably surveyed employees of color to rate the top CEOs driving diversity and inclusive work culture. The results ranked Garg at #13 out of 25, placing him alongside leaders at organizations like Microsoft and Google. In September of 2020, Business Insider named Vishal Garg as one of the “100 People Transforming Business in 2020”. And, in October of 2020, Ernst & Young included Garg on the “Entrepreneur of the Year 2020” list. Vishal Garg is also the founding partner of 1/0 Capital. Previously, Vishal was Co-head and Managing Partner, ARAM ABS Group ($6 B+ assets) and the Founder and President & CFO of MyRichUncle (2005 NASDAQ IPO), which he founded at the age of 21 and built into the fourth largest private student loan originator in the US. Prior toMyRichUncle, Vishal was an analyst in the Mergers & Acquisition dept. at Morgan Stanley, and a frontier emerging markets portfolio manager for the Strategos Fund. He is a graduate of NYU Stern with the highest honors.
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About Better.com, Phoenix Holdings: Better.com is a homeownership journey platform that utilizes technology to change the way people buy and own a home.
Jonathan Regev
Co-Founder, CEO of The Farmer’s Dog
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About The Farmer’s Dog: A smarter, healthier pet food — delivered. #longlivedogs
Brett Podolsky
Co-Founder of The Farmer’s Dog
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About The Farmer’s Dog: A smarter, healthier pet food — delivered. #longlivedogs
Genevieve Ryan Bellaire
Founder & CEO of Realworld
Genevieve Ryan Bellaire is the Founder and CEO of Realworld, a company that provides a simple way to navigate adulthood and its life moments, with help from your community. Genevieve has had a broad array of professional experience across business, law, and government. An attorney by profession, she received her JD/MBA from Georgetown University, and worked on strategic partnerships at Goldman Sachs until leaving to found Real World Playbook. Genevieve received her B.A. in Politics-International Relations from Princeton University, where she held numerous campus leadership roles and graduated with Honors in her department. Beyond her work in the entrepreneurial world, Genevieve is passionate about women’s empowerment, education, and national security. She currently serves as a member of the Pencils of Promise Leadership Council, the Acumen Fund Young Professional Committee, and the Washington Institute for Business, Government, and Society.
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About Realworld: The #1 platform to navigate adulthood
Kevin Long
Co-Founder & CEO of The Dyrt
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About : The Dyrt is consumer subscription software and top ranked camping app, with over 1.5M user-submitted reviews and tips across the U.S.
Sarah Smith
Founder of The Dyrt
Sarah Smith is Founder at The Dyrt.
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About The Dyrt: The Dyrt is consumer subscription software and top ranked camping app, with over 1.5M user-submitted reviews and tips across the U.S.
Jonathan Um
Co-Founder, COO of Hollar
Co-Founder & COO at Hollar.
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About Hollar: Hollar is an online dollar store that features toys, apparel, electronics, beauty, accessories, party supplies, to home essentials.
Eddie Rhyu
Co-Founder, Chief Creative Officer of Hollar
Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer at Hollar.
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About Hollar: Hollar is an online dollar store that features toys, apparel, electronics, beauty, accessories, party supplies, to home essentials.
David Manshoory
Co-Founder & COO of Alleyoop
With a passion for entrepreneurship, David has created and led several successful companies. Currently, he serves as the Co-Founder & COO of Alleyoop, a new beauty & body care brand developing innovative, multi-functional products for busy women. Previously, David Manshoory was the Co-Founder of AssetAvenue.com, a technology-first national lender for residential investment properties that provided borrowers and brokers with faster and more flexible funding solutions than traditional banks. David received his Bachelor of Science in Entrepreneurship from the University of Southern California and his master’s degree from USC’s Master of Real Estate Development Program.
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About Alleyoop: Alleyoop is a beauty and wellness company.
Maisha Leek
Operating Partner and Head of Founder & Studio Ops of Human Ventures
Maisha Leek is chief of staff at United Masters and Translation. Prior to Translation, she served as the National Vice President, Government Relations for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America where she led a team advocating for 4 million youth across the country, including on military installations and Native lands. Before BGCA, she served as senior advisor to the President of Howard University, and chief of staff to a senior member of Congress. She also led a team in establishing the Equity and Excellence Commission at the U.S. Department of Education . During the Bush Administration, she was appointed to serve as special assistant to the Vice Chair of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Maisha is a trustee of Trinity College – Washington DC and a member of the Corporate Advisory Council of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.
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About Human Ventures: Human Ventures is a business creation platform, comprised of a venture fund, studio and enterprise agency.
Joe Marchese
Co-Founder of Human Ventures
Joe Marchese is the Executive Chairman and lead investor in Human Ventures. Joe serves as president of Advanced Advertising Products at Fox Networks Group, where he leads operations in non-linear advertising products and services for 21st Century Fox’s global portfolio of channels. Joe was appointed to his current position after the company he founded, true[X], was acquired by 21st Century Fox in 2015. true[X], the leader in engagement advertising technologies, is now a part of the Advanced Advertising Products division. Joe is also the co-founder and Chairman of the Human company, Reserve. Prior to true[X], Joe spent several years as a television executive at the cable network Fuse TV, where, as SVP of Digital and Advertising. Joe currently serves on the board of trustees of the Paley Center for Media and the Board of Directors of the Tribeca Film Institute. Mr. Marchese holds a B.A. in Economics and Finance from Bentley University. He lives in New York with his wife Christie and their dog
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About Attention Capital, Casa Komos Beverage Group, Human Ventures: Human Ventures is a business creation platform, comprised of a venture fund, studio and enterprise agency.
