Roman Kirsch
German serial entrepreneur and investor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Roman Kirsch is a German serial entrepreneur and investor in the tech- and consumer-internet-space.[1][2][3]
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Roman Kirsch | |
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| Born | Roman Kirsch July 3, 1988 Almaty, Kazakhstan |
| Alma mater | WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management London School of Economics |
| Occupation | Tech entrepreneur |
| Years active | 2003–present |
| Parent(s) | Waldemar Kirsch and Helene Kirsch |
| Website | romankirsch |
Early life and education
Kirsch holds a business degree from the German business school WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management.[4] He also has a Master of Science degree from the London School of Economics in Finance, Accounting and Management.[5] He also spent time at the University of Southern California[5] as well as the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore.
Career
At the age of 13, Roman set up a business of importing watches from China.[6] Later in 2003, at the age of 15, Kirsch founded his first company (a souvenir shop in Hamburg).[7]
In 2011, Kirsch founded Casacanda, a furniture company that was acquired by Fab.com in February 2012, marking one of the quickest exits in tech history for an e-commerce startup and making Kirsch one of the youngest founders to achieve this milestone.[5][7][8] He subsequently served as CEO of Fab Europe until the end of 2012, during which he oversaw the company’s expansion and its rise to unicorn status with a valuation of USD 1 billion.[5][9] Fab ultimately failed to sustain its growth and sold its remaining assets in a fire sale reportedly valued at just $15 million by 2015.[10]
In 2013 Kirsch, alongside Matthias Wilrich and Robin Müller, founded the Berlin fashion startup Lesara with Kirsch as the CEO of the company.[7][11][12][13] Despite rapid growth and recognition, such as being named Europe's fastest-growing tech company by The Next Web in 2016 and Germany's fastest-growing tech company by Deloitte in 2017, Lesara faced significant challenges. In November 2018, the company filed for insolvency after failing to secure a crucial €10 million bridge financing round.
Through his venture studio Rapid Pioneers Group, Kirsch has co-founded and invested in over 30 consumer tech and brand ventures across Europe.[14] In 2012 Roman became the co-founder and investor of Amorelie, which grew into a leading female lingerie brand in Europe. In 2015 media company Pro7Sat1 acquired Amorelie, which is now valued at €100 million.[15] He was the first investor and advisor in Instagram-native wellness brand Fitvia in 2015,[16] which was 70% acquired by Dermapharm in 2019.[17] Other founding investments include K-Beauty brand Yepoda, HR-tech firm Global Talent Co., and coupon platform Lumaly.[18] The portfolio also includes green tech unicorn Enpal GmbH,[19][20] as well as Bending Spoons, LAP Coffee, everdrop, and Wild Cosmetics.[21][22]
In April 2021, Kirsch has raised $345m in an IPO on the NASDAQ stock exchange for the investment vehicle Tio Tech. Kirsch serves as CEO of Tio Tech.[23] In April 2023, Tio Tech announced its shutdown after failing to complete a transaction within an agreed two-year deadline.[24]
Awards and recognition
- In January 2016, Forbes Magazine US listed Kirsch in its 30 under 30 Europe list for retail and e-commerce[25]
- In 2017, the business magazine Capital listed Kirsch in its 40 under 40 list for young elites[26]
- He is also a "Global Shaper" of the World Economic Forum Davos and a member of YPO[27]
- In 2022, he as listed amongst the Top 50 Seed Investors in Europe by Business Insider.[28]