Lakewest Venture Partners

Lakewest Venture Partners is a venture capital firm based in Chicago, Illinois, established in 2013 as an affiliate of Lakewest, Inc. The firm focuses on investing in high-growth, early-stage technology companies, primarily in the Chicago area. Over the years, Lakewest has evolved its investment strategy, now targeting lead seed-stage investments ranging from $250,000 to $750,000. The firm has a history of varying investment levels, from passive interests of $50,000 to $100,000 to significant lead investments exceeding $1,000,000, often including board involvement. Lakewest Venture Partners is led by a team that includes Buzz Ruttenberg, David Mann, and Jonathan McCulloch, emphasizing its commitment to fostering innovation in the technology sector.

David Mann

Principal

39 past transactions

Realvision

Seed Round in 2017
Realvision is an immersive media technology company that builds 3D media solutions for the real estate industry. Realvision is a technology platform built to support real estate agents, created for professional photographers.

AddStructure

Seed Round in 2017
AddStructure offer a white-labeled natural language understanding (NLU) platform that Retailers and Brands can use to enable conversational commerce channels. Each day, millions of consumers interact with AddStructure's products: Signal Search, Path, and Scaffold. Applications of their technology range from review summarization (distilling thousands of reviews of a product into digestible pros and cons) to a complete conversational commerce system (chatting with an intelligent digital assistant to find and purchase products).

XOR Data Exchange

Venture Round in 2017
XOR Data Exchange is a data revolution by providing data owners with the accountability, control, and transparency they want to share data and solve industry challenges with confidence. Developed by data, technology and analytics experts, the company helps organizations optimize and monetize the data they possess, with data from other companies in their industry as well as other industries. XOR Data Exchange was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas, United States.
Align Income Share Funding, formerly Cumulus Funding, is to invest in the American worker. Many people in this country need access to funds for many different reasons. They recognize that in many cases, traditional banks and lenders are unwilling or unable to meet those individuals’ needs. When loans are available, they are made at terms that are extremely favorable to the banks — high and inflexible interest payments, multiple hidden fees and service charges, and often, a requirement that if you can’t make your payments the bank can come and take your personal assets that were pledged as collateral.

Blitsy

Series B in 2016
Blitsy is where creative people shop online. It aims to provide the best selection, value, inspiration, and online shopping experience for creative people worldwide. It was founded in 2011 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Shiftgig

Series B in 2015
Shiftgig is a technology company that helps staffing agencies transform the way people work. Our flagship digital staffing software, Deploy, helps staffing firms empower their workforce to browse and claim work that fit their skills and schedules. We also give agencies deep insights into their clients and workers, allowing you to focus on strategic growth and coaching by eliminating repetitive tasks of running day-to-day operations. To learn more, visit shiftgig.com.

Bucketfeet

Series A in 2015
Bucketfeet is a direct-to-consumer shoe brand that allows artists to create shoe designs and prints them on sneakers once ordered online. Each pair of BucketFeet is designed by a different artist. Find curated inspiration that connects you with the artists that design them. It collaborates with a global community of artists to design limited-edition shoes with the goal of sparking meaningful conversations to create a brighter world. Through a responsive commerce model, Bucketfeet is disrupting traditional manufacturing cycles and redefining the $300B footwear industry, letting the company community select styles they’d like to purchase and wear to help inform demand. It empowers artists to share their stories and perspectives using the universal language of art and the shoe as their canvas. Bucketfeet was founded in 2011 by Raaja Nemani and Aaron Firestein and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, USA.

XOR Data Exchange

Series A in 2015
XOR Data Exchange is a data revolution by providing data owners with the accountability, control, and transparency they want to share data and solve industry challenges with confidence. Developed by data, technology and analytics experts, the company helps organizations optimize and monetize the data they possess, with data from other companies in their industry as well as other industries. XOR Data Exchange was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas, United States.

