Selva Ventures Research
Investment Thesis
Selva Ventures is a specialized consumer health and wellness venture capital fund that believes health and wellness represents one of the most important pillars of the global economy. The firm invests in consumer brands that improve health, sustainability, and inclusivity, leveraging the $61 trillion global consumer economy which is undergoing a seismic shift toward trusted, high-quality products with proven efficacy and meaningful experiences.
The fund partners with entrepreneurs to advance healthier living by providing capital, strategic resources, and deep operational support. Their thesis emphasizes that the next generation of iconic consumer health and wellness brands will be built by founders who understand the convergence of nutrition, biology, and psychology.
Investment Stage Focus
Selva Ventures leads Seed and Series A funding rounds, with primary focus on:
- Seed stage: $500K-$3M for companies with validated products and initial customer traction
- Series A stage: $1M-$5M for companies demonstrating product-market fit
The firm prefers to lead or co-lead rounds and is typically an early institutional investor in its portfolio companies.
Check Size and Deployment
- Typical check size range: $100K-$5M (per F4-OS data)
- Fund II: $34 million (closed May 2023), actively deployed through 2025
- Recent activity: Continuing to deploy capital in 2025-2026, with investments in Perelel (Series B, Oct 2025), FoodNerd (Jan 2026), and Grüns (Mar 2025)
Sector and Model Focus
Selva invests exclusively in branded consumer products, with particular emphasis on:
- Food & Beverage: Nutritional products, specialty coffee, protein alternatives, functional drinks
- Beauty & Personal Care: Skincare, haircare, longevity cosmetics, specialty beauty
- Health & Wellness: Supplements, vitamins (VMS), pet health, longevity-focused products
The firm applies hedge-fund-like discipline to investment decisions, focusing on unit economics, profitability pathways, and scalable models from day one.
Deal-Making and Decision Process
- Lead tendency: Strong lead investor (leads or co-leads most rounds)
- Decision process: Partnership model with deep collaboration between founders and investors
- Board participation: Active board seats and observer positions across portfolio
- Warm introductions: Preferred but not required given their active deal sourcing and portfolio strategy
Recent Activity and Portfolio
Recent Investments (2025-2026):
- FoodNerd: January 2026 (Seed)
- Perelel: October 2025 (Series B participation, alongside Unilever Ventures, Willow Growth Partners)
- Grüns: March 2025 (Seed)
Fund Status: Fund II is actively deploying with consistent deal activity through early 2026.
Notable Portfolio Companies (15+):
- Grüns: Superfood supplement powders
- OneSkin: Longevity skincare technology
- Native Pet: Pet health and nutrition
- Arrae: Personalized probiotic health supplements
- Javvy: Premium specialty coffee
- Perelel: Prenatal and women's health vitamins
- Sofie Pavitt: Luxury skincare brand
- Cadootz: Functional candy/sweets
- MUDWTR: Functional coffee alternatives
- Crown Affair: Luxury haircare brand
- FoodNerd: Personalized nutrition
- Hello Cake: Allergen-friendly baking
- Midday Squares: Protein snacks
- Three Wishes: Cereal brand (health-focused)
- Clevr: Plant-based beverage blends
- Surely: Mocktail/non-alcoholic beverages
Notable Exits:
- Liquid I.V.: Acquired by Unilever (Series B investment)
- Nutpods: Acquired by MPearlRock (Series B investment)
Team and Expertise
Kiva Dickinson - Founder & Managing Partner
- 15+ years in consumer and investment experience
- Former Partner at CircleUp (led Series B investments in Nutpods, Liquid I.V.)
- Prior private equity at TPG Capital (Series B investments in Lynda.com, Ipsy)
- Investment banking background at Barclays in consumer-focused roles
- Deep expertise in food, beverage, VMS, and pet categories
Madeline Kaplan - Partner (Promoted September 2024)
- Former Principal at Smash Capital (first investment hire)
- Goldman Sachs investment banking analyst (consumer, healthcare, media focus)
- Harvard College graduate (Economics)
- Expertise in beauty, personal care, and longevity categories
Doug Waller - Operating Partner
- 20 years retail and CPG experience
- Former VP of Retail at Harry's ($500M+ retail business)
- Co-founder of The Retail Navigator (retail advisory firm)
- Chief Revenue Officer at InContext Solutions
- Senior roles at Coca-Cola (Walmart/Sam's strategy)
- 8 years at Procter & Gamble in shopper/consumer insights
- U.S. Navy veteran, Naval Academy graduate
Rachel Peck - Operating Partner
- Leadership and organizational development specialist
- Founder and CEO of Metronome (leadership development consulting)
- Decade at Harry's (Chief of Staff, Head of Learning & Development)
- Executive coach and Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with International Coaching Federation
- Expertise in talent strategy and organizational culture
Matt Gornstein - Operating Partner
- 15+ years supply chain leadership
- VP of Supply Chain at Mammoth Brands (10 years)
- Former Global Sourcing Manager at Apple (hardware procurement)
- Senior Consultant at IBM Supply Chain practice
- Expertise in demand planning, sourcing, distribution, logistics, quality
Geographic Preference
Based on portfolio concentration and team location:
- Primary: United States (strong West Coast and East Coast presence)
- Secondary: Selected international opportunities where portfolio companies expand
- Headquarters: San Francisco, California
Investment Philosophy and Decision-Making
Selva combines financial rigor with operational support:
- Rigorous analysis of unit economics and profitability pathways
- Access to strategic CPG partners (Unilever Ventures relationship)
- Deep operational support through dedicated Operating Partners
- Hands-on board participation and guidance
- Network access and category expertise across food, beauty, health
Founder and Company Preferences
The firm seeks entrepreneurs who:
- Understand consumer behavior and shifting preferences toward health/wellness
- Have strong execution track records or technical expertise in their category
- Can build sustainable, profitable businesses (not growth-at-all-costs mentality)
- Are willing to partner deeply with experienced operational advisors
- Address real consumer needs with products that deliver proven efficacy
Competitive Positioning
Selva is differentiated by:
- Specialized focus: Consumer health/wellness exclusively (not generalist)
- Operational depth: Embedded Operating Partners with CPG expertise
- Strategic partnerships: Direct access to Unilever Ventures and other strategic CPG networks
- Fund size advantage: $34M Fund II enables deep focus without need to deploy massive capital quickly
- Team quality: Partners with PE and corporate experience at scale (Coca-Cola, Apple, TPG, Goldman Sachs)
Timeline and Momentum
- Founded: 2019
- Fund II close: May 2023 ($34M)
- Fund II deployment: Consistent through 2025-2026 (now 18 months into deployment)
- Market opportunity: Continued tailwinds in health, wellness, sustainability, and longevity consumer trends
