Masha Drokova, a Russian-born angel investor and PR studio founder, has launched an early stage venture capital firm.
Day One Ventures has a venture capital approach based on a goal-centric community, in which “partners, advisors, and startup founders are united in a shared vision of a better world“.
The focus in on companies:
– developing hard-to-imitate technology in emerging fields such as machine learning, AR/VR, marketplaces, fintech, and edtech,
– seeking to fundamentally change areas such as employment and healthcare through technical innovation in order to serve modern needs, and
– living harmoniously with their community — they rely on an active and loyal audience, who in turn relies on them.
Day One Ventures focuses on early-stage companies investing on average $100K-$1M, usually in seed and series A rounds, also working with VCs for follow-on investments. The firm also supports its portfolio companies in marketing and communications, spearheading public relations activities at the seed and Series A stages. It will advise companies when it’s the right time to hire an in-house professional or an agency and help hire and manage them.
An extensive network of experts advises companies in areas beyond marketing and communications as well, including recruitment and sales as well as in fundraising activites in the US, Europe, and Asia.
The current portfolio includes: DigitalGenius, Piper, Domus, Lvl5, Home61, Truebill, Unity. etc.
The core team also includes Natalie Issa, Head of Communications, and Yuri Molodtsov, an analyst who evaluates potential deals and identifies key market trends.
*Before launching Day One, Drakova was an angel investor and founder of a PR studio that worked with companies like Houzz, HotelTonight, Gett, and Toptal. She was named by Business Insider as a top 50 PR pro in tech. Drakova also serves as an advisor to Oceanic, a non-profit using VR to bring attention to issues impacting oceans.
FinSMEs
26/01/2018