Popular Pays

Series A in 2015
Popular Pays is a platform connecting content creators with brands who want the content to tell their stories. It is a tech company, with an in-house built iOS app and dashboard that delivers direct communication, workflow tools, and powerful statistics.

Packback

Seed Round in 2015
Packback is a social learning platform powered by a proprietary A.I. that college professors use to help their students fall in love with the subject matter, drive personalized learning, and most importantly, quantify and improve critical thinking skills.

Blitsy

Series A in 2015
Blitsy is where creative people shop online. It aims to provide the best selection, value, inspiration, and online shopping experience for creative people worldwide. It was founded in 2011 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Rentable

Venture Round in 2015
Rentable is an internet company that specializes in providing a web-based platform that allows its users to conduct an online internet apartment search. The company was established in 2011 and is based in Madison, Wisconsin.

Luxury Garage Sale

Seed Round in 2015
Luxury Garage Sale is an operator of an online e-commerce fashion platform intended to sell stand-out items from the world's beloved luxury brands. The company's platform specializes in selling luxury designer clothing, shoes, handbags, and jewelry which are customized to consignment as they are sourced, sell and share, enabling consumers to have high-end fashion and exceptional experience at a low price. It was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

Bucketfeet

Series A in 2015
Bucketfeet is a direct-to-consumer shoe brand that allows artists to create shoe designs and prints them on sneakers once ordered online. Each pair of BucketFeet is designed by a different artist. Find curated inspiration that connects you with the artists that design them. It collaborates with a global community of artists to design limited-edition shoes with the goal of sparking meaningful conversations to create a brighter world. Through a responsive commerce model, Bucketfeet is disrupting traditional manufacturing cycles and redefining the $300B footwear industry, letting the company community select styles they’d like to purchase and wear to help inform demand. It empowers artists to share their stories and perspectives using the universal language of art and the shoe as their canvas. Bucketfeet was founded in 2011 by Raaja Nemani and Aaron Firestein and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Shiftgig

Series A in 2014
Shiftgig is a technology company that helps staffing agencies transform the way people work. Our flagship digital staffing software, Deploy, helps staffing firms empower their workforce to browse and claim work that fit their skills and schedules. We also give agencies deep insights into their clients and workers, allowing you to focus on strategic growth and coaching by eliminating repetitive tasks of running day-to-day operations. To learn more, visit shiftgig.com.

NuCurrent

Series A in 2014
NuCurrent is a developer of high-efficiency antennas for wireless power applications. Compliant across Alliance for Wireless Power (A4WP), Wireless Power Consortium (Qi) and Power Matters Alliance (PMA) standards, NuCurrent works closely with electronic device OEMs and integrators to custom-design, rapid-prototype and integrate the optimal antenna for a broad range of applications. NuCurrent’s patented designs, structures, and manufacturing techniques mitigate typical high-frequency effects, offering higher efficiency, smaller sizes, higher durability, and lower cost with wireless power application development. It was founded in 2009 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Telnyx

Seed Round in 2014
Telnyx is a global connectivity platform that provides carrier-grade services on a private, cloud-agnostic IP network. Its Voice, Messaging, Numbering, Video, Wireless, Fax, and Identity solutions are accessible through RESTful APIs and its award-winning Mission Control Portal. From in-app messaging and calling to feature-rich contact centers, Telnyx solves communications needs at every complexity level, with 24/7 in-house engineering support on hand. As an internationally licensed carrier, Telnyx powers secure, high-fidelity connectivity while democratizing worldwide access to real-time communications over the internet. Founded in 2009 with offices in Chicago, Dublin, Amsterdam, Warsaw and São Paolo, Telnyx provides mission-critical services for customers including Cisco, Philips, Red Cross, and more.

Packback

Seed Round in 2014
Packback is a social learning platform powered by a proprietary A.I. that college professors use to help their students fall in love with the subject matter, drive personalized learning, and most importantly, quantify and improve critical thinking skills.

