J. Skyler Fernandes & Andrew Zalasin

Teaches at Venture University

J. Skyler Fernandes, Co-Founder & General Partner

• Ranked Top 100 Powerlist VC
• 10+ years of VC/PE Investing, 80+ Portfolio Companies
• Select Prior Portfolio Companies: Beyond Meat (IPO'd), Sensity (Acquired by Verizon), ShopKick (Acquired by SK Telecom), FabFitFun, MeUndies, Le Tote, Helix Sleep, ZeroCater, Deliv
• Former Managing Director of Investments at Cleveland Avenue (VC/PE Fund co-founded by Former CEO & President of McDonalds), focusing on food and beverage brands, food related technologies, and new restaurant concepts
• Founder, Head, & Former Managing Director of Simon Venture Group (Corporate investment arm of Simon Property Group, S&P 100, largest retail real estate company in the world), grew to top 5 corporate VC focused on commerce alongside Google Ventures, Intel Capital, and Comcast Ventures
• Adjunct Professor at New York University teaching Venture Capital Intensive
• Creator of Multiple Top Ranked Entrepreneur Resources: #1 Startup Investor Pitch Deck Template (viewed & downloaded 500,000+ times, used by leading business schools and accelerators)
• Co-Founder of the #1 Startup Board Game: The Next Big Thing: The Game of Entrepreneurship, backed by over 25+ of the top accelerators and VC investors

Andrew Zalasin, General Partner

• 25+ years of venture capital and private equity investment and operational experience with entrepreneurial growth companies
• Former General Partner for 17 years at RRE Ventures, a leading technology venture capital firm with $1.5B across seven funds
• Involved in nearly 200 investments and has served on more than 30 boards in the US, Europe and Asia, and has been instrumental in generating industry-leading returns and providing experience and resources to help companies build teams, attack new market opportunities, identify and secure strategic initiatives / partnerships and achieve profitable growth in all phases of development