Jeff Kurtzman - Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Jeff Kurtzman is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Mavin Ventures.
Jeff Kurtzman is an entrepreneur, a finance/operations/strategic consultant, and active angel investor. After starting his career on Wall Street as an investment banker at Deutsche Bank (Analyst in Equity Capital Markets division), he caught the entrepreneurial bug and started his first company with two former college roommates. As CFO of Better World Books, an online bookstore, he helped it grow to $25+ million in annual revenue and 250+ employees within 5 years without taking any outside investment. Jeff was also very instrumental in the development of a cutting edge enterprise-level software platform that was developed for internal use and then licensed to other large volume e-commerce companies. The software was eventually spun out and was later sold to a company that still licenses the software today. The company later raised $5 million in venture capital to accelerate growth, hired experienced executives, and is forecasting $70+ million in 2017 revenue. Jeff is still one of the largest shareholders and is in regular contact with the CEO and Board of Directors as the company.
From 2008-2012, Jeff co-founded numerous ventures since then including a non-profit called Operation Incubation (sends infant incubators to the developing world), a price comparison website in financial services industry, a Cleantech/Green Building Materials venture capital fund, and a digital media startup. He also consulted for several startups or small businesses as temporary CFO/COO and/or Strategic Consultant.
From 2012-2014, Jeff took on the role of CEO at Aid Through Trade, a founding member of the Fair Trade Federation that produces handmade goods in Nepal. In 2.5 years, he turned around the struggling company (updated all internal technology, replaced most of team, established a sales team, revamped entire product line, etc.), increased the number of artisans employed from 50 to 125, increased the number of wholesale customers from 400 to 750, and grew top line revenue by over 125%.
Since the beginning of 2015, Jeff has become an active angel investor and supporter of startups in the Mid-Atlantic region. He is on the Board of Directors for the Baltimore Angels and an active advisor (on pro bono basis) to several startups in the Baltimore/DC area. Jeff has made angel investments in several startups including the following: Suitehop, SportsShares, Sandboxx, Gold Lasso, Yet Analytics, Send Money Cheaper, Tanager Holdings, Saranac Holdings, In Haus Entertainment, and Huvi.
Jeff graduated Magna Cum Laude from University of Notre Dame in 2001 with a double major in Finance/Business Economics and Computer Applications. He lives in Severna Park with his wife Kim, daughter Amelia, and dog Brooklyn. Jeff enjoys traveling the world, live music, golf, mountain biking, trying new restaurants, and learning new things.
Jeff's LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffkurtzman
Greg Cangialosi - Co-Founder & Partner
Greg Cangialosi is Co-Founder and Partner at Mavin Ventures.
Greg is an entrepreneur based in Baltimore, MD. He serves as Chairman & Co-Founder of Betamore, Co-Chair of the Baltimore Angels, and is an active advisor and investor to several companies in the mid-atlantic region. In 2001, Greg started and scaled, with no outside capital, Blue Sky Factory, a leading email marketing service provider, that was acquired by the private equity firm, Riverside Company in July of 2011.
Greg serves on the board of the Baltimore Development Corporation and recently completed a two year term on NACIE, (National Advisory Council on Innovation & Entrepreneurship), for the US Department of Commerce. He holds a BA in English from UMBC and is a passionate speaker and consultant on the topics of entrepreneurship, marketing, innovation & economic development. He's the lead author of “The Business Podcasting Book,” a primer on new media for marketers. Greg lives in Baltimore with his wife, Theresa, and daughter, Gabriella, and enjoys traveling, every type of board sport there is, is a dedicated yoga student, and loves to read, write and see LOTS of live music.
Greg's LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregcangialosi
Greg's Personal Website: http://www.cangialosi.net/
Michael Tucker - Venture Partner
Michael most recently worked as the Director — and only full-time employee — at the Baltimore Angels. At the Baltimore Angels, he managed the group's deal flow, due diligence analysis, events, marketing, and partnerships. While there, Michael was responsible for successfully sourcing over a dozen deals for the group. A few of the deals he helped put together include, https://www.goldlasso.com, http://www.socialtoaster.com, http://www.cleanplates.com, and http://www.yetanalytics.com.
in 2014, Michael worked at Everseat as one of their first employees. As an account executive, Michael was the company’s top performing revenue generator. He was also responsible for overseeing and implementing their sales CRM software.
He is a Venture for America alum, has twice been a company founder, and has further background in tech, finance, and real-estate. Michael graduated with a BBA from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School. He lives in Federal Hill, Baltimore.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-tucker-b39a6a51
Twitter: @michaelryantuck
Instagram: @michaelrtucker
