• Wellfound Foods

  Led · Preferred · Dec 2016

  Wellfound Foods operates tech-enabled smart fridges stocked with healthy meals, snacks and rotating collaborations with local restaurants. The machines feature large touchscreens, cloud connectivity and a custom user interface that lets customers filter by dietary preference, build a cart, and choose items for quick pickup while the team can see sales in real time. Founded in Washington, D.C. in 2013, the company pivoted in 2020 after losing 98% of its wholesale distribution business and used a $600,000 raise to expand from a single pilot machine to a growing fleet. It currently places machines in higher education, military and government sites, airports and hospitals, including Georgetown and George Mason universities, National Defense University, Army and Marine barracks, the Capitol and White House, BWI Airport, MedStar at Georgetown, and Children’s National Hospital. Earlier this month Wellfound closed a $1.4 million seed round that management says will fund growth to 50 machines, development of a mobile app, additional installs, and expansion of its 14-person team. The forthcoming iOS and Android app will let users see stock at nearby machines, reserve items, and order for touchless pickup; the first version is expected in June with additional feature updates to follow. Broodjes & Bier is a Dutch-inspired sandwich company led by founder Sarah “Frim” Frimpong. It produces gourmet sandwiches, salads and breakfast bowls for wholesale distribution and catering throughout the DC–Baltimore region. The company operates as a wholesale and catering food provider rather than a storefront chain. Broodjes & Bier received outside capital to support growth and will use the funds to expand operations. The article does not disclose revenue or user metrics.

• Nextility

  Led · Equity · Sep 2014

  Founded in 2009 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., Skyline Innovations provides turnkey solar water-heating solutions for buildings that use large volumes of hot water such as hotels, dormitories, multifamily properties, hospitals, and laundries. The company’s model removes the capital barrier for customers by funding the equipment itself and then sharing in the resulting utility-bill savings, guaranteeing clients a fixed percentage of those savings. Skyline’s patent-pending software platform optimizes project design, monitors system performance, and streamlines business operations, allowing the firm to underwrite performance and guarantee customer savings. By combining project financing with real-time performance management, Skyline converts what would be a cap-ex purchase into an off-balance-sheet service contract for building owners. Management positions the solution as both an economic and environmental win, reducing energy consumption while requiring no financial risk from the end user. This operational and technological foundation underpins its ability to attract outside capital for continued project deployment.

• LearnZillion

  Participated · Series A · Apr 2013

  LearnZillion offers a free cloud-based curriculum solution designed to help teachers, schools and districts improve instruction and respond to the specific needs of their students. The site provides Common Core-aligned math and English curriculum authored by educators currently teaching in classrooms across the U.S. The company intends to use recent funding to grow its curriculum offerings and to provide a digital alternative to traditional textbooks. LearnZillion was founded in 2011 by CEO Eric Westendorf and operates out of Washington, D.C. In 2015 the company secured external financing to support product and content expansion. No revenue or user metrics were disclosed in the article. LearnZillion develops a web-based curriculum and professional development platform that offers Common Core-aligned lessons, assessments, and activities created and curated by teachers. The service provides free access for teachers and parents while offering a paid enterprise plan for schools and districts with premium professional development content, teaching insights, and analytics. To ensure quality, the company hand-picks a team of teachers to curate and develop lesson plans; the team includes 200 teachers from 41 states who collaborate to produce content. As of the article, LearnZillion has 120,000 teachers registered and reaches 1.4 million students. Founded in 2011 by a former principal and a former teacher, the startup plans to scale its operations and ramp up hiring to support wider adoption of the Common Core. The company operates in a competitive space alongside offerings such as TeachersPayTeachers and BetterLesson. LearnZillion is a web-based platform that provides 3- to 5-minute, standards-based math and literacy video lessons taught by many of the nation’s best teachers. The platform allows teachers to customize instruction with individualized student playlists and includes assessment and analytics tools to track student progress for students, parents, and teachers. LearnZillion was incubated as a project at E.L. Haynes Public Charter School, where co-founder Eric Westendorf previously served as principal and Chief Academic Officer. The company is being used in over 20 district and charter schools in Washington, DC as a professional development tool and a strategy for personalizing instruction during class time. LearnZillion recently closed a $2.4 million Series A round, providing early financial backing to advance its product and school deployments.

• Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company

  Led · Series B · Jun 2012

  Chesapeake Bay Roasting, founded in 2002, produces high-quality coffees under a strong environmental mission. Its roasting process uses 78% less energy than comparable roasters and the company commits 2% of sales to support the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Products include blends such as Cattail, Eco-Reef and River's Edge, sold through local coffee houses, supermarkets and office coffee distributors. The company received the Washingtonian Green Award in 2012. Management says the business has an excellent product and is poised to accelerate growth with additional capital. Distribution and operations provide tangible economic and environmental benefits across the greater Washington, DC region.

No current team members are available.