Rentable

Series A in 2014
Rentable is an internet company that specializes in providing a web-based platform that allows its users to conduct an online internet apartment search. The company was established in 2011 and is based in Madison, Wisconsin.

Earshot

Seed Round in 2014
Earshot is a precision-based real-time marketing platform that helps brands discover and acquire new customers through social media. Earshot's patent pending Decibel Level is a real-time relevancy score that is unique to every brand or campaign. Decibel Level is customizable on the fly so customers can weight variables like location, bio, post content, even logo detection to find the social media posts that are most important in real time.

Blitsy

Debt Financing in 2014
Blitsy is where creative people shop online. It aims to provide the best selection, value, inspiration, and online shopping experience for creative people worldwide. It was founded in 2011 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

SpotHero

Series A in 2014
SpotHero is the leading & only independent consumer marketplace for parking in North America.

Visibly

Seed Round in 2014
Visibly provides digital vision care solutions and online vision test services. The company's products include eyewear and contact lenses, providing an online option for vision testing. Visibly serves e-commerce employers, eye care providers, insurance providers, online healthcare platforms, and optical retail.

OpenMarkets

Series A in 2014
OpenMarkets is a SAAS + services company helping healthcare providers save money on capital equipment. We give hospitals a modern software for budgeting and planning, providing hospitals supply chains better visibility into the needs of their clinicians and relationships with vendors. In addition to our SAAS platform, we offer outsourced sourcing services and volume savings opportunities by aggregating hospital demand across our growing network. OpenMarkets charges subscription fee's for our SAAS product, as well as transactions fees on savings.

Bucketfeet

Seed Round in 2013
Bucketfeet is a direct-to-consumer shoe brand that allows artists to create shoe designs and prints them on sneakers once ordered online. Each pair of BucketFeet is designed by a different artist. Find curated inspiration that connects you with the artists that design them. It collaborates with a global community of artists to design limited-edition shoes with the goal of sparking meaningful conversations to create a brighter world. Through a responsive commerce model, Bucketfeet is disrupting traditional manufacturing cycles and redefining the $300B footwear industry, letting the company community select styles they’d like to purchase and wear to help inform demand. It empowers artists to share their stories and perspectives using the universal language of art and the shoe as their canvas. Bucketfeet was founded in 2011 by Raaja Nemani and Aaron Firestein and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Packback

Venture Round in 2013
Packback is a social learning platform powered by a proprietary A.I. that college professors use to help their students fall in love with the subject matter, drive personalized learning, and most importantly, quantify and improve critical thinking skills.

Popular Pays

Seed Round in 2013
Popular Pays is a platform connecting content creators with brands who want the content to tell their stories. It is a tech company, with an in-house built iOS app and dashboard that delivers direct communication, workflow tools, and powerful statistics.

Enmetric Systems

Seed Round in 2013
Enmetric Systems is a provider of enterprise plug load management solutions, enabling large companies and organizations to monitor, control, and reduce enterprise-wide energy use and cost. Their platform provides real-time energy use data, automated control, measurement, and communication for individual electrical plug loads in offices. The core technology is integrated directly into common electrical interfaces, such as power strips, outlets, circuit breakers, and light switches. In addition, Enmetric’s enterprise management software platform collects granular data to support software applications including reporting, peak-load reduction, load shifting, demand response, space optimization, and device audits.

Food Genius

Series A in 2013
Food Genius is a leading foodservice data provider specializing in gathering, preparing, and serving granular foodservice menu data and analytics. We support foodservice manufacturers, operators, and distributors with straightforward and digestible reports, services, and analytics. Our products are used to answer many complex foodservice business questions. From competitive price tracking for optimization to statistical analysis of current burger toppings for the development new offerings, Food Genius has smarter data and analytics. Food Genius serves nationally recognized companies and brands, including Kraft, Coca-Cola, Arby’s, and US Foods. As an industry leader in foodservice data and analytics, Food Genius is on a mission to provide foodservice manufacturers, operators, and distributors with the data analytics they need to make smarter, more informed decisions.

