Serial Entrepreneur, CEO, Director, Advisor and Mentor
Driven, innovative, and creative business leader with a unique skill set including developing startups from idea to exit,
building key relationships, and managing strategic consulting engagements inside large consumer enterprises.
Remarkable success leading two, back-to-back startups from seed stage to exit over the past 15 years. Expert in mentoring founders to bring structure, funding, and governance to early-stage ventures. Proven record of accomplishment in creating new businesses, cultivating long-term relationships with investors, and attracting large-scale investment. Excels at recruiting, inspiring, and leading innovative delivery teams in fast-paced environments.
Areas of Expertise
- Entrepreneurship
- Startups
- Innovation
- Product Development
- New Venture Development
- Fundraising and Dealmaking
- Capital Structures
- Investor Relationships
- Due Diligence Preparation
- Funding Sequence and Timing
- Founding Team Design
- Business Model Development
- Governance
- Program Management
- Publishing and Speaking
Accomplishments
- Founder of app-enabled car rental platform Silvercar – backed by Austin Ventures and acquired by Audi AG in 2017
- Followed up with laundry platform Washlava – backed by LG Electronics – merged with Prop-Tech play 4thIQ in 2021
- Led both ventures from concept to product development to market to scale, raising more than $60MM in funding
- Distinguished Alumnus of Newchip Accelerator, an elite entrepreneurial leadership program in Austin (2020-21)
- Founding Member of Tampa Bay Wave, Florida’s largest accelerator offering fixed duration programs
- Pre-startup consulting experience focused on strategic initiatives for more than 50 brands
Career Experience
Founder | CEO and Chairman, Washlava, Inc, Tampa FL
2015-2021
Created IoT software and hardware platform, enabling customers to reserve and pay for machines from smartphones. Executed high-quality investing decisions to enable rapid growth.
- Raised funds and established strategic partnerships by selling 10% equity stake to LG Electronics (Korea).
- IoT software and hardware platform granted six US and EU patents – MIT first customer
- Multiple awards including Electrolux ‘Future of Laundry’ Challenge pitch competition in Shanghai, China
- Most recent pre-merger transaction valued at 10x initial investment
Founder | Head of Venture Development, Silvercar, Inc, Austin, TX
2008-2014
Designed and launched first-of-its-kind service platform, eliminating friction points in car rental process – advanced
connected vehicle platform enables exclusively smartphone-enabled consumer experience and field operations
connected vehicle platform enables exclusively smartphone-enabled consumer experience and field operations
- Raised $22.5M in funding from a $250K angel round straight to a VC-led Series A transaction
- Runs NPS of 88 and named best global rental car experience by Conde Nast Traveler in 2021
- Silvercar was acquired Audi AG in 2017, yielding a 32x return on initial investment
Additional Experience
Vice President, Strategy & Research, Interbrand, Dayton, OH
Senior Director, Accenture Kurt Salmon, Atlanta, GA
Senior Director, Alvarez & Marsal, Atlanta, GA
Vice President, Equity Research Analyst, NewSouth Capital Management, Memphis, TN
Director of Human Resources, Training and Development, Tiffany & Co., New York, NY
Education
Masters of Business Administration, Finance and International Business
New York University, New York, NY
Bachelor of Arts, History
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN