Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners Research Investment Thesis Closed Loop Partners is at the forefront of building the circular economy, combining venture capital, private equity, and catalytic capital strategies with an in-house innovation center and operating group. The firm invests across R&D through commercial scale, uniquely combining VC, private equity, and project finance with a collaboration lab and corporate demand partners while building North American recycling infrastructure. The firm's core belief is that the circular economy—where products are designed, manufactured, sold, refurbished, and recycled in closed loops—represents both a resilient economic system and significant investment opportunity. They prioritize natural resource efficiency, optimize supply chains, and drive measurable environmental and economic value. Sector Focus Closed Loop Partners advances circular solutions for foundational materials that significantly influence vital economic sectors: Primary Investment Areas (Ventures): Plastics & Packaging : Circular solutions for plastic recovery, recycling, and alternative materials Textiles & Apparel : Circular fashion solutions, textile recycling, and sustainable apparel Food & Organics : Composting solutions, food waste reduction, agricultural circularity Circular Technology : Data systems, sensors, tracking, and technology-enabled circular solutions Materials Recovery & Recycling : Advanced recycling technologies, material recovery systems Design & Materials Innovation : New material design, bio-based alternatives Reuse Infrastructure : Reusable packaging and product systems Portfolio Examples: Closed Loop Ventures portfolio companies include innovators in waste management, circular materials, and sustainability-focused solutions such as Molg (electronics recycling), LAIIER (water reuse sensors), Earthodic (coating alternatives), Mycocycle (circular building materials), Capra Biosciences (biotech manufacturing), Neutreeno (circular supply chain data), and Aerflo (reuse systems). Stage Focus Closed Loop Partners invests across multiple stages through different strategies: Closed Loop Ventures (VC): Primary focus on early-stage capital (seed and pre-seed) Investing since 2016 in breakthrough circular economy solutions Supporting companies from concept through Series A and beyond Closed Loop Catalytic Capital & Private Credit: Infrastructure financing (recycling facilities, materials recovery infrastructure) Beverage industry supply chain finance Circular plastics manufacturing and recovery Local recycling operations financing Typical loan sizes: $5M-$20M for infrastructure and scaling Closed Loop Private Equity: Lower mid-market buyouts and acquisition strategies Scaling existing circular economy platform companies Vertical integrations in recycling and materials recovery Check Size & Investment Range Ventures: $1M-$10M+ (seed through Series A, with follow-on reserves) Seed investments: $2M-$5M typical range Recent notable investments: $4M-$5.5M seed rounds Catalytic Capital & Private Credit: $5M-$20M+ in infrastructure financing Multi-million dollar loans to scale recycling operations Project finance for circular economy infrastructure Private Equity: Lower mid-market platform acquisitions and builds Recent Activity & Fund Status Closed Loop Partners is actively deploying capital: 2025 Investments & Deployments: September 2025: $10M loan to TemperPack (temperature-controlled shipping solutions) September 2025: $5.5M seed in Molg (electronics waste circular manufacturing) October 2025: Multi-million dollar loan to Superior Fine Grind (rural recycling infrastructure) September 2025: $10M+ loan to GreenMantra Technologies (plastic recycling innovation) Multiple seed investments led by Closed Loop Ventures in LAIIER, Earthodic, Mycocycle, Neutreeno, Aerflo, and Capra Biosciences Impact & Fund Status: Portfolio companies have kept 15.9B pounds of materials in circulation Avoided 25.2M metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions to date (as of 2024) 90+ investments across 10 countries with 50+ corporations engaged Actively deploying across all three capital strategies Announced major fund progress in August 2025 with portfolio scale operations Portfolio Highlights Notable Exits: PureCycle (IPO) Lakeshore Recycling (acquisition) Several other acquisitions and successful exits Active High-Growth Companies: Molg - Electronics waste circular manufacturing ($5.5M seed) LAIIER - Water reuse detection systems ($4M seed) Earthodic - Sustainable coating alternatives ($4M Series A co-investment) Mycocycle - Mycelium-based circular building materials Capra Biosciences - Bio-manufacturing solutions Neutreeno - Circular supply chain data platforms SOLARCYCLE - Solar panel recycling Browzwear - Digital design solutions And 30+ other active