Firm has now completed 36 investments in 30 companies
(Manchester, N.H., Feb. 28) — York IE™, a vertically integrated strategic growth and investment firm, today announced its fifth cohort, which includes five new companies and two follow-ons to previous investments.
“This new cohort of investments is truly the epitome of what we’re looking for at York IE,” said Kyle York, CEO, York IE. “These companies have exceptional founding teams and leadership with a high-velocity, repeatable go-to-market motion and a large market opportunity to become massively successful.”
York IE also saw significant growth and progress from prior investments within its portfolio.
Fifth York IE Cohort
With this six-month cohort, which ran from July 1 to Dec. 31, 2021, York IE has now completed 36 investments in 30 companies.
The new companies within the fifth York IE cohort are:
- HourWork (formerly Syrg), which is creating an open-employment network with the mission to save the American Dream for 80 million hourly workers, helping employers recruit and retain workers. (Boston)
- Lytica, the world’s only provider of electronic component spend analytics and risk intelligence using real customer data. (Ottawa, Canada)
- Voyage SMS, a SMS market and message commerce platform for ecommerce brands. (Los Angeles)
- Zippity, which provides field service software to owner-operators in the home service industry. (Arlington, Mass.)
- Naya, a design collaboration platform democratizing the design process and unleashing the power of creativity across the planet. (Boston)
The follow-on investments include:
- Blustream, a SaaS-based, after-sale product engagement platform. (Worcester, Mass.)
- Pixaera, a learning metaverse for professionals to build core skills and collaborate in VR, PC and mobile. (London)
“Prior to Lytica, I had worked with Kyle when I was chief product officer of Assent Compliance and have always been impressed with his company-scaling knowledge,” said Martin Sendyk, CEO, Lytica. “As we strengthened the relationship through investment and strategic growth advisory services, I have been pleased to discover how valuable the entire York IE team is and how they truly act as an extension of our operating team.”
Earlier Investments Grow and Succeed
Since York IE announced its last cohort in August, companies within the firm’s investment portfolio have celebrated major milestones, including:
- Cyberhaven, inventor of the industry’s first data detection and response platform, raised a $33 million Series B from Redpoint to transform the stagnant and ineffective data protection market.
- Finmark, which helps companies build sophisticated financial models without having to use Microsoft Excel, announced new funding from American Express Ventures.
- Stackshare, a tech stack collaboration company, announced it had surpassed 1 million developers with a profile on its platform.
- Flywheel, which manages data for medical researchers, raised $27.5 million and acquired Radiologics.
- WEVO announced record growth for Q3, with a 226% year-over-year revenue increase. Matty Wishnow, a recognized industry leader, also joined the company’s board of advisors.
York IE Momentum
In addition to the great work being done by its portfolio companies, the York IE operating company, which provides SaaS plus services to help scale startups, continued to gain momentum. The company launched new Talent and Culture advisory services offerings and added two key executive hires: Gregg Nelson, vice president of sales, and Brittany Flanagan, vice president of talent.
The company also added three new advisors to its network:
- longtime Oracle CIO Mark Sunday;
- Mike Arsenault, sales executive for PromoteIQ at Microsoft; and
- Heather Lavoie, most recently president and CEO of Geneia.
Additionally, Kyle York was named the New Hampshire Tech Alliance Entrepreneur of the Year and joined the Boston Children’s Hospital Philanthropic Board of Advisors. York IE CFO Janelle Gorman was named one of the New Hampshire Union Leader’s 40 Under Forty.
ABOUT YORK IE
York IE™ is a vertically integrated strategic growth and investment firm helping reshape the way companies are built, scaled and monetized. Through Fuel™, its SaaS platform for market and competitive intelligence, hands-on advisory services and selective early stage B2B SaaS investments, York IE supports ambitious entrepreneurs, operators and investors on their quest to scale startups and disrupt markets. Play the long game at York.IE.
