On the Hybrid VC-Advisory Model & the Art of the Hard Pivot - Jonas Ahm-Lundgren, The Footprint Firm
Investment Climate · Alex Shandrovsky
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Show Notes
Episode 83: The Footprint Firm: Jonas Ahm-Lundgren on the Hybrid VC-Advisory Model and the Art of the Hard Pivot
In this episode, I sit down with Jonas Ahm-Lundgren, Partner at the Footprint Fund, which recently announced the first close of their €76M pre-seed and seed climate tech fund. Jonas breaks down their highly unusual structure—operating a venture fund under the same roof as a major sustainability advisory firm—and how this "army of smart folks" gives them an unfair advantage in corporate networking and due diligence. We dig into their investment in Octarine Bio, detailing how the founders executed a brilliant hard pivot from medical psilocybin to bio-based colorants for textiles and food. Jonas also explains why tackling deeply fragmented, high-pollution markets like textile dyeing requires a 12-year fund structure and an immense amount of founder resilience.
🎧 Listen to the full episode to hear Jonas's "whaling ship" analogy for venture capital and why startups should never ignore unsolicited inbound interest from Fortune 500 companies.
Key Facts The Footprint Fund:
- Goal: To invest €0.5M to €2M checks in early-stage climate tech companies across Northern Europe, prioritizing deep impact aligned with massive financial returns.
- Milestone: Closed a €76M debut fund backed by a highly condensed roster of top-tier Danish LPs, including Novo Holdings, Northeast Family Office, and the Danish government fund EIFO.