By Charlie Lunan
Campfire Capital, a venture capital firm backed by more than 30 former and current Lululemon Athletica Inc. executives, has surpassed the $30 million fundraising mark following an investment by Canada’s BDC Capital.
BDC Capital, which has more than $1 billion in assets under management, claims to be Canada’s largest early-stage technology investor. It invests directly in Canadian tech companies to help them commercialize new ideas through three highly-focused funds in the IT, energy/cleantech and healthcare sectors. While neither company disclosed the sum of BDC Capital’s investment, a spokesperson for Campfire Capital confirmed it has now raised $30.9 million from private equity investors.
The spokesperson confirmed October 17 that the firm recently made its fourth investment in Cotopaxi, a Salt Lake City-based outdoor gear company and Benefit Corporation with a social mission to fund poverty-reduction projects.
Campfire has already made investments in Frank & Oak, an online menswear retailer based in Montreal, San Francisco-based consumer juice press maker Juicero and Figs, a Los Angeles-based maker of medical apparel. It also lists pre-fund investments in Vancouver-based footwear brand Native and Lūvo, a frozen foods company headed by former Lululemon CEO Christine Day.
Campfire Capital was created in 2014 by former Lululemon Director of Business Development Brooke Harley to invest in disruptive retail and consumer ventures. Its four others partners include Day, former Lululemon EVP and CFO John Currie and lead investor David Segal, who is co-founder of DavidsTea.
Rounding out the group is lead investment officer Manica Gautam, a former member of Onex Corporation, a Canadian private equity firm that manages $22.5 billion in assets, including Emerald Expositions, which operates the Outdoor Retailer and Interbike trade shows.
Photo courtesy Campfire Capital
