Zell Capital

zellcapital.com

Vessel partners with entrepreneurs early in their journey from startup through product-market fit, using a diverse platform of tools including venture capital, lending, venture studio development, and advisory services rather than relying solely on traditional VC models.

Check Size

Not specified

Stages

Pre Seed, Seed, Series A, Series B

Focus Areas

Ai Ml, Fintech, Edtech

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Investment Thesis

Vessel views founders as ‘modern day explorers’ embarking on journeys to discover new worlds and build the future of their industries. They embrace a founder-first mentality, emphasizing that they are ‘born of the seas’ with direct experience of both success and failure in building companies. Their philosophy rejects the traditional VC-only model, instead meeting founders ‘where you are with right-fit solutions’ across multiple investment and support mechanisms. They acknowledge the reality of startup risk candidly: ‘We have ships that have made it to land (product-market fit), and ships that rest at the bottom of the waters.’

What Sets Them Apart

Multi-tool platform approach: fund-based investing, deal-by-deal lending, venture studio (Shipyard), advisory services (Carto), and angel syndication rather than traditional VC-only model
Founder mentality: team members are themselves founders with lived experience of startup success and failure
Geographic focus: dedicated commitment to building the Ohio startup ecosystem through Ohio Angel Collective
Internal venture studio (Shipyard): builds high-potential companies from scratch, launching 1-2 per year
Non-dilutive capital options through specialty financing lending program
Fractional operator support through Carto Advisory for portfolio companies
Hands-on partnership approach beyond capital: testimonials highlight recruitment, sales, product, and marketing support