Firebrand Ventures

Firebrand Ventures is a venture capital firm, initially born out of John's experience as Managing Director for Techstars Kansas City. After investing in 30 startups across three cohorts, he realized that even exceptional startups struggled to raise seed rounds between the coasts. In 2016 John launched the first Firebrand fund, which invested in 27 portfolio companies in places like Austin, Boulder, Denver, Chicago, Des Moines, and Kansas City.
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Simultaneously, Chris was launching Blue Note Ventures in Boulder, Colorado, a seed-stage fund serving entrepreneurs committed to authentic leadership. With two decades of venture experience investing in the Rocky Mountain region and beyond, Chris was committed to a strategy of backing passionate entrepreneurs who aspired to be self-aware, transparent, humble, and courageous.

After co-investing in several companies together out of their respective funds, it became obvious that Chris and John not only shared a similar investment strategy but also an underlying set of values around how they partnered with entrepreneurs. In late 2019 they decided to join forces and merged Firebrand and Blue Note. 
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In 2021 we were fortunate to add Claire Hansen to our team, leading our new Austin office. Having a physical presence in Boulder, Kansas City, and Austin enables us to better support and stay connected with our founders.

Now investing out of the Firebrand II fund, we are steadfast in our approach of investing in trusted relationships with exceptional founders. We meet companies where they are and prioritize values such as integrity, transparency, and being a key resource for entrepreneurs.

Most importantly, we're true partners in the startup journey. We are honored to get late-night text messages or weekend phone calls when founders need us. We invest early and are there to support entrepreneurs through the inevitable ups and downs of startup life.