Justin Guilbert
Founder & Co-CEO of Bravo Sierra
Justin Guilbert is a co-founder and co-CEO at Bravo Sierra.
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About Bravo Sierra, GoodFish, Harmless Harvest, Intraloop: Bravo Sierra is the military-native performance wellness company.
Amish Jani
Founder & Partner of FirstMark
Amish Jani is a founder and Managing Director of FirstMark and has been an active venture capitalist for nearly 20 years. He invests broadly across the cloud and Internet landscape, including SaaS applications, ecommerce, infrastructure and more. Amish has been recognized by CB Insights and the New York Times as a Top 100 Venture Capitalist globally. Amish has invested in industry-defining companies that include Shopify (NYSE: SHOP), InVision, Pendo, Starry, Tracelink, Frame.io, Guru, Bluecore, IMImobile (LSE: IMO), Schoology (acquired by PowerSchool), Boomi (acquired by Dell), Aveksa (acquired by EMC), and many more. Prior to founding FirstMark, Amish served as a Partner with Pequot Ventures. Amish holds both a B.S. and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.
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About FirstMark: FirstMark Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm that partners with exceptional entrepreneurs.
Rick Heitzmann
Founder, Partner, and Managing Director of FirstMark
Rick Heitzmann is a Founder and Managing Director at FirstMark Capital. Mr. Heitzmann focuses on investments in emerging media, advertising, data, and information services. Rick has led or co-led many investments in market leaders in commerce (StubHub, acquired by eBay), gaming (Riot Games, acquired by Tencent), data services (First Advantage, NASDAQ: FADV; acquired by First American), advertising technology (Tapad), media (Pinterest), and more. Previously, Rick was a Managing Director at Pequot Ventures, and a founding member of the senior management team at First Advantage (NASDAQ: FADV). At US Search, Rick, as the Senior Vice President of corporate development and member of the Board of Directors, led the public company turnaround. Mr. Heitzmann graduated from Georgetown University with a B.S. in Business Administration and earned his M.B.A. from The Harvard Business School. Rick sits on the Board of Directors of Pinterest, Dashlane, Omaze, and Hubble Contacts among others. Rick is also on the Board of Directors of the New York Venture Capital Association.
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About FirstMark: FirstMark Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm that partners with exceptional entrepreneurs.
Robert C. Walker
Founder, Investor, and Board Member of LARQ
Robert C. Walker has 20 years experience in the LED and compound semiconductor world, particularly in Asia, and 6 years of venture capital experience. He was formerly a Partner at Sierra Ventures and CEO of BridgeLux. He has a Ph.D. in Physics from Caltech.
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About LARQ: LARQ helps people access pristine drinking water easily and sustainably.
Hope McDonald
Co-Founder, Bosch mLab of Bosch
Hope is the director and founder of the Bosch mLab at the Chicago Connectory. She and her team support strategic projects and provide consulting services for startups from the Connectory and 1871 and the various brands and divisions in the Bosch family. She identifies and consults on potential investments and partnerships and is the innovator behind both the Bosch Next and connectiCity platforms. A 20 year veteran at Bosch, Hope leverages her network to align creative, strategic and financial opportunities to build best-in-class experiences. Her recent portfolio spans various mobile, internet of things, virtual and augmented reality experiences. She is a techy at heart, UX evangelist, and known for driving innovation in various roles throughout her career.
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About Bosch: The Bosch Group is a global supplier of technology and services.
Allen Chen
CEO & Co-Founder of Fitbod
Allen is the Co-founder & CEO of Fitbod.
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About Fitbod: Fitbod allows users to maximize the use of indoor gym equipment and confidence to train effectively for strength.
Jesse Venticinque
Co-Founder, Product Head of Fitbod
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About Fitbod: Fitbod allows users to maximize the use of indoor gym equipment and confidence to train effectively for strength.
Dave Garr
Co-Founder, SVP of Customer Experience of UserTesting
Specialties:A/B testing, conversion rate optimization, interactive marketing, market research, multivariate testing, product marketing, social networking, usability
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About UserTesting: UserTesting is an on-demand human insight platform designed to improve customer insights.
