Oct 15, 2020TransitionsOn October 13th 2020 I stepped down as CEO of CircleUp, the company I started in 2011 with my co-founder, Rory Eakin. Leaving the best job I ever had — at the company I helped to create — was difficult and confusing. I wish I had found other stories about…CEO17 min readCEO17 min read
Jul 25, 2020CircleUp’s Mission, Vision & StrategyNavigating the private markets today is the equivalent of hailing a cab during rush hour or finding a newly released movie at a nearby Blockbuster ten years ago. Before technology intervened, you had to be in the right place at the right time. …Mission10 min readMission10 min read
Jun 3, 2020CircleUp’s Call to ActionAll, I want to follow up on my email this weekend about the murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and Tony McDade. These atrocities are only some of the more recent acts of race-related hate and violence. There have been more than any of us can know. …6 min read6 min read
Feb 2, 2018How Halo Top Became a Consumer SensationHalo Top has emerged as one of the biggest consumer phenomenons in recent years, with a devoted consumer base that snaps up as much of its low-calorie high protein ice cream as stores can stock. Until recently, they did almost no advertising, and the team continues to forgo a traditional…Food8 min readFood8 min read
Dec 14, 2017Helio: Where it is today and where it’s goingIn September of this year a compilation video of failed SpaceX rocket landings was uploaded to YouTube. The video featured rocket after rocket going up in smoke and flames all set to the Monty Python theme song. To me, the most interesting thing about the video wasn’t the explosions, it…Venture Capital10 min readVenture Capital10 min read
Oct 31, 2017Building the Future of Private Investing: Introducing CircleUp Growth PartnersToday we are extremely proud to announce the creation of a new, first-of-its-kind venture capital fund: CircleUp Growth Partners. CircleUp Growth Partners is an early-stage consumer fund with a scalable, data-driven approach to investing in visionary entrepreneurs and products. It’s time for change Technology has transformed nearly every type of enterprise in recent years…Startup7 min readStartup7 min read
Oct 19, 2017Helio: Where does the data come from?Earlier this year, we introduced our machine learning platform Helio to the world. We’ve been building Helio for years, so we were thrilled to finally be able to talk about it publicly. Since that introduction, we’ve published a wide variety of different insights powered by Helio on everything from fashion…Big Data5 min readBig Data5 min read
Aug 4, 2017Why Automation is the Future of Private InvestingThere is no question that systematic investing plays an important role in the public equities markets: Quant trading strategies now encompass 27% of all U.S. stock trades by investors, up from 14% in 2013. …Venture Capital7 min readVenture Capital7 min read
Mar 22, 2017The Product Launch Fallacy Of Big CPGsIt’s no secret that the largest, oldest CPG brands haven’t innovated at the pace they should have. New CircleUp data released here illustrates how big brands have fallen behind. Pepsi soda, KitKat bars, and Clorox cleaner are decades, near-centuries old, and still have largely unchanged formulas. …Startup4 min readStartup4 min read
Feb 27, 2017Announcing The Launch of HelioCircleUp exists to help promising entrepreneurs raise capital and sophisticated investors invest in breakthrough brands with confidence and efficiency on both sides. Since we opened our doors in 2012 we’ve been challenging private equity norms by revolutionizing manual company sourcing and vetting with a technology-driven private marketplace. The ability to…Venture Capital9 min readVenture Capital9 min read