NextSpace

Seed Round in 2013
NextSpace is a collaborative coworking community that solves two fundamental problems for its members. First, NextSpace provides access to professional infrastructure: cool workspace, internet, conference rooms, and a diverse network of dedicated professionals representing the startup scene, B2B services, digital advertising, design, architecture, and engineering, to name a few. Second, NextSpace provides the creative community that so many freelancers and independents seek as a source for inspiration, collaboration, and client referrals. Every NextSpace location is set up to accommodate a variety of workstyles, from open and collaborative to heads-down and deadline driven; and from flexible day passes to dedicated workstations and private offices.

Blitsy

Seed Round in 2013
Blitsy is where creative people shop online. It aims to provide the best selection, value, inspiration, and online shopping experience for creative people worldwide. It was founded in 2011 and is based in Chicago, Illinois.

Desktime

Seed Round in 2013
Desktime is a online platform and directory that helps people rent desk space by the day, week, or month.

SimpleRelevance

Series A in 2013
SimpleRelevance's machine learning technology was acquired in December 2015 by Rise Interactive. To see more information about Rise, visit their page here: www.riseinteractive.com Read more about the machine learning technology below. SimpleRelevance is the only machine learning platform that leverages your existing tools and workflow to personalize your digital marketing messages. SimpleRelevance is the only multi-channel optimization platform that uses internal and external data to automate and execute smarter marketing messages. SimpleRelevance combines customers’ behavioral, demographic, and psychographic data, with patent-pending technology to create digital marketing messages that are individually personalized down to the time of day the message is sent, subject line, and product recommendations shown. The result? Higher conversions, sales, and ROI.

LearnCore

Venture Round in 2013
LearnCore is a cloud-based learning platform, focused on “mission critical” skills development and the creation of more top performers for your organization. Its collaborative technology saves time and allows participants to quickly practice a skill/response and learn from top performers. Managers & Executives get intelligence knowing where their team stands and where the gaps lie. See why employees love to use LearnCore, contact us for a demo: http://learncore.com/request-demo/

OpenMarkets

Series A in 2013
OpenMarkets is a SAAS + services company helping healthcare providers save money on capital equipment. We give hospitals a modern software for budgeting and planning, providing hospitals supply chains better visibility into the needs of their clinicians and relationships with vendors. In addition to our SAAS platform, we offer outsourced sourcing services and volume savings opportunities by aggregating hospital demand across our growing network. OpenMarkets charges subscription fee's for our SAAS product, as well as transactions fees on savings.

Shiftgig

Series A in 2012
Shiftgig is a technology company that helps staffing agencies transform the way people work. Our flagship digital staffing software, Deploy, helps staffing firms empower their workforce to browse and claim work that fit their skills and schedules. We also give agencies deep insights into their clients and workers, allowing you to focus on strategic growth and coaching by eliminating repetitive tasks of running day-to-day operations. To learn more, visit shiftgig.com.

Ingage

Series C in 2012
Ingage offers a suite of tools that help sales teams create, customize and deliver branded sales content that boosts engagement at every stage of the sales process. Teams can quickly Create a new presentation or import an existing PPTX file; Share from any mobile device allowing users to capture attention by leveraging touchable images, videos, product specs and branding, and ensure all elements are up-to-date and easily accessible; and Measure to understand if content is being viewed, how many times and by what people, and adapt the content for better results.

Zipwhip

Series A in 2011
Zipwhip features software that helps people businesses have more effective conversations by text-enabling existing phone numbers. Zipwhip pairs direct network connectivity with easy out-of-the-box software, so businesses of any size can give customers the choice to “text or call” and handle two-way text conversations at scale. It was founded in 2007 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington.
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