Mark Suster | |
---|---|
Born | April 30, 1968 |
Education | University of Chicago (M.B.A.) University of California at San Diego (B.A.) |
Occupation(s) | Businessman, investor |
Spouse | Tania Suster |
Children | 2 |
Mark Suster is an American businessman and investor. He is a managing partner at Upfront Ventures,[1] the largest venture capital firm in Los Angeles.[2] Aside from his business career, Suster is also a prominent blogger in the American high-technology startup scene and venture capital world.[3]
Business career
In 1999, with Ireland-based real estate entrepreneur Brian Moran, he created his first company, a construction collaboration technology business called BuildOnline, where he also served as chief executive officer.[4] BuildOnline merged with US-based rival Citadon in December 2006.[5]
By September 2006, Suster had already left Citadon, having established a second company called Koral, a content collaboration software business.[6] In April 2007, Koral was acquired by Salesforce.com where Suster then assumed the role of Vice President of Product Management upon the completion of the acquisition.[7]
Suster later joined Upfront Ventures (previously known as GRP Partners), a venture capital and investment firm, in 2007.[8] In 2009, Suster started the Launchpad LA accelerator while continuing his employment at Upfront. At Upfront, Suster led investments in companies including Bird, Invoca, MakeSpace, mitu, Nanit,[9] Osmo, Tact, and uBeam.[10]
Suster also led the initial funding round for, and was on the board of, Maker Studios, an online video talent agency (acquired by Disney in 2014).[11] He was also an early investor in online car-shopping system TrueCar, which went public that same year.[12] Unlike other Silicon Valley technology entrepreneurs, Suster has been open about turning down investments in potential start-up businesses that later became successful, including Uber.[13]
In February 2023, Suster said an excess of capital in the startup market was keeping many startups afloat. Of 5,000 early-stage companies Upfront Ventures had funded since 2019, half were at risk of going out of business, he said.[14] Less than a month later (11 March 2023), Suster called for calm as investors became concerned about the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, suggesting a "handful" of VCs were creating panic.[15]
An April 2023 article in Business Insider revealed that of the 19 boards Suster has sat on, nine of the original founder-CEOs had stepped down early, left the company entirely, or had been removed.[16]
Investors including Upfront Ventures/Suster have been in lawsuits brought by Loot Crate[17] and Maker Studios.[18]
Personal life
Suster grew up in Northern California and is a dual citizen of both the United Kingdom and the United States. He is of Romanian Jewish ancestry.[19] Suster graduated from the University of California, San Diego with a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. He later received his MBA from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business.[20]
Since he was diagnosed with ADHD in 2014, Suster has openly talked and written often about how he's learned to integrate his business skills with his coping strategies for ADHD.[21]
Suster is married with two children.[22]
References
- ↑ "The Money Book: Mark Suster | Los Angeles Business Journal". labusinessjournal.com. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
- ↑ Dave, Paresh (4 July 2017). "Upfront Ventures, L.A. County's biggest venture capital firm, just got bigger". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
- ↑ "The Founder Showcase: Launching startups with a community". The Next Web. 17 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
- ↑ "The e-biz has landed". Building.co. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ↑ "BuildOnline and Citadon merge". Growth Business. 15 December 2006. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ↑ "Salesforce.com Inc. Acquires Koral Inc. April 10, 2007". Redmond. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ↑ "Salesforce.com Inc. Acquires Koral Inc. April 10, 2007". Redmond. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ↑ Kamelia Angelova (July 28, 2011) Privately, Investors Admit There's Big Bubble In Tech Startups. Business Insider
- ↑ "Nanit knows more about how your baby sleeps than you do – TechCrunch". techcrunch.com. 15 June 2016. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
- ↑ "uBeam's Meredith Perry shows her stealth wireless charging technology really works". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
- ↑ Barnes, Brooks (2014-03-24). "Disney Buys Maker Studios, Video Supplier for YouTube". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-05-01.
- ↑ "Mark Suster". LA Business Journal. 30 July 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ↑ Murphy, Hannah (11 May 2019). "The investor who turned down Uber at a $5m valuation". Financial Times. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
- ↑ Williams, Lara (23 February 2023). "Mass extinction of start-ups on the horizon in 2023". Investment Monitor. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
- ↑ Loizos, Connie (11 March 2023). "Investor Mark Suster says a "handful" of bad actors in VC destroyed Silicon Valley Bank". TechCrunch. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
- ↑ Upfront's Mark Suster became the star of LA's booming startup scene. Some founders and VCs say they will never work with him again Business Insider, April 2023. Retrieved: 20 April 2023.
- ↑ Yerack, Betty (5 October 2022). "Loot Crate's Venture Backers Reach $6.8 Million Chapter 11 Deal With Creditors". WSJ. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
- ↑ "Maker Studios, Co-Founder In Legal Battle". SocialTech. 27 June 2013. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
- ↑ Suster, Mark (13 July 2013). "Startup Grind Turns the Tables on Mark Suster". Both Sides. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
- ↑ Chang, Andrea (12 July 2013). "How Mark Suster became a go-to guy for tech start-ups". Los Angeles Times.
- ↑ "Are Founders With ADHD Built for Entrepreneurship?". Inc. Magazine. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
- ↑ Suster, Mark. "How Twitter Got Me Into The White House And Saved My Son's Birthday". Business Insider. Retrieved 19 June 2011.