Jennifer Hyman
Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Rent the Runway
Jennifer Hyman is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Rent the Runway, a fashion company with a technology soul that is disrupting the way women get dressed. In her role, she sets the strategic priorities of the business and leads the company in growing all areas of the business, including marketing, technology, product, and analytics. She co-founded Rent the Runway in 2009 with Jennifer Fleiss, and has since raised $126 million in venture capital, growing the business to over 6 million members, 950 employees and 400 designer brands. Jennifer has been honored with numerous recognitions including: Forbes’ “Women Entrepreneurs to Watch”, TriBeCa Film Festival’s “Disruptive Innovation Awards”, Fortune Magazine’s “Trailblazers, 11 People Changing Business in 2013,” “Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs,” and “40 Under 40”; Inc. Magazine’s “30 Under 30”; and Fast Company’s “Most Influential Women in Technology.” She has been a featured speaker at Fortune Brainstorm Tech, the Forbes Women’s Summit, Tech Crunch Disrupt, and Marie Claire’s Power Trip, and has appeared as a guest on NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, and CNN Money, among many others. In 2015, Jennifer launched the Rent the Runway Foundation with Jennifer Fleiss to inspire and ignite the next generation of female entrepreneurs. The foundation’s first initiative, in partnership with UBS, is Project Entrepreneur, a venture competition and educational program designed to provide women entrepreneurs nationwide with the tools to build high-growth, high-impact businesses. Prior to Rent the Runway, Jennifer was the Director of Business Development at IMG where she focused on the creation of new media businesses for IMG’s Fashion Division. She also ran an online advertising sales team at WeddingChannel.com and was an in-house entrepreneur at Starwood Hotels, creating Starwood’s first wedding business which was recognized on the Oprah Winfrey Show for its innovation. She received her BA from Harvard University and MBA from Harvard Business School. Jennifer is a Bloomberg Fellow, a TechStars mentor, and a member of both the Entrepreneurship Board at the Fashion Institute of Technology and the Women in Business Board at Harvard University. She is an investor in and advisor to several high-growth startups throughout the U.S.
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About Brit + Co, Rent the Runway, Zalando: Rent the Runway is an online e-commerce website that allows women to rent designer apparel and accessories.
Jennifer Fleiss
Co-Founder of Rent the Runway
Jennifer Fleiss is the President and co-founder of Rent the Runway, the premier online destination for designer dress and accessory rentals. Jenny and her co-founder, Jennifer Hyman, have built the company to include a revolving roster of over 150 designer brands, 25,000 dresses, 120 employees, and over 2 million members. The company has raised approximately $31 million in venture capital funding from Bain Capital Ventures, Highland Capital, and Kleiner Perkins. In 2007, Jenny began at Harvard Business School where she met Jennifer Hyman. As sectionmates, the two women would meet frequently to discuss entrepreneurial ideas, one of which was Rent the Runway. Designed to solve the common “closet full of clothes but nothing to wear” problem, Jenn and Jenny launched Rent the Runway in November 2009. Prior to Harvard Business School, Jenny worked at Morgan Stanley in the Strategic Planning Group crafting long-term company strategy. She then moved on to Lehman Brothers’ Asset Management Group where she was responsible for analyzing business growth opportunities through acquisitions, international expansion, and new product strategies. Jenny received her Bachelor of Arts from Yale University in 2005 graduating Cum Laude, and her Master’s of Business Administration from Harvard Business School in 2009.
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About Rent the Runway, Volition Capital: Rent the Runway is an online e-commerce website that allows women to rent designer apparel and accessories.
Renata Mutis Black
Co-Founder of EBY
Renata M. Black is the founder of EBY. She founded Seven Bar Foundation in 2009 after having studied microfinance under Noble Peace Prize winner – Muhammad Yunus in 2006 and launching a microfinance program in India for over 800 women in 2007. Black then came back to the states to develop the brand for the Empowerment of Women – a “ladder” icon symbolizing extending ladders to women out of poverty and into business. To reach a critical mass with the “ladder” icon she created and trademarked couture and luxury lingerie shows in the 15 top cities. Thus far Lingerie Miami, Lingerie New York and Lingerie London have redirected the power of the luxury lingerie industry to empowerment of women with over 4 billion media impressions. The shows developed cause-marketing campaigns with Asscher Diamonds, Fusion Beauty, Kraft Foods and Diageo to note a few yielding nearly half a million in proceeds to the Foundation impacting 2,500 women locally and globally. On October 24, 2012 at Lingerie London alongside Agent Provocateur and Atsuko Kudo, Black launched the for-profit Empowered By You brand with the ethos – Whatever Empowers You, Empowers Women Everywhere. 20% of every sale goes to the empowerment of women via Seven Bar Foundation. The product found in over 40 stores is a lifestyle brand now expanding into designer collaborations. Black is currently the vice chair of the CSR Network, a member of 85 Broads, and a member of Women on Wall Street and Advertising Women of New York. She earned her degree at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
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About EBY, Seven Bar Foundation: EBY is a membership-based company driving profits with purpose.
Kathryn Petralia
Co-Founder & President of Kabbage
Kathryn Petralia is the Co-founder and President of Kabbage Inc., a data and technology company offering automated cash flow solutions to small businesses. Kathryn is a seasoned leader in financial services with more than 20 years’ experience across credit, payments and lending. Recognized as one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in the World by Forbes, Kathryn helps lead Kabbage to simplify the way small businesses access the capital and services they need to build lasting businesses.
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About Drum, Kabbage, Visionary Systems: Kabbage is a fintech company that offers cash flow management solutions to small businesses.
Rob Frohwein
Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder of Kabbage
Rob founded Kabbage to get small businesses capital quickly, an area in which banks have long struggled. He believes deeply that small businesses are at the core of economic development around the world. Rob’s also a 3-time author, former co-host of a radio show, inventor with more than 30 patents and applications — and the owner of a lifetime pass to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Favorite small business: Bull’s BBQ at Citizen’s Bank Park, owned by former Philadelphia Phillie Greg Luzinski.
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About Drum, Kabbage: Kabbage is a fintech company that offers cash flow management solutions to small businesses.
David Koretz
Founder & CEO of Plum
David Koretz is a serial entrepreneur who founded four companies by the age of 19. He is currently President & CEO of BlueTie, and President of Mykonos Software. Under the leadership of Mr. Koretz, BlueTie has been a three-time recipient of Forbes Magazine “Best of the Web†as one of the top four Websites in the world for small businesses, winner of the 2008 AlwaysOn Top 100 award, PC Magazine Four Star Award, and the Ad-Tech award for Best B2B Transaction Website. Mr. Koretz was the recipient of Teen People Magazine’s “20 Teens Who Will Change the World” award, the “40 Under 40 Award,” and the Digital Rochester “Rising Star Award.” Mr. Koretz currently serves as a Board Member of Earthlink, BlueTie, RIT President’s Roundtable, Adventive, Mykonos Software, The Young Entrepreneur’s Academy, and the RIT School of Computing. He is a monthly columnist in Media Post.
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About Plum: Plum is an appliance that automatically identifies, chills to the perfect temperature, and provides a premium wine-drinking experience.
John Reed
Co-Founder and Chairman of Arhaus
John Reed co-founded Arhaus, LLC and served as its Chief Executive Officer. He also serves as Chairman of Arhaus, LLC.
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About Arhaus: Arhaus is a premiere retail chain that designs, manufactures, and sells home furnishings both at retail locations and online.
Omar Rada
Founder of Misen
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About Misen: Misen manufactures and sells quality tools that are essential for great cooking.
Elana Fishman
Co-Founder & COO of Wyze Labs
Elana Fishman is COO of Wyze Labs.
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About Wyze Labs, Wyze Labs: Wyze Labs is a smart home device company that aims to make smart home tech accessible to everyone.
Rick Burnes
General Partner & Founder of CRV
Rick Burnes is the General Partner & Founder of Charles River Ventures.
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About CRV: CRV is a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage investments in technology companies.
Trung Pham
Founder, CEO of RYSE
Co-founder of a rapidly growing entertainment app in Toronto, also part-time stunt double for Elon Musk.
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About RYSE: RYSE is an IoT company that develops smart shade solutions. We are the world’s most intelligent window shade automation platform.
Jeff Arnold
Founder, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Sharecare
Jeff Arnold is Chairman and CEO of Sharecare, a comprehensive health and wellness engagement platform that provides people with personalized resources to help them live their healthiest lives. Arnold co-founded Sharecare in 2010 with Dr. Oz, and in partnership with Harpo Productions, Sony Pictures Television and Discovery Communications.Previously, Arnold was Chairman and CEO of HowStuffWorks.com, which he sold to Discovery Communications where he served as Chief Digital Strategy Officer, and Chief Architect of The Curiosity Project until December 2011.At 28, he founded and served as CEO of WebMD, the first healthcare company to harness the power of the Internet to empower consumers, healthcare institutions and physicians to find trustworthy medical information. In recognition of his superior achievements and contributions to the advancement of nursing and healthcare, he was inducted into the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International, as an Honorary Member. Arnold also has received honors from the World Economic Forum; the Technology Hall of Fame of Georgia; and Ernst & Young, who named him Entrepreneur of the Year, Southeast Region. Chairman of Forbes Travel Guide, Arnold also has served on numerous boards for public, private and charitable organizations.
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About Sharecare, WebMD, WebMDCorp: Sharecare is a health and wellness engagement platform providing consumers with information, programs and resources to improve their health.
