Managing Partner

Niccolò is one of two Co-Founding Partners at Five Seasons Ventures.

Over the past 10+ years, Niccolò has invested in and worked with consumer and technology companies, in their journeys to grow and scale.

His passion for the future of food began in 2014 while investing in some of the pioneering food-tech companies, including Impossible Foods, Every, Beyond Meat, Just and Perfect Day, as part of a leading European family office.

Niccolò started his career as strategy consultant at Monitor Group (now Monitor Deloitte), and at McKinsey & Co. Management Matters initiative on management best practices and their impact on productivity.

Niccolò holds a BSc in Management from Bocconi University, an MSc in International Affairs from the London School of Economics and Peking University and completed the Masterclass in Private Equity at London Business School.

Managing Partner

Ivan is one of two Co-Founding Partners at Five Seasons Ventures and has been an active venture investor for the last 25 years.

He made his first VC investment in ’97 as part of the first venture fund at Deutsche Bank in London before co-founding Doughty Hanson Technology Ventures in 2000.

His experience includes structuring venture investments, organizational development, setting up governance for growth and planning for successful refinancing rounds and for eventual exits. He has been involved in numerous exits to strategic acquirers and a Nasdaq IPO.
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At Five Seasons, Ivan sits on the Board of various portfolio companies spanning alternative proteins, pet food, e-grocery, and healthy snacking products.

Ivan started his career at Bain & Co, is a former Board Member and EIR at Seedcamp, and holds an MBA from INSEAD. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his family, fly fishing and practicing Brazilian jiu jitsu with his son Adam.

Partner

Sam is a Partner at Five Seasons Ventures based between London and Paris.

Sam has spent his entire career as an investor, advisor, and entrepreneur in the consumer and consumer technology space.

Prior to Five Seasons, Sam co-founded and exited a sport technology business while serving as a venture partner and advisor to various leading consumer funds globally. Earlier, Sam spent 6+ years leading the venture and growth-stage investment arm of Burch Creative Capital, the consumer-focused family office of Tory Burch co-founder J. Christopher Burch in New York.

Sam began his career as investment banker covering financial sponsors at Citigroup, advising and diligencing consumer and luxury opportunities on behalf of private equity, hedge fund, and venture capital clients.

Sam is art and design-obsessed and spends his free time seeking out the next generation of beautiful brands and watching football. He holds a BA from Amherst College.

Strategic Advisor

Giancarlo is a Principal at Five Seasons Ventures, with the fund since February 2018. Prior to that, he spent 20+ years at leading pasta and bakery goods Barilla, covering various roles from Quality Assurance/Food Safety to Research & Development across several product categories in Italy and internationally.

In the area of Open Innovation, he led various collaborative projects with research institutes, enterprises and startups worldwide, also providing valuable mentorship to food accelerators and incubation programmes to the likes of StartupbootcampFoodTech, MassChallenge, H-Farm, Future Food Accelerator.

Giancarlo holds a BSc in Food Science and Technology and Masters in Total Quality Management. In his spare time, he enjoys sea kayaking, swimming, hiking and cooking.

Principal

Saskia is a Senior Associate at Five Seasons Ventures, with the fund since March 2020.

Prior to joining FSV, Saskia worked for 4 years at Rabobank International where she started as a management trainee before working on various projects related to food and ag innovation, and startup financing.

At FSV, Saskia is involved in the boards of Air Up, Just Legends, Her1, the Nu Company, KoRo, and Mammaly. Besides her passion for hunting for the best deals and portfolio management, she has made it her personal mission to invest in more diverse (and female-led) management teams.

Saskia holds a Master in International Political Economy from the University of Groningen. In her free time, she enjoys travelling, salsa dancing, festivals, sports, cooking & eating, and spending time on the beach.

Senior Associate

Valerie joined Five Seasons in April 2024 as a Senior Associate. While American by nature, she has spent time in France previously when attending INSEAD for her MBA and London as she previously worked in consumer growth investing at The Craftory, spearheading their women’s health vertical.

She began her career advising Fortune 500 retail and consumer companies through M&A transactions in New York and after spending two years at TPG, she pursued her MBA at INSEAD. There, she championed finance as a tool for positive change, heading the diligence team for the INSEAD Student Impact Fund.

Valerie’s journey to FSV is driven by her passion for consumer investing with a conscience. While she is enthusiastic about all things food, beverage, and nutrition, she is particularly interested in ensuring equal access in the entrepreneurial ecosystem and women’s health.

In her spare time, Valerie enjoys scuba diving around the world, finding new restaurants to add to her ever expanding Google Maps list, trying new fitness challenges with friends, and attempting to improve her French.

Associate

Andre joined Five Seasons Ventures full-time in 2023, after having completed an internship with the investment team during his MBA.

His childhood in London’s metropolis was balanced with summers in Stockholm’s archipelago, instilling in him a love of nature and inspiring him to contribute to the environmental cause through his work. Prior to Five Seasons, he worked at start-up Align17, a private investment platform sourcing and structuring climate-tech deals, in New York.

In his spare time, he enjoys walking, playing football and keeping up with his lifelong passion for cars.

Andre holds an MBA with a concentration in Finance and Private Equity from London Business School, and a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from New York University.

Associate

Lucie joined Five Seasons Ventures as an Analyst on a permanent basis after completing an internship with the investment team.

She graduated from ESSEC Business School and is passionate about the fast moving consumer goods space. Prior to Five Seasons, Lucie completed internships with fashion brand Jonak, as a business analyst, and also at Carrefour, where she worked on strategic initiatives focused on circular economy projects.

In her spare time Lucie loves travelling and recently spent time in South America and South East Asia. She also enjoys running, skiing, discovering new Parisian restaurants and spending quality time with her friends and family.

Chief Financial Officer

He has over 8 years of experience in the Venture Capital industry. Mehdi has participated in the structuring and execution of several equity transactions in France, both on the investment and divestment sides.
Prior to joining Five Seasons Ventures, Mehdi worked for Partech in Paris, a global venture capital firm where he held the position of Finance Manager and helped structure the finance and operations of the firm.
Mehdi has worked as well for Deloitte where he headed several audit, consulting and corporate valuation missions for over 3 years. He started his career working with the Boston Consulting Group as visiting associate.
Mehdi is a graduate of the ESCP Business School, Paris, France and hold several finance certifications.

Head of Sustainability

Prior to joining Five Seasons Ventures, Gaetan Kerloc’h spent five years in consulting, first at Kea & Partners as strategy consultant and then at INDEFI as a sustainability senior consultant. At INDEFI, Gaëtan helped asset managers define their sustainability strategy and worked with food companies on their ESG roadmap. Gaëtan graduated from Sciences Po Paris and the FGV of Sao Paulo. In his free time, Gaëtan loves cooking vegan food, hiking and climbing

Office Manager and PA

Justine is an Office Manager and Personal Assistant at Five Seasons Ventures. Prior to joining FSV, Justine worked as a PA in multiple companies in sectors such as transport, and energy. She has also held roles in the hospitality and travel industry as an event coordinator.

In her free time, Justine enjoys spending time with her two daughters, reading about psychology, and working on personal development.