Our Mission
To identify, invest in, and support the next generation of companies that will lead innovation in retail technology.
Industry Focused Venture Fund
With an exclusive focus on retail, restaurants, and next-generation commerce technologies, we initiate investments into a pre-configured portfolio that includes indications of pre-money valuations and types of securities. The principals of the Fund are proven experts in their field and have done the hard work to assemble a group of private, growing, and sector-leading companies that will represent the changing landscape of retail technology.
Our Approach
We are redefining the venture model of the past. By taking an investor centric approach with a focus on retail technology, our unique business model allows our investments to be placed into a known, pre-configured portfolio.
The Process
We believe our format is the future of private venture investing; a model designed for attentive portfolio assembly alongside sector experts, with no focus on "empire" building. Instead, we have directed our efforts to portfolio construction and companies led by exceptional entrepreneurs with strong advisory boards and post product-market fitness.
By combining industry experience and knowledge, we work hands-on with our advisors to identify:
- The most important trends
- The emerging private companies that will be next-generation leaders in retail technology
- The most thoughtful and dynamic entrepreneurs
Investment Strategy
We build relationships for future investment
The portfolio and strategy of our retail technology fund stands out and entrepreneurs in this sector want us on their capitalization table. We have gathered a winning team that can be aggressive on terms and structure, including taking control of positions for added value.
Key Themes in Retail
For decades retail did not view technology as critical to winning markets... this has changed.
Next-Generation AnalyticsExtreme personalizationContext targeted marketing
Automation of RetailNo-friction commerce at the edgeAlternate checkoutNew store formats
PaymentsEmployee financial wellnessFrictionless payments
Industry-Focused Team
Operations, Innovation, and Venture Capital
The Composite team consists of highly recognized venture professionals, retail industry executives known for their innovative successes, as well as a group of highly incentivized advisors from industry leading retailers. We are able to intelligently fathom market leaders in our focus sector, gain access to those investments, and help our portfolio companies with our deep industry network.
Jim Armstrong
Managing Director
25+ Year Venture Capitalist; Board Member and Advisor
Brandon Levine
Managing Director
Former Head of Innovation, Payments, and Financial Services at Dollar General
Mike Marsh
Managing Director
10+ Year Venture Investor, M&A and Capital Markets; Board Member and Advisor
Karan Chaudhary
Managing Director
10+ Year Venture Investor, Executive and M&A; Board Member and Advisor
Strategic Advisors
Recognized Leaders in the Field
Neil Golden
Board Member at RBI; Former SVP, CMO at McDonalds
Jason Reiser
Former EVP, CMO at Dollar General; Former COO at Vitamin Shoppe; Former VP at Walmart
Don Kingsborough
Founder and CEO of Blackhawk Network; Former VP of PayPal; Former President of Westfield
Matthew Schweickert
Former Chief Strategy Officer at Home Depot; Former SVP at Experian
Amit Jain
Founder and CEO of Bridg; Founder of Savings.com
Tom Fisher
Former CTO at Ebay; Former CIO at Oracle; Former CIO at SAP
Kat Cole
President & COO of Athletic Greens; Former President and COO at Focus Brands
Andy Murray
Former SVP/Chief Customer Officer Walmart Asda U.K.; Former SVP/Marketing Walmart U.S.
Jerry Storch
CEO of Storch Advisors; Former CEO of HBC and Toys"R"Us; Vice Chairman of Target
Marisa Thalberg
Former EVP/CMO at Lowe's;Former Global Chief Brand Officer at Taco Bell
Glenn Lucas
Venture Advisor and Investor
Our Portfolio
BRANCH
The only challenger bank that partners with employers to help working Americans grow financially
HERO
Makes all your favorite foods without the carbs
PLACER.AI
Providing retailers with actionable insights and location analytics into their audience and competition
GRUBMARKET
The most affordable farm-to-table food delivery service offering a variety of organic and locally-sourced food and produce
OPENCITY
Introducing an AI-powered voice assistant for drive-thru ordering
PRODUCT SCIENCE
Increases product metrics for mobile applications and helps apps work faster
DATASEMBLY
Empowers brands and retailers with fully shareable competitive data from every store
Composite News
Panera Bread tests artificial intelligence technology in drive-thru lanes
Starting Monday, drive-thru customers at two Panera Bread locations in upstate New York will have their orders taken by a computer in a test of artificial intelligence...
Tom Brady-Backed Hero Bread in Talks to Raise Convertible Note
Hero Bread, which makes low-carbohydrate loaves, tortillas and buns, is in talks to raise a convertible note...
GrubMarket Acquires IOT Pay to Enter Financial Services Sector for the American Food Supply Chain Industry
GrubMarket today announced it has completed the acquisition of Vancouver, Canada-based IOT Pay, a leading fintech company that provides omnichannel payment services...
Uber will start showing its drivers how much money they will earn for each trip
Uber announced that it will soon start showing its drivers how much money they can earn on each trip...
OpenCity's Conversational Voice AI "Tori™" Forever Changes the Drive-Thru Experience
OpenCity, the leading voice AI ordering platform for restaurants, announced today that a Popeyes Franchisee...
Datasembly Collects One Trillion Product Observations; Market Volatility Drives Demand and Leads to Increase in Collection Frequency
Datasembly, the leading provider of real-time, hyper-local product pricing, promotions, and assortment data for retailers and CPG brands, has officially collected over one trillion product observations...
Placer.ai Raises $100M Series C At A $1B Valuation To Accelerate Growth and Product Development
Placer.ai, the leader in location analytics and foot traffic data, announced today the closing of a $100M Series C funding round at a $1B valuation...
GrubMarket raises $200m in Series E funding round, eyes IPO
GrubMarket, a San Francisco-based food supply chain e-commerce company, has raised $200m in a Series E funding round, bringing its total valuation to over $1.2bn...
Branch raises $48M from Lee Fixel's Addition, Indeed to provide accelerated payments to workers
Branch, which has built a flexible workforce payments platform, announced today it has raised $48 million in Series B funding and closed on a $500 million credit facility...
Drive-thru voice AI startup to double its team with $6.8M
OpenCity, a Boston startup that provides an AI-powered voice assistant for drive-thru ordering, is raising new funds to double the size of its current team...
Cardlytics Completes Acquisition of Bridg
Cardlytics (NASDAQ: CDLX), one of the largest digital advertising platforms, announced today the completion of its acquisition of Bridg, a customer data platform...
Placer.ai Raises $50M Series B
Placer.ai, a leader in location analytics and foot traffic data, announced on Tuesday the close of a $50 million series B funding round...
Market Performance Group Taps Jason Reiser for New Role
Market Performance Group (MPG) has named Jason Reiser, former chief merchandising officer of Dollar General...
Branch Launches Employer Payments Platform for Businesses to Accelerate Payments
Branch today announced the launch of its Employer Payments Platform (EPP) to help businesses accelerate payments...
Technology and Real Estate Must Blend Together
Technology and real estate must blend together better today in order to support an evolving retail market...