Mehmet Oz
Co-Founder of Sharecare
Dr. Oz has won Nine Daytime Emmy® Awards for “The Dr. Oz Show” and is an attending physician at NY Presbyterian- Columbia Medical Center. He still performs dozens of heart operations annually. His research interests include heart replacement surgery, minimally invasive surgery, alternative medicine and health care policy. He has authored over 400 original publications, book chapters, and medical books, has received numerous patents, and still performs heart surgery. He also authors a newspaper column syndicated by Hearst in 175 markets internationally. Dr. Oz was born in Cleveland, Ohio, raised in Delaware and received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University (1982) and obtained a joint MD and MBA (1986) from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Wharton Business School. He was awarded the Captain’s Athletic Award for leadership in college and elected Class President twice followed by President of the Student Body during medical school. He lives in Northern New Jersey with his wife Lisa of 32 years and their four children, Daphne, Arabella, Zoe and Oliver and three grandchildren Philomena, John and Domenica. Previously, Dr. Oz was a featured health expert on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” for six seasons, spanning over 60 episodes. He also served as chief medical consultant to Discovery Communications, where his “Transplant!” series won both a Freddie and a Silver Telly award. He also served as medical director of Denzel Washington’s “John Q” and performed in the hip-hop video “Everybody” as part of the Let’s Move Campaign. Dr. Oz authored eight New York Times Best Sellers, including “Food Can Fix It”, “You: The Owner’s Manual”, “You: The Smart Patient”, “YOU: On a Diet”, “YOU: Staying Young”, “YOU: Being Beautiful”, “YOU: Having a Baby”, “YOU: The Owner’s Manual for Teens”, as well as the award-winning “Healing from the Heart”. He has a regular column in Oprah Magazine and his article “Retool, Reboot, and Rebuild” for Esquire magazine was awarded the 2009 National Magazine Award for Personal Service. He co-founded Sharecare.com which won “Best Medical App” award for AskMD in 2014 and its DoctorOz app was nominated for an Emmy in 2017. In 2003, Dr Oz founded Healthcorps which emulates the Peacecorps by putting energetic recent college graduates into high schools around the country to reach diet, fitness, and mental resilience. Over a million teens have been influenced this nationwide program. In addition to belonging to every major professional society for heart surgeons, Dr. Oz has been named Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People, Forbes’ most influential celebrity, Esquire magazine’s 75 Most Influential People of the 21st Century, a Global Leader of Tomorrow by the World Economic Forum, Harvard’s 100 Most Influential Alumni, as well as receiving the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and AARP 50 Influential people over 50. He won the prestigious Gross Surgical Research Scholarship, and he has received an honorary doctorate from Istanbul University. He was voted “The Best and Brightest” by Esquire Magazine, a “Doctor of the Year” by Hippocrates magazine and “Healer of the Millennium” by Healthy Living magazine. Dr. Oz is annually elected as a highest quality physician by the Castle Connolly Guide as well as other major ranking groups. He is also an honorary police surgeon for New York City.
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About Sharecare: Sharecare is a health and wellness engagement platform providing consumers with information, programs and resources to improve their health.
Don Thompson
Founder and CEO of Cleveland Avenue
As President and Chief Executive Officer of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD), Don Thompson leads the world’s largest foodservice company. McDonald’s serves 70 million customers everyday in more than 100 countries and employs 1.8 million people across the globe in corporate and restaurant positions. During his 23 years at McDonald’s, Thompson has helped drive business results and global strategic innovation across the organization. Since joining as an electrical engineer in 1990, he has held a variety of key leadership positions within the company including Regional Vice President, Division President and Chief Operating Officer. Between 2006 and 2010, Thompson served as President of McDonald’s USA, the company’s largest business segment. Most recently as President and COO of McDonald’s Corporation, Thompson and his leadership team established three global growth priorities in support of the McDonald’s Plan to Win: to optimize the menu, modernize the customer experience and broaden restaurant accessibility. In July 2012, Thompson became President and CEO and is leading the company on its mission to become “our customers’ favorite place and way to eat and drink.” A true advocate of collaboration and believer in the strength of the McDonald’s three legged stool, Thompson and his leadership team work closely with the 5,000 independent owner/operators, corporate staff and restaurant employees around the world as well as countless McDonald’s suppliers. A leader in the business community, Don serves on the Board of Directors for McDonald’s Corporation, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Catalyst, Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Purdue University. Thompson also serves as a member of the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club, The Economic Club, World Business Chicago and the Brazier Foundation. Thompson has been recognized for his leadership and passion by the Illinois Holocaust Museum (2012 Humanitarian Award), the Executive Leadership Council (2010 Corporate Award), the Trumpet Foundation (2008 Corporate Executive Award), and Black Enterprise (2007 Corporate Executive of the Year). Thompson received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University and an honorary Doctorate in Science degree from Excelsior College. Thompson resides in the Chicagoland area with his wife and two children.
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About Cleveland Avenue: Cleveland Avenue is a Chicago-based venture fund and accelerator that invests in food, beverage, and tech businesses.
Donald Thompson
CEO and Founder of Cleveland Avenue
Don celebrates people and drives results. His 25-year ascension through the ranks of McDonald’s Corporation to become its President and CEO is one of the most respected career trajectories in corporate America. An electrical engineer by education and trade, Don approached his leadership of the world’s largest restaurant chain in a strategically methodical manner, while still embracing the warmth and enthusiasm of the dynamic teams around the world. He’s a heart leader with a head for serious business, as evidenced by his achievements such as developing the global platforms for the company’s beverages, sustainability and digital initiatives. In 2015, Don left McDonald’s to form Cleveland Avenue, LLC, bringing together his vast restaurant expertise and engineering experience with his passion for innovation, digital trends and startup concepts. Don leads the CA team in bringing creative and consumer-focused restaurant, food and beverage ideas to reality. Don is committed to mentoring others, fueled by his foundation in faith, family and community. Not to be outdone by the culinary geniuses he regularly encounters, Don occasionally dons a chef’s hat of his own, and enjoys cooking for family and friends.
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About Cleveland Avenue: Cleveland Avenue is a Chicago-based venture fund and accelerator that invests in food, beverage, and tech businesses.
