Spark Growth Ventures is a venture capital firm headquartered in San Diego, California. The company works with startups throughout the world, connecting founders with a community of established investors, operators, industry experts, and thought leaders.

Spark Growth Ventures

Recognized as a 2022 Emerging 50 VC and 2023 Top 25 Founder’s Choice VC, Spark Growth Ventures is a community oriented, early & mid stage, vertical-agnostic, technology venture capital firm. Our mission is to support gritty and exceptional founders in their missions by bringing forth the combined value of our strong community. We are fortunate to have a global network of entrepreneurs, C-level relationships, subject matter experts, world-class talent, institutional investors, high net worth individuals and family offices, many of who are investors in our platform. Our team has several decades of global experience in venture capital, entrepreneurship, innovation, executive & board management, functional leadership and advisory work. 

We create 360° long-term value for our startups and our investors through active participation alongside our founders, leveraging our extensive experiences and global networks. We work in the trenches with our portfolio on top-line growth, bottom-line expansion and capital optimization. Our partnership areas span all commercial aspects such as sales & go-to-market, operations, corporate functions, fund-raising and organizational effectiveness as well as exit planning and execution.

We respect authenticity, intellectual curiosity, collaboration, optimism, grit and boldness. We prioritize efficiency and transparency in our work. We believe in integrity and doing business with the goal of creating a win-win for all stakeholders, not just the shareholders.

Edisn.ai

We're thrilled to announce that Terra Kaffe has been ranked No. 995 on the 2024 Inc. Magazine 5000 list! Being recognized among the fastest-growing private companies in America is an incredible honor and a testament to the passion and dedication of our team and community, and we couldn’t be more proud to share this milestone with our dedicated team and loyal community.

The Inc. 5000 list has been a springboard for household names like Microsoft, Meta, Patagonia, and Under Armour, and now Terra Kaffe joins this esteemed group of innovators—growing 513% within the last 3 years.

As we continue to push the boundaries of purposeful design and innovation in the coffee industry, this milestone reminds us of our core mission: to create better coffee, by design. This achievement is a testament to the hard work and passion of our entire Terra Kaffe family, from our employees who push the boundaries of innovation every day to our customers who inspire us to keep raising the bar.

A huge thank you to our customers, partners, and the Inc. 5000 team for this recognition. Here’s to more growth, more innovation, and, of course, more elevated coffee.

Major breakthrough for FidoCure® , our 1st patent for a novel canine cancer drug and biomarker is now official!! We are leading the way for AI driven drug development in pet care. 

FidoCure has been granted a first in class patent for our novel approach to cancer treatment in dogs, leveraging gold standard precision medicine in human cancer care. One in three dogs will be diagnosed with cancer this year, making anti-tumor care the largest unmet medical need for dogs. We must make way for innovation and thought leadership in order to see a radical change in these numbers. 

This patent is just the beginning. We have eight more pending, covering various novel therapies, tumors and biomarkers. Reimagining the path to canine cancer care, we can usher in a new era of precision oncology for our pets.  This milestone will transform drug development for canine cancer, backed by a portfolio of therapies to fight cancer on both sides of the leash.

I'm proud of our team and grateful for our network of veterinary clinics and pet parents. Together, we're increasing access to lifesaving treatments for dogs with cancer, and redefining what's possible in cancer care.

 https://hubs.li/Q02LmkPQ0

#CanineCancer #AIforHealth #VeterinaryMedicine #PrecisionOncology #Patented #USPTO

We are thrilled and honored to announce that Terra Kaffe’s TK-02 has been recognized twice in Fast Company 2024 Innovation by Design Awards for General Excellence and Products, showcasing excellence in innovation contemporary design and hardware and industrial design.

At Terra Kaffe, our mission is to continuously push the boundaries of what's possible in design and functionality. We are deeply grateful to everyone who has supported us on this journey, including our talented partners Ammunition and Launch by NTT DATA who have turned our mission into a reality.

A heartfelt thank you to Ammunition for your brilliant collaboration and visionary design work. Together, we are redefining the coffee experience, one beautifully crafted machine at a time.

