PALO ALTO, Calif., Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Sapphire Sport, a first-of-its-kind venture capital platform investing in early-stage technology companies shaping the future of consumption, announced today that Chloe Steinberg has joined as the team’s newest partner. Chloe joins Doug Higgins and Michael Spirito, forming a trio backed by an unparalleled investor base from all parts of the sports, media and entertainment ecosNamed to the Forbes 30 Under 30 in Venture Capital list, Chloe will help lead the team’s investments across the broader health and wellness economy. Chloe brings extensive industry expertise, stemming from her experience as an investor and operator with the Equinox Group, a high-growth collective of community-based lifestyle brands. While at Equinox, Chloe launched and led Equinox Ventures, the group’s investment arm focused on high-performance living. She also supported business development and new business incubation, including the launch of PROJECT By Equinox, Precision Run and Equinox+, the company’s digital fitness platform.
“Since launching Sapphire Sport, we’ve spoken with hundreds of companies at the intersection of content, data, and technology that are working to deliver new consumer experiences,” said Nino Marakovic, CEO and Partner at Sapphire. “Chloe brings incredible insight into consumer needs and industry expertise that will help us identify the investment opportunities that can deliver truly game-changing experiences.”
Since its launch, Sapphire Sport has invested in 12 companies, including Tonal in the digital health sector and most recently Aglet, Buzzer, Flowhaven.1
“We’re at a unique moment in history where the world is longing for connection — with brands, with culture, with one another,” said Chloe Steinberg, Partner at Sapphire Sport. “The pandemic has raised the bar of what a connected experience should look like and as such, created tremendous opportunities for technological innovation. I’m thrilled to be joining Sapphire Sport during such a pivotal time for identifying and investing in the next generation of consumer experiences.”
Earlier in her career, Chloe was a founding investor at Vayner Capital in partnership with Gary Vaynerchuk and was a member of the investment team at Insight Partners, where she focused on consumer internet, marketplace and enterprise software investments.
A Baltimore native, Chloe graduated magna cum laude from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and in her free time, runs ExclusiveJobs, a not-for-profit, bespoke talent placement network.
ABOUT SAPPHIRE SPORT
Sapphire Sport is a first-of-its-kind venture capital platform bringing together the capital and industry experience of premier global sporting, media and lifestyle brands, including City Football Group, AEG, Sinclair, MLB, adidas, principal owners and investors from franchises in all five major U.S. sports leagues as well as strategic family offices and institutional investors. To learn more about Sapphire Sport, please see: https://sapphiresport.vc.
Disclaimer: Nothing presented within this article is intended to constitute investment advice, and under no circumstances should any information provided herein be used or considered as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy an interest in any investment fund managed by Sapphire Ventures (“Sapphire”). Information provided reflects Sapphires’ views as of a time, whereby such views are subject to change at any point and Sapphire shall not be obligated to provide notice of any change. Companies mentioned in this article are a representative sample of portfolio companies in which Sapphire has invested in which the author believes such companies fit the objective criteria stated in commentary, which do not reflect all investments made by Sapphire. A complete alphabetical list of Sapphire’s investments made by its direct growth and sports investing strategies is available here. No assumptions should be made that investments listed above were or will be profitable. Due to various risks and uncertainties, actual events, results or the actual experience may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in these statements. Nothing contained in this article may be relied upon as a guarantee or assurance as to the future success of any particular company. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
1 Recent Investments reflect Sapphire Sport investments that have been publicly announced since 9/1/2020 thru 2/16/2021 time period.