Dan Levitan
Co-Founder and Partner of Maveron
Dan Levitan is the firm’s co-founder and managing member of both the General Partner and Maveron LLC, the Management Company. Since co-founding the firm with Howard Schultz 23 years ago, Levitan has led many of the firm’s successful investments, including zulily (NASDAQ:ZU), Trupanion (NYSE:TRUP), Capella Education Company (NASDAQ:CPLA), and Potbelly Corporation (NASDAQ:PBPB). Forbes recently named Levitan to its Midas List—the magazine’s annual ranking of the top 100 VCs in the world. He currently serves on the board of directors of Allbirds, Daring Foods, Domain Money, Engageli, Otis, Pacaso, Trupanion, and Two Chairs.\. Prior to co-founding Maveron, Levitan spent 15 years in investment banking, focused primarily on consumer businesses. During his banking career, Levitan helped more than 100 companies go public, make strategic acquisitions or monetize the equity value they had created. Levitan met Howard Schultz in 1991, when Starbucks began planning for its IPO, and eventually helped the company go public. Levitan currently serves as a member of the Boards of Trustees of Seattle Children’s Healthcare System and Seattle Children’s Hospital and he also serves on the Investment Advisory Committee for Seattle Children’s which oversees over $2B in AUM. Dan is also a board member of The Rock Center for Entrepreneurship at Harvard Business School where he acts as a judge at the annual New Venture Competition. Dan is also chair of Brothers for Life, a charity that helps wounded Israeli combat soldiers. Levitan is a graduate of Duke University (BA) and Harvard Business School (MBA).
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About Maveron: Maveron is a consumer-only venture capital firm that empower consumers to live on their terms.
Greg Fleishman
Co-Founder & CEO + Board Member of Foodstirs
Greg Fleishman is the Co-Founder and CEO at Foodstirs.
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About Fata & Fleishman Mentorship, Foodstirs, Modern Alkeme, Purely Righteous Brands LLC, Springdale Ventures: Foodstirs is an omni-channel junk-free baking brand that helps people connect through the power of better-for-you sweet baked goods.
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer of Foodstirs
Sarah Michelle Prinze (née Gellar; born April 14, 1977) is an American actress, producer, and entrepreneur. After being spotted by an agent at the age of four in New York City, she made her acting debut in the made-for-TV movie An Invasion of Privacy (1983). Gellar went on to make several guest appearances in television series, and play small roles in films such as Funny Farm (1988). Her first leading part was in the 1992 miniseries Swans Crossing, for which she was nominated for two Young Artist Awards. Gellar’s television breakthrough came in 1993 when she originated the role of Kendall Hart on the ABC daytime soap opera All My Children, winning the 1995 Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series. Gellar received widespread recognition for her portrayal of Buffy Summers on the WB series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003), which earned her five Teen Choice Awards, a Saturn Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination. The character was widely popular during the airing of the show and became recognized as one of the 100 greatest female characters in U.S. television. Gellar also gained significant attention for her appearances in the slasher movies I Know What You Did Last Summer and Scream 2 (1997), and for her portrayal of Kathryn Merteuil in Cruel Intentions (1999). She appeared as Daphne Blake in Scooby-Doo (2002), her biggest live-action commercial success. In 2004, Gellar starred in the sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed and the horror remake The Grudge, both of which grossed more than US$180 million worldwide. She subsequently appeared in smaller scale movies such as The Return (2006) and Southland Tales (2007) and provided her voice for TMNT (2007). Her later film credits include The Air I Breathe (2008), Possession (2009) and Veronika Decides to Die (2009). She headlined the short-lived television series Ringer (2011–2012) and The Crazy Ones (2013–2014), which co-starred Robin Williams. In 2015, she joined the cast of the animated series Star Wars Rebels for season two. In October 2015, Gellar co-founded Foodstirs with entrepreneurs Galit Laibow and Greg Fleishman. Foodstirs is a startup food crafting brand selling via e-commerce and retail easy to make organic baking mixes and kits for families. By the beginning of 2017, Foodstirs products were available in about 400 stores; by the end of the year a surge of interest from retailers increased its distribution to 8,000 stores. In 2018, the brand entered into a deal with Starbucks to carry Foodstirs mug cake mixes across 8,000 of its stores.
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About Foodstirs: Foodstirs is an omni-channel junk-free baking brand that helps people connect through the power of better-for-you sweet baked goods.
Nandeet Mehta
CEO & Founder of Pyur Solutions
Nandeet Mehta has been called a competitor by Forbes, and one of “The Youngest Venture Capitalist” by Huffington Post for starting his career in Venture Capital at the young age of 18. Nandeet has experience in the VC world being a Partner & Co-Founder of Prototype Capital. He was previously at Anthos Capital, Space Angels Network, and Science Inc. He graduated UCLA as an Edison Scholar and History student in 2017. During his time as a student, he had his first successful exit with Third Eye Technologies, acquired by TheBlindGuide, and co-created and co-lectured the “Self-Innovations Lab: Converting Academic Expertise to Industry Expertise” accredited class at UCLA. He was named to the University of California Office of the President 2016 “30 Under 30” for his work in Agricultural Innovation with Pyur Solutions. Nandeet was also awarded as a Kairos Society Fellow for Pyur Solutions and is the most recent addition as an Executive to Kairos Society and on the board of Wanderset. His experience also includes a myriad of internships at Fortune 500 companies and startups including Lyft, T-mobile, Ubisoft, Dell and Samsung. Mehta strives to express his passions through speaking at conferences, university events, moderating panels, and writing as a contributor to TechCrunch and Huffington Post.
