Participated · Seed · Jan 2022

dNovo is developing a proprietary direct reprogramming system to generate personalized hair stem cells from patient-derived cells without passing through a pluripotent state. The company has converted human skin cells directly into induced hair stem cells and demonstrated those cells can produce hair in a mouse model. dNovo emerged from stealth and is optimizing its platform to scale the approach and work with potential partners. The team positions direct reprogramming as a quicker, scalable route compared with pluripotent-based methods. dNovo is pre-clinical and says the technology aims to replenish damaged or depleted hair stem cells to address the underlying cause of hair loss. The company was founded in 2018 and is based in San Jose, California.

Participated · Equity · Feb 2019

GoTrendier is a Mexico-based e-commerce marketplace focused on second-hand clothing. The platform operates in the resale apparel sector, facilitating transactions of pre-owned garments. The article reports the company raised roughly USD15 million in a Series B financing. The round was led by IDB Invest, Creas Impacto and IDC Ventures, with follow-on from IGNIA Partners and other investors. The article does not disclose revenue, user metrics, or specific future plans. Sources cited include IDB Invest and Flow Partners. GoTrendier operates an online marketplace for secondhand clothing. The platform reports more than one million users and a catalogue valued at over $47 million. The company will use the funds to continue growing in Mexico and Colombia, open in Chile, reinforce its team, and introduce new features to scale. The article places the business in the internet sector and notes this is the company's third financing round. It also cites the broader secondhand clothing market as having billed more than 360,000 million in 2017 and expected to reach 400,000 million by 2022. GoTrendier is based in Mexico. Trendier operates a marketplace and mobile app focused on women's fashion, described in the article as the largest such marketplace in Mexico. The app lets sellers list items in three clicks and buyers search and negotiate prices. As of the report, Trendier had more than 200,000 registered users and users upload over 1,000 products daily. The company already operates in Colombia and was seeing promising growth there. In December 2016 Trendier closed a financing round of €1 million. The funds were earmarked to expand its model across Mexico and to export the business to Colombia.

Participated · Seed · Sep 2018

The Lobby is a career-coaching marketplace that connects job seekers to Wall Street bankers, venture capitalists and other finance insiders for anonymous 30-minute phone calls. Through the platform, users can conduct mock interviews, fix up resumes and receive candid, real-world feedback about finance roles. Insiders are paid by The Lobby’s customers to provide personalized advice and an insider view of working in finance. Founder Deepak Chhugani, a former investment banker and Bentley University graduate, started the company to help people from non-elite backgrounds break into high-profile finance jobs. The company completed Y Combinator’s 12-week accelerator and announced a $1.2 million investment six months later. The Lobby frames its service as creating a more meritocratic path into finance by widening access to professionals’ networks.