Red Sea Ventures

Scott Birnbaum

Founder

Scott is the founder of Red Sea Ventures. He combines 15 years of entrepreneurial experience including his time as co-founder of EPOK, an early cloud-based enterprise solution launched in 2001. He has experience as a corporate attorney at White & Case and digital media expertise developed at CBS Local where he focused on strategy and business development.

Scott is a member of the board of Seeds of Peace, a founding member of Young Leadership Committee (YLC) and served as chairman of the YLC board. Scott is the recipient of the Young Peace Maker Award for his outstanding leadership in and dedication to supporting the mission of Seeds of Peace and the YLC.

Scott grew up in Paris and attended Georgetown University and Fordham law school.

Want to view this full profile? Sign up!

Notable Investments

Convoy, Sweetgreen, Allbirds, Eargo, Outdoor Voices, Nest, Prose

Questions & Answers

Origin Story: In a couple sentences, how would you describe your path to becoming an investor?

I started Red Sea Ventures after being a startup founder, operator and lawyer.  I wanted to build a seed and pre-seed firm focused on being a supporter and partner to early stage founders and a desire to help build companies that are offering products and services that are mission driven and designed to empower individuals in their personal and professional lives.

Investment Approach: What are the key factors you consider when evaluating a founding team?

Intellectual horsepower and desire to learn, charisma, capacity for storytelling, analytical capacity, hunger to win.

What's your style and approach when it comes to working with founders post-investment? What are the characteristics of founders you've worked well with?

We try to be the most helpful investor on the cap table with help recruiting, strategy, partnerships and BD.  We are supportive and active but know that we will never know your business, team and customers as well as you will so we don't substitute our judgment for yours.  We really enjoy working with founders that are collaborative, friendly, and place value on relationships.

If I'm coming to pitch to you, what's the one piece of advice you'd give me?

Be authentic and help us understand who you are and why you're building this business.

How would you describe your own personal mission and values, and how do they impact the way you invest?

We care about mission driven businesses that are looking to empower individuals in their personal and professional lives.  We are looking for companies that aim to do well while doing good.

What do you like best about investing in NYC, and what’s your outlook on the future of NYC tech?

NYC is one of the major centers of the global system and is a beacon to determined, ambitious, and creative people across all industries.  It is a bastion of diversity and we are very bullish on New York's continued ability to attract talent, build connections to strategics, acquirers, and partners all within a few city blocks while also giving you backyard access to a plethora of customers across all walks of life.