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About Afore Capital, AON3D, Aura Health, Donut Media, FaZe Clan, Ghost Robotics, Grishin Robotics, Hightouch, Kiwibot, Orai, Prototype Capital, Pyur Solutions, TechCrunch, theCut, ViaBot: A cpg-focused, house of brands building a series of contemporary brands that cohesively addresses multiple touchpoints of daily life.
Hao Li
CEO & Co-Founder of Pinscreen
Hao Li is Founder and CEO of Pinscreen, Inc., and Distinguished Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley. He was previously Associate Professor of Computer Science at the University of Southern California, Director of the USC Institute for Creative Technologies, a visiting professor at Weta Digital and a research lead at Industrial Light & Magic / Lucasfilm. For his contributions in non-rigid shape registration, human digitization, and real-time facial performance capture, Hao received the TR35 Award in 2013, recognizing him as one of the top 35 innovators under the age of 35, from the MIT Technology Review. He was named Andrew and Erna Viterbi Early Career Chair in 2015, and was awarded the Google Faculty Research Award and the Okawa Foundation Research Grant the same year. He won the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Award in 2018. He is best known for his work on dynamic geometry processing, facial animation, and data-driven techniques for making 3D human digitization and facial animation accessible to the masses. During his PhD, Hao co-created the first real-time and markerless system for performance-driven facial animation based on depth sensors. The team later commercialized a variant of this technology as the facial animation software Faceshift (acquired by Apple Inc. in 2015 and incorporated into the iPhone X in 2017). He was brought on as visiting professor at Weta Digital to build the high-fidelity facial performance capture pipeline for reenacting the deceased actor Paul Walker in the movie Furious 7 (2015). His recent research focuses on combining techniques in Deep Learning and Computer Graphics to facilitate the creation of 3D avatars and to enable true immersive face-to-face communication and telepresence in Virtual Reality.
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About Pinscreen, University of California Berkeley: Revolutionizing digital communication and online human interactions with user-generated and personalized 3D virtual avatars.
Dennis Steele
Co-Founder of Podium
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About Podium: Podium is a customer communication platform for businesses who interact with customers on a local level.
Eric Rea
CEO and Co-Founder of Podium
Eric Rea is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder at Podium.
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About Podium: Podium is a customer communication platform for businesses who interact with customers on a local level.
Bob Hower
Co-Founder of G20 Ventures
Bob is a 13-year VC vet twice named to the Forbes “Midas List,” having led investments in great ideas and great teams including Acme Packet (APKT, acquired by Oracle), AppIQ (acquired by HP), Channel Advisor (ECOM), Actifio, [x+1] (acquired by Rocket Fuel), Evergage and Fuze. Before becoming a Venture investor, Bob held senior marketing, product management, and sales positions at Lotus Development, Cabot, Cabot and Forbes, General Mills, and Priority Call Management. Today Bob is on the Boards of Channel Advisor, Actifio, [x+1], Evergage and Thinking Phone Networks. He remains a GP at Advanced Technology Ventures; serves as an Xconomist, and on the non-profit boards of the New England Venture Capital Association, Cambridge Community Foundation and Pivot – an NGO in Madagascar. Bob holds a B.A. degree from Harvard College and an M.B.A. from The Amos Tuck School.
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About Advanced Technology Ventures, G20 Ventures: G20 Ventures invests in enterprise tech startups in the early stages of their growth.
Bill Wiberg
Co-Founder of G20 Ventures
Bill is an accomplished executive and 17-year venture investor passionate about technical innovation, and helping entrepreneurs win. Bill has extensive operating experience, culminating in his role as the President of Lucent Technology’s $5 billion Cellular and PCS Wireless Networks division. He held senior management positions in product development and marketing at AT&T, Bell Labs, and Lucent, and made the change to venture investing in 2000. Bill serves on the Boards of G20 portfolio companies Mautic and Siemplify. He remains a GP at Advanced Technology Ventures, and serves on the Boards of Great Point Energy, Rive Technology, Silicor Materials, Oasys Water and Aquion Energy. Bill earned an M.B.A. from Columbia University, an M.S. from Stanford University, and a B.S. from Cornell University.
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About Advanced Technology Ventures, G20 Ventures, GreatPoint Energy, Oasys, Rive Technology: G20 Ventures invests in enterprise tech startups in the early stages of their growth.
Phil Dumas
Founder & CEO of UniKey Technologies
Phil Dumas is the Founder & CEO of UniKey Technologies. Phil is a driven innovator with in-depth experience in access control and launching disruptive technologies. He has a proven track record of successful product launches and profitability. Most notably, the technology behind the Kwikset Kevo, the first Smart Lock on the market with availability in Home Depot, Lowes, Best Buy, Amazon and Apple.com. Phil appeared on ABC’s hit show Shark Tank (Season 3 finale) to pitch UniKey, and was the first company to receive an offer from all five Sharks.
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About UniKey Technologies: UniKey Technologies offers a mobile platform to replace keys, codes, and passwords by turning a smartphone into a universal electronic key.
Charles Desmarais
Co-CEO & Co-Founder of Athena Club
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About Athena Club: Athena Club provides a wide range of feminine care products.
