The Venture Codex

Led · Equity · Dec 2018

JUUL Labs produces nicotine vaporizers (electronic cigarettes) and is seeking to expand the reach of its products abroad. The company has faced a tightening regulatory climate at home, including a San Francisco ban on e-cigarette sales and FDA premarket-review guidance on flavored products. Financially, JUUL disclosed a $325 million financing comprised of an unspecified blend of equity and debt, and an unnamed source told Reuters the deal included convertible debt as a bridge. Crunchbase data shows JUUL has raised over $14 billion in combined equity and debt to date, with the majority coming from Altria’s $12.8 billion purchase of a 35% stake. JUUL reported $1.3 billion in revenue in 2018 and, according to Altria, expected sales to grow 160% through the end of 2019; Altria’s CEO anticipated 26% of sales would be international by year-end. Juul Labs produces a compact, USB-like vaping product it markets as a meaningful alternative to combustible cigarettes for adult smokers. The company has spent the past year defending itself amid widespread criticism over underage use of its products and regulatory scrutiny. The FDA announced measures aimed at keeping flavored non-combustible tobacco products out of teens' hands, tightening the regulatory backdrop for Juul. Juul says its primary goal remains switching adult smokers and has set strict criteria for investors aligned with that mission. The company accepted a large strategic investment that significantly bolsters its balance sheet and distribution reach while drawing continued public attention.

Led · Equity · Dec 2012

Sharklet Technologies develops Sharklet™, the world’s first bacteria-inhibiting micro-texture surface technology inspired by sharkskin. The company integrates a repeating series of interlocking raised micro-features into surfaces to reduce the survival, colonization and transfer of bacteria without using antimicrobial agents. Sharklet is being developed for medical devices that serve as conduits for bacterial access to the body, including a Sharklet-patterned endotracheal tube and a central venous catheter. The company is also commercializing the technology for surfaces of consumer goods and targets commercial, healthcare, food service and laboratory environments. Sharklet has been shown to reduce microbial attachment, migration and biofilm formation of pathogens including Staph a., MRSA, VRE and E. coli. The company is based at the Bioscience Park Center in the Fitzsimons Life Science District adjacent to the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, Colo.