Kickstart Seed Fund Closes Largest Seed Fund Ever in Utah, Adds Two Industry Veterans to Management Team

SALT LAKE CITY, UT--(Marketwired - Jan 30, 2015) - Kickstart Seed Fund, the most active seed investor in Utah, today announced the close of Fund III at $39M at StartSLC Festival, the largest startup and technology festival to ever be held in Utah. Kickstart Seed Fund will continue to invest in seed startups based in Utah and the Mountain West. Kickstart also bolstered its management team, promoting Dalton Wright to Partner and adding Curt Roberts as a Venture Partner.

Kickstart's mission is to support the best entrepreneurs in Utah and the Mountain West with capital, connections, and intelligence to help them create hyper-growth companies. Since 2008, Kickstart Seed Fund has supported more than 60 innovative companies, including Cotopaxi, Creditera, Grosocial/Infusionsoft, Lucid Software, Qzzr, Stance and TaskEasy. Founders in Kickstart's portfolio are building companies that solve complex problems, and as a result are making strong moves in rapidly growing global markets.

"We placed a big bet on Utah's ecosystem and it's paying off," said Gavin Christensen, Managing Partner at Kickstart Seed Fund. "Utah is producing quality companies at an unprecedented rate, and we're working to unite and develop this talented community as it grows, providing companies with the support they need to excel."

According to the Associated Press, Provo-Orem and Salt Lake City-Ogden ranked as two of the top 20 US cities for tech startup funding in 2014. Provo-Orem, number eight, received $462 million, and Salt Lake City-Ogden, number 12, received $275 million. If combined, the Wasatch Front would rank number six in the nation. 

"It's an honor to be in this position and I'm excited to build the next wave of Utah startups at Kickstart," said Dalton Wright, Partner at Kickstart Seed Fund. "We'll continue to promote Utah's tech ecosystem and increase the probability and magnitude of successful outcomes for our portfolio companies."

Dalton Wright initially joined Kickstart in 2008 as its first Associate and has since returned as a Partner. Prior to joining Kickstart, Wright was a founding team member at Alta Ventures Mexico, where he helped to raise $70M for Mexico's first early-stage venture fund.

Curt Roberts is a seasoned operating executive with experience at startups and Fortune 100 companies alike. Roberts joins the Kickstart Seed Fund team as a Venture Partner after serving more than 5 years on the investment committee. Prior to Kickstart, Roberts was VP of Global Strategy at Nike Inc. and later transitioned into the position of VP and General Manager, Vision, Timing and Techlab where he and his group worked with the iPod team at Apple to develop and launch Nike Plus. Before Nike Inc., Robert's was Chairman and CEO of the Oregon Region of PeaceHealth, a major integrated healthcare delivery system in the Pacific Northwest.

Managing Partner Gavin Christensen will also be a featured speaker at the StartSLC Festival, held January 29-31, 2015 at the Gateway in Salt Lake City, UT. The three-day event will bring together leaders within Utah's startup community, featuring speakers, panels, and interviews with high-profile entrepreneurs and innovators. Christensen will deliver a keynote on Friday, January 30 at 11am to discuss the fund, and updates to Kickstart Seed Fund.

For more information, please visit www.kickstartfund.com.

About Kickstart Seed Fund
Kickstart Seed Fund is a seed stage venture capital firm based in Salt Lake City, UT. Kickstart Seed Fund's mission is to kickstart the best companies in Utah and the Mountain West by providing smart capital, a connected community and expert guidance. Since raising its first fund in 2008, Kickstart has invested in more than 60 companies. For more information, visit www.kickstartfund.com.