Maria Markina
Co-CEO & Co-Founder of Athena Club
Maria is the Co-Founder at Athena Club, a feminine care company aiming to make women’s day to day lives easier through an easy and personable service. Prior to launching Athena Club, Maria worked at McKinsey and Company.
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About Athena Club: Athena Club provides a wide range of feminine care products.
Moawia Eldeeb
Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Tempo
Moawia Eldeeb is the co-founder and CEO of Tempo.
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About Tempo: Tempo is a home fitness platform, combining equipment, training guidance, and social motivation with 3D sensors and artificial intelligence.
Kim Stiefel
CEO & Co-Founder of Repeat
Kim Stiefel is the CEO and Co-Founder of PRZM.
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About Repeat: Repeat is a SaaS platform that enables consumer-packaged-goods brands to turn one-time buyers into repeat customers.
Caroline Creidenberg
CEO & Founder of Wedfuly
A graduate of computer science from the University of Denver, Caroline discovered the wedding world from the tech side (or lack thereof). In her early days, you could find Caroline barefoot, riding her pink two-wheeler down High Drive in Kansas City. At the time, you certainly would not have found her dreaming of weddings or white dresses. Caroline’s passion for being a boss and taking on any challenge head-on is what led her to Wedfuly. She saw the white space that the largely male-dominated tech sector did not, and now online weddings have become her passion. These days, you can find Caroline mountain biking off rocks (shoes and helmet on) and skiing down moguls in Colorado. And, from time to time, dreaming of weddings and white dresses.
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About Wedfuly: Wedfuly is making professional wedding planning accessible to all budgets and couples by bringing real, professional planners online.
Aarti Kochhar Kaji
Co-Founder of Taali Foods
Aarti Kochhar Kaji co-founded Taali Foods in 2017.
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About Taali Foods: Taali Foods is a food company that offers products made from Non GMO, whole, and natural ingredients.
Shereen Anis
Founder of Kid Koderz
Shereen Anis bootstrapped, created and is the Founder of Kid Koderz
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About Kid Koderz, Representation Counts: Technology Education Summer Camp and After School Enrichment Program for Kids/ Teens
Paolo Tiramani
Founder of Supercar System
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About 500 Group, Boxabl, Supercar System: Combining precision engineering with award winning designs at an affordable price.
Chris Clark
Co-Founder & CTO of Grove Collaborative
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About Grove Collaborative: Grove creates and curates high-performing, planet-first home and personal care products and is the leader in zero-plastic CPG.
Stuart Landesberg
Co-Founder & CEO of Grove Collaborative
Stuart Landesberg is the Co-Founder & CEO of Grove Collaborative, the leading digital-first brand & ecommerce platform for natural home and personal care. Stu has long been passionate about sustainability. He founded Grove, which has been a Certified B Corp since its founding, after learning that offline distribution meant that just a small percentage of families were choosing healthy, sustainable home care products. Grove now serves hundreds of thousands of households in the U.S. every month and has raised over $100 million in total capital. Stu was previously an investor at TPG Growth, where he was involved in over $400 million in consumer and technology investments. Stu and his wife Caitlin live in San Francisco with their daughter and dog, and spend as much time outside as possible.
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About Grove Collaborative: Grove creates and curates high-performing, planet-first home and personal care products and is the leader in zero-plastic CPG.
Jordan Savage
Co-Founder & VP, Creative of Grove Collaborative
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About Grove Collaborative: Grove creates and curates high-performing, planet-first home and personal care products and is the leader in zero-plastic CPG.
Amrita Saigal
CEO & Founder of Kudos
Amrita Saigal is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kudos.
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About Kudos, Zera Life: Kudos is a retail company that offers natural disposable baby diapers with cotton liners.
Lloyd Gladstone
Founder, Chief Operating Officer of Prong
Founder of Prong.
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About Crush Roulette, Prong: Prong is a consumer electronics company that is dedicated to designing and manufacturing innovative accessories for electronic devices.
Anna Skaya
CEO & Founder of Basepaws
Anna Skaya is the founder and CEO of Basepaws, a provider of low-cost pet genomic products and services. Most recently, Anna was a partner and COO at breakupbuddy. She was also the founder and former CEO of Visual DNA. Prior to Visual DNA, Anna was a CEO at Groupon Russia.
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About Basepaws: Pet genetics & health monitoring.
Gower Smith
CEO & Co-Founder of Swyft
Gower Smith is the founder of ZoomSystems and Co-Chairman of the Board. Prior to starting the company in 2002, Gower founded and led several other successful technology startups, including ComputerLand (a retailer of PC and technology products, acquired by Random Access), CGF Electronics (Australian distributor for Apple computer products), Archives Computers (a networking and software company, acquired by Impact Systems), and Boomerang Imaging Supplies (a leading printing supplies business, acquired by TCR). Gower completed his radio technician certificate with the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation, and studied microprocessors at the Melbourne Institute of Technology and Caulfield Institute of Technology.
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About Swyft: Swyft sells great products from leading brands in strategic high profile locations, serving customers.
Lincoln Smith
Swyft President & Co-Founder
Lincoln co-founded Lead Creation an Australian B-B digital marketing agency before co-founding Swyft.
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About Swyft: Swyft sells great products from leading brands in strategic high profile locations, serving customers.