portfolio companies Team Closed Loop Partners is comprised of seasoned operational and investment executives with an average of 20+ years of experience: Leadership: Ron Gonen - Founder & CEO: Industry veteran with deep circular economy expertise Tazia Smith - Managing Partner & Capital Management CEO: Investment leadership Jessica Long - Managing Partner & Chief Strategy Officer: Strategic direction and Builders CEO Kate Daly - Managing Partner & Center for the Circular Economy CEO: Research and collaboration Talia Jarvis - Chief Legal, Compliance & Administrative Officer Investment Teams: Danielle Joseph - Managing Director, Ventures: Leads venture investment strategy Jackson Pei & Daniel Phan - Co-Heads, Private Equity: Lower mid-market acquisition and scaling Bridget Croke & Ray Hugel - Co-Heads, Catalytic Capital & Private Credit: Infrastructure financing Supporting Team: Full team of 50+ professionals including investor relations, fund accounting, legal, operations, and specialized circular economy experts. Geographic Focus Primarily focused on North America with expanding international reach: United States : Primary focus including all regions Canada : Active investments (e.g., GreenMantra Technologies loan) Global : Investments across 10+ countries Regional partnerships : 50+ corporations engaged globally Decision Process For Ventures: Managed by Danielle Joseph (Managing Director) and investment team Partnership-based decision making with input from operating team Board level involvement with operating partners (Builders, Center teams) For Catalytic Capital & Private Credit: Structured decision process with Bridget Croke and Ray Hugel leading Infrastructure-focused underwriting Credit and impact analysis For Private Equity: Partnership approach with Jackson Pei and Daniel Phan Integration with operating group (Closed Loop Builders/Circular Services) Decision Timeline Not explicitly stated, but based on fund deployment patterns: Active sourcing and rapid deployment of capital Regular announcements of new investments (monthly to quarterly) Multi-stage involvement suggests 2-3 month typical decision windows Warm Intro Requirement Not explicitly mandated, but strong network advantage given: Deep relationships with 50+ corporations Industry consortium memberships (NextGen Consortium, Beyond the Bag, Composting Consortium) Board-level connections through portfolio and advisory positions Typical Involvement Ventures: Board seat or observer rights common Active mentoring and operational support through Builders operating group Network access to corporate partners and potential exit opportunities Catalytic Capital & Private Credit: Structured debt with operational oversight Project monitoring and impact measurement Private Equity: Board control and active management participation Integration into Closed Loop platform companies Notable Characteristics Vertically Integrated Model: Unique among VCs - combine capital with innovation center research and operating group execution. This creates competitive advantage: Research insights inform investment decisions Operating group provides operational support and technical expertise Portfolio benefits from shared infrastructure and exit opportunities Impact-Driven: Heavy emphasis on environmental and social metrics alongside financial returns. Portfolio tracked impact: Materials kept in circulation (15.9B pounds to date) Greenhouse gas emissions avoided (25.2M metric tons to date) Collaboration with municipalities and corporations for systemic impact Multi-Stage Capital Availability: Founders can access VC, debt, and PE capital from single source, enabling longer relationship and platform building Anti-Thesis Based on sector focus and thesis: No support for linear economy business models Likely to avoid pure-play waste disposal without circularity component Less interest in consumer-facing applications without material reuse/recovery focus Founder Preferences Based on portfolio and investments: Mission-aligned founders passionate about circular economy Technical founders with materials science, engineering, or supply chain expertise Experienced operators who can scale from pilot to commercial Founders with relationships into corporate or government procurement Co-Investment Partners Based on recent announcements: Corporate venture arms (Target, CVS Health, major beverage companies) Government and municipal partners Impact-focused institutional investors Industry-specific PE firms Fund Details Closed Loop Partners manages multiple funds: Closed Loop Ventures : Early-stage circular economy fund (deploying since 2016) Closed Loop Catalytic Capital & Private Credit : Infrastructure and project finance strategies Closed Loop Private Equity : Lower mid-market buyout and platform strategies Closed Loop Builders/Circular Services : Operating company platform