Today a new venture capital firm launches with a $20 million operator-based fund that provides founders with robust resources to grow and scale early-stage companies. Entrepreneur Scott Kraege, in partnership with Innovatemap and Valeo, built Ivy Ventures, which merges founders with experts who have operations and entrepreneurial experience, and corporate partners with strategically-aligned skill sets to propel businesses forward.

“Capital is essential for a successful venture firm, but the people and partners behind the capital are often more impactful to early stage founders,” said General Partner Scott Kraege. “John, Mike and I wanted to create a fund built and funded by operators. The addition of decades worth of our combined knowledge about what it takes to create, grow and scale a business is the most impactful support a fund can provide. After founding, exiting and advising dozens of founding teams, I understand how building a successful business requires more than a check. We’ve created a fund that offers a strategically-led, operator-based approach to launching companies that doesn’t start and end with an investment.”

Corporate partners, Innovatemap and Valeo, are an integral part of Ivy Ventures’ ecosystem, and another example of how Ivy Ventures is bolstering the traditional VC firm model. The strategic advantage these corporate partners provide will ensure products being invested in are marketable, valuable and useful, and the financials of each business are set up for maximum growth potential. Innovatemap, a digital product agency focused on design, product management and product marketing that has helped more than 250 startups and scaleups grow, will help founders build the right product and find product-market fit. Valeo, a financial advisory firm that offers objective, independent financial guidance, will equip founders with access to vetted investor networks in addition to funding.

Mike Reynolds, CEO of Innovatemap, says, “Ivy Ventures gives founders the success factor that goes beyond just writing a check. A successful tech company founder must be product-minded. Innovatemap uses our ample experience in product diligence and extended support that is instrumental to founders who want their investment partner to make a strategic difference in their business.”

In addition to the corporate partners, investors and advisors are being brought on strategically to complement the fund’s operator-based formula. This network is also composed of individuals with expansive industry expertise, providing founders with domain experience, mentorship and true partnership. Working alongside the entrepreneurs, investors and advisors behind Ivy Ventures’ first fund, founders can create compelling products and services, and allocate investment dollars wisely.

By selectively partnering with founders, Ivy Ventures leaders extend the impact their operator-led approach can have on each company. Multiple founders have already been selected with the expertise of the firm’s network and corporate partners in mind, resulting in a fund-to-founder fit that is perfectly matched.

“At Valeo, we believe in making order out of chaos,” says John Wortman, CEO of Valeo. “The venture ecosystem has a fair amount of its own chaos and by partnering with Ivy we can help create a clearinghouse to vet new investment opportunities and then organize the financial and non-financial resources around the founders with whom we partner to improve every stakeholder’s odds of success.” To learn more about Ivy Ventures, visit https://www.ivy.fund/.

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ABOUT IVY VENTURES
Ivy Ventures is an Indianapolis-based venture capital firm that provides both funds and resources for founders to succeed. Founded by entrepreneurs Scott Kraege, Mike Reynolds and John Wortman, Ivy Ventures offers a founder-first, advisor-led, capital-backed approach. Corporate partners Innovatemap and Valeo help founders to build marketable, valuable and usable products with strategic financial expertise for maximum growth potential. Learn more at https://www.ivy.fund/.