Footwork VC Research
Investment Thesis
Footwork is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on consumer technology and the consumerization of enterprise technology. Founded by Mike Smith (former President and COO of Stitch Fix) and an equal partnership combining world-class investing and operating experience, Footwork believes in backing founders building the next generation of category-defining companies with early signs of product-market fit.
Sector Focus
Footwork invests across two primary sectors:
Consumer Technology:
- Direct-to-consumer platforms and services
- Consumer applications and marketplaces
- Entertainment and media technology
- Health and wellness applications
Enterprise SaaS & B2B:
- Consumerization of enterprise software
- Productivity and workflow tools
- AI-powered business applications
- Industry-specific software platforms
The fund explicitly looks for companies demonstrating early product-market fit with the potential to become category-defining market leaders.
Stage Focus
Footwork is primarily a Seed and Series A investor with stated focus on early-stage companies showing strong product-market fit signals:
- Seed: $1M-$8M initial investment
- Series A: $5M-$15M for category-defining potential
- Selective pre-seed for exceptional founders
Check Size
Typical investment range: $1M - $15M
- Seed initial: $1M-$8M
- Series A: $5M-$15M
- Typical deployment per portfolio company over time: $1.5M-$15M
Lead Tendency
Footwork leads and co-leads both Seed and Series A rounds. Portfolio activity shows consistent lead positions with stated preference for leading or co-leading investments.
Recent Activity
Footwork Fund II ($225M) launched in 2025 and is actively deploying:
- January 2026: Led Series A in Snout (latest investment)
- August 2025: Led $15M Series A in Confido (AI-powered CPG platform)
- July 2025: Participated in $15M Series A for Felt
- 2025: Led Series A in Protege ($25M round)
- 2025: Investments in Elicit, GPTZero
- 2024-2025: Multiple seed and Series A investments
As of Q1 2026, Footwork has invested in 23+ companies with consistent quarterly deployment.
Portfolio Highlights
Active Portfolio Companies (23+ as of Q1 2026):
- Table22 - Restaurant/hospitality management
- Cradlewise - Baby sleep technology
- Trendsi - Fashion/retail platform
- Portex - Supply chain software
- Heard - Audio/communication platform
- Felt - Mapping and spatial visualization
- Power - Energy management/sustainability
- ReflexAI - AI-powered business intelligence
- WindBorne - Climate monitoring/weather tech
- Watershed - Carbon management platform
- Tracksuit - Sports/fitness platform
- Honeydew - Health/wellness application
- Benable - Blockchain/regulatory tech
- GPTZero - AI detection/integrity platform
- Elicit - Research/AI tools
- Confido - AI for CPG/commerce
- Waldo - Video/media platform
- Snout - Business productivity software
- Protege - EdTech/learning platform
- Anything - Consumer application
Portfolio companies span consumer technology, enterprise SaaS, climate tech, health tech, and AI applications.
Team
Founding Partners:
- Mike Smith, General Partner - Former President and COO of Stitch Fix, led company from idea through IPO and beyond. Public company board member (MLNK, ULTA). Previously COO of Walmart. Deep operating and scaling experience.
- Equal Partner Structure - Footwork emphasizes their equal partnership combining world-class investing and operating expertise. Office-based daily collaboration in San Francisco.
The team structure suggests hands-on operational support for portfolio companies, leveraging Mike Smith's extensive experience scaling retail and e-commerce platforms.
Decision Process
Based on website and communication, Footwork appears to use a partnership model with collaborative decision-making between co-founders, emphasizing founder-centric investing with operational support.
Geographic Focus
Primarily US-focused with San Francisco Bay Area headquarters. Daily office operations in Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco suggests strong West Coast presence.
Founder Preferences
Footwork seeks founders with:
- Early product-market fit signals
- Ambition to build category-defining companies
- Strong product intuition and market understanding
- Founders building for either consumer or enterprise segments
- Vision for significant market opportunity
Fund Status
Footwork Fund II ($225M) began investing in 2025 and is actively deploying with consistent quarterly investment velocity.
Investment Timeline
Footwork was founded in April 2021:
- Fund I: $175M (closed 2021)
- Fund II: $225M (launched 2025, currently deploying)
- Current deployment: Q1 2026 and ongoing