This recognition is not just a testament to our team's dedication and passion but also a milestone that inspires us to continue elevating our craft. Articles below!

https://lnkd.in/eHekF5YV

https://lnkd.in/e4Bjjxb2

Did you see the Selina news coming? 

Hearing about the insolvency of a key player in your space is never welcome, but at the same time, the news did not come as a surprise. Here is my perspective on their journey:

Selina’s lodging product was never designed for the specific needs of  digital nomads and remote workers. About 10 years ago, they  launched  as a hostel in Bocas del Toro, one of the most popular backpacker towns in LATAM, and managed to build an amazing hostel product in a highly-fragmented market. Selina  did a great job executing their strategy of taking over run-down hostels and refreshing them with nominal CapEx. They capitalized on the WeWork fever of that era, marketing coworking spaces inside their hostels and selling this shiny ‘new’ product to investors. A “growth at all costs” mindset  and post-Covid growth enabled them to go public in October 2022 - with a $1.2 billion valuation. On top of going public at a high point in private company  valuations, they did this through a SPAC merger - and like many SPACs of that era, Selina faced liquidity challenges after initial enthusiasm wore off.

From my perspective, Selina’s challenges were three-fold:

Despite marketing  “co-living packages”, Selina's lodging format  was never designed for the needs of remote workers. Most of their bedroom accommodations  are dormitory-style, attracted leisure travelers and became known for their parties. With an average length of stay of 3 nights, Selina was always a short-term backpacker product, not a coliving community for digital nomads. Remote workers want a calm environment, private rooms and long-term pricing, making it easy to stay for longer and “live anywhere”. 

The second issue is the same that WeWork faced: they used a long-term lease strategy, focusing on growth at all costs instead of unit economics. Combine that with extensive overheads, including headquarters in NYC and London, and you end up with quite an expensive business to run.

The third issue is their bloated valuation: A $1.2 billion valuation did not seem crazy in the “Unicorn era”, but now that investors are focused once again on profitability and efficiency (not just rapid growth), the numbers don’t add up anymore. Most travel/real estate companies (Inspirato, Sonder, Vacasa) who did a SPAC have been having the same issues.
The pandemic didn’t help Selina stabilize either, and this year’s slowdown in travel was likely their fall from grace.

I really thought Selina's management would pull off a turnaround. Their founding team and brand were strong. They had an amazing network of properties, and during the pandemic made a savvy acquisition of Remote Year.

What’s next for Selina?

Like WeWork and OYO, the brand may well survive under a new corporate structure with a focus on tighter operations and improved unit economics. 

What are your thoughts?

Congratulations to our inspiring leader, Christina Lopes, on her nomination for the Women in AI Award from VentureBeat! Christina is a testament to women pushing the boundaries of cancer care, and we're proud to see her recognized for her vision to bring AI to veterinary oncology. 
 
Check out the list here! https://hubs.li/Q02FKtSH0

#VentureBeats #WomenInAI #VBTransform #AIinHealthcare #PetTech

#IndependenceDay 
A very Happy Independence Day to all from an unabashedly patriotic immigrant and the Spark Growth Ventures community.

As we celebrate the birth of arguably the greatest nation in the history of humanity, I'm reminded of the ideals of liberty, meritocracy and the pursuit of happiness that have shaped the lives of hundreds of millions, both within the US and across the world for around 250 years. 

We have a lot to be grateful for what we have been given but at the same time, have an immense responsibility to continue to foster and perpetuate the ethos and values that have made USA a great nation – freedom; pursuit of balanced capitalism that works for all hardworking and contributing citizens; and respect for diverse perspectives, law and order, and our bountiful nature.   

As fireworks light up the sky and we gather to celebrate this day of independence, I feel a mix of pride and hope. Despite the regression in many aspects of our political, fiscal and societal well-being over the last few years, I still continue to be hopeful for our future, knowing that our founding values continue to inspire millions of us each day and that the vast majority of us are striving to perpetuate our American exceptionalism. 

God Bless America!

SPAR

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