Our Team

Team principals and advisors

Who We Are
Team
Claire Smith
CLAIRE SMITH
FOUNDER & CIO

Founder of Beyond Investing and Beyond Animal platform. 37 years of financial management experience. Head of Equity Quantitative Strategies at Albourne Partners Limited, Head of Investor Derivative Marketing at UBS and Head of Convertible Sales, Swiss Bank Corporation. Among the earliest investors like Geltor, Clara Foods, Mosa Meat, Supermeat and BlueNalu and 20 other companies since 2017.

Jody Rasch
JODY RASCH
PARTNER

Pioneer alternative protein investor. Former Trustee – VegInvest, Board of VegFund, Woodstock Farm Sanctuary, Advisor to Crowdbureau. Veginvest was an early investor in Wild Earth, Clara Foods, Geltor, BlueNalu, Veggie Grill, NutPods, Just Inc. and others.

Diane Freymond
DIANE FREYMOND
PARTNER

Foodtech entrepreneur. Medtech corporate VC. Operator with 30MM raised, StartUp COO, 13+ years in tech businesses and Business Angel. Best-selling cookbook after participating on the French TF1 show “MasterChef”.

Hanna Y. Gabay
HANNA Y. GABAY
PARTNER

20+ years of Operational experience, Program management and Scale up. Served on several not-for- profit boards, currently chairwoman at Freedom 4 Animals and Director of global campaigns for Plant Based Treaty and the Animal Save Movement.

Sagar Tandon
SAGAR TANDON
PARTNER

Involved in setting up 2 funds – Gray Matters Capital, edLABS & Australian Govt. DFAT backed impact fund. Led investments in 18 early- stage ventures. Mentor at Good Food Institute India & APAC, Founders Institute Food APAC and Fashion for Good, Netherlands. Advisor at 2X Global Forum and 2X Ignite to unlock gender-smart capital globally.

Advisors
Tyler Mayoras
TYLER MAYORAS
Advisor

20+ years of private equity experience. Co-managed a $155 million impact- oriented food and ag fund for Advantage Capital. Previous roles at Mars Equities, O’Keefe and Ridge Capital Partners. Angel investor in Simple Mills, Atomo Coffee, Renewal Mill and Spero Foods.

Katherine H. Ritchie
KATHERINE H. RITCHIE
Advisor

TEDCO Senior Director of Venture Funds, Nottingham Spirk Director & Board Member, Owner of Private Capital Investments. Worked internally and as an advisor to 8 family offices, including 4 billionaires. ICOM Member.

Greg Soutendijk
GREG SOUTENDIJK
Advisor

Private Equity advisor with +20 years experience in the food, beverage, home and personal care specialty ingredients sectors. Former Executive Committee member – Global Head of M&A and Strategy, at International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE: IFF)

Venture Partners
Anthony Stam
ANTHONY STAM
Venture Partner

20+ years experience in Private Equity, M&A and Corporate Finance in Europe and North America. Extensive experience in investments across the capital structure (equity, structured equity, mezzanine and debt).

William Bowdler Raynar
WILLIAM BOWDLER-RAYNAR
Venture Partner

More than 25 years in the Investment Bank, Asset and Wealth Management businesses, he co-founded Investment Circle in 2018, connecting capital with sustainable technology ventures (funds and direct opportunities). ICOM Member