Serial Entrepreneur, Fund of Funds Investor and VC Investor.

What’s up! I'm Jean-Pierre. I believe in using business as a vehicle to improve the human experience. I’m thinking about the next venture I’d like to launch; but in the meantime I’m consulting on projects and getting booked for speaking engagements. Want to learn more about me?

Read my story

My Story

I’m a graduate of the Lycée Français de NY and attended Wesleyan University. Forced to drop out due to financial reasons in my freshman year, I found myself inspired by Alex Haley’s The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Malcom X’s self determination to educate himself while imprisoned struck a chord with my own call to entrepreneurship. If I couldn’t afford school, then I should educate myself. If I didn’t like the job I was offered, then I should create the one that would fulfill my passions.

This led me to launch my first business, Touche de Finesse when I was 19. A profitable high-end French catering company that serviced NY Fashion shows, the United Nations, and The Food Network and many more. The venture helped me pay back my debt to Wesleyan, and gave me capital to pay for my education at Baruch College.

At 22, I co-founded Authorized Dealer Films, a film production company, and the Alphabet City Dolly Film Festival, an independent film festival, with Jameson Irish Whiskey as a sponsor.

In 2016, I recognized that the ridesharing needs of college students were being underserved, so I built Wheeli: the leading carpooling network for college students. Wheeli was a Techstars and venture capital backed tech startup, disrupting long distance travel by building the transportation network for the 50-mile plus trips market. Wheeli transported thousands of students from universities throughout the northeast of the US and was featured in Forbes and on BFM TV. Wheeli ceased operations in 2020 due to Covid-19.

After Wheeli, I transitioned into private equity and currently work as a venture capital startup investor and as a fund of funds investor in venture capital funds, growth funds and buyout funds. I have operated in private equity as a VC backed startup founder, as a VC investor and as a fund of funds investor which provides me with unique insights and understanding of venture capital and growth capital within private equity. I am currently an advisor to the Equity Alliance Fund.

I grew up in New York City, and am fluent in French, enjoy cooking, soccer and scrabble!

What am I up to now?

Consulting

I consult as an investor for venture capital funds, private equity fund of funds, and companies, leveraging my knowledge from my tried and true experiences. I have provided support for corporate innovation teams and also advise founders on business and fundraising strategies.

Groups I've consulted for

Speaking

I aim to be an authentic and reliable opinion for first time entrepreneurs, particularly for black founders, women and minorities. Fundraising is extremely difficult for everyone but even more so for black and women founders!

Founders can democratize access to capital.

I lead presentations on:

“Raising Capital as a Black Founder in a Homogenous Venture Funding Ecosystem: Lessons for Women, Minority, and Other Outside-The-Box Founders.”

Over the years I’ve heard well intentioned talk of change but with very little to show for it. I believe it’s time for founders to change the way we build venture backed companies.

I’ve had the opportunity to speak for…

Featured

Testimonials

Andrea Perdomo, Network Catalyst, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion - Techstars

Jean-Pierre recently presented in a public 1-hour virtual event 'Creating an Inclusive Fundraising Experience' and it was phenomenal. If you desire an entertaining, relevant and dynamic storyteller, that can present really well online and bring his authentic self to the conversation, I would highly recommend Jean-Pierre. Jean-Pierre is a natural, he was able to present and adapt to the video conference platform we used instantly. The session was open to the public and was also streamed on LinkedIn and was watched live as well as the recording by hundreds of people. After the presentation got a “virtual” standing ovation and connected with them on their level. If leadership, innovation and inspiration are your topics of interest, Jean-Pierre is your person.

Michelle Cheng, Co-Chair - London Business School Launchpad

JP facilitated a session for us in May 2020, in the height of the coronavirus pandemic. His session on raising capital as an untraditional founder resonated deeply with our diverse group of first-time founders. His insights on were universal to any entrepreneur looking to break the mold of traditional Silicon Valley profiles and his candor about both wins and failures made the session truly special. Despite the challenges of fully digital delivery, JP's session was one of our most highly reviewed and attended sessions.

Daniella Raposo, Director of the Columbia Startup Lab, Columbia University

Jean-Pierre hosted a webinar at the Columbia Startup Lab about fundraising, specifically offering advice to minority and female founders. He told stories from his experiences as a two-time entrepreneur and offered tactical advice that our founders could walk away with and use in their day to day. JP was honest, relatable, and encouraging. We'll definitely ask him back in the years to come!

Emma Cappiello, Program Manager Fellows, Summit

JP fosters a safe space for impact-driven leaders to be authentic and transparent about barriers when raising capital. In conjunction with his engaging, solutions-oriented Masterclass, he offered himself as a resource to our Fellows and connected 1:1 with them to help advance their goals. Because of his mentorship, he affects populations on a global scale and inspires those around him.

Katie Li, Cornell University

I worked with Jean-Pierre for a talk hosted by the Cornell Entrepreneurship Club. His presentation style is natural and entertaining, and his event had the most amount of attendees that we've ever had. The attendees found his talk incredibly valuable and appreciated his refreshing insight. It is rare to meet someone that can engage the audience like Jean-Pierre; I highly recommend Jean-Pierre for your next speaker event.

I believe that we are past the time of asking for change; as entrepreneurs, we have the capacity to force change.

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Resources

Resources for VCs and Founders: from idea to series A

I put together short documents that cover the main notions I believe every founder needs to have a pulse on to get their startup past a series A financing.

From Idea to Series A -
Startup Guide

Read startup guide

From Idea to Series A -
Fundraising Guide

Read fundraising guide

From Idea to Series A - How VCs Raise Funds and How it Impacts Founders

Read guide