New Fund, New Brand: Introducing Flybridge Capital Partners

 

As my blog readers note (and appreciate), I typically don't write about my portfolio companies or fund.  But it's hard to resist on this one occasion.  Today we announced the closing of our 3rd fund at $280 million and a new brand:  Flybridge Capital Partners.

Our strategy and team remains the same:  5 general partners pursuing consumer, medical and information technology early-stage investment opportunities across the US.  But we wanted to eliminate any confusion that existed regarding our market position as a firm with a broad sector focus and a diverse, blue-chip Limited Partner base.  When some folks heard the "IDG" name, they thought corporate VC and media-only (for example, while we were flattered when AlwaysOn named us one of the top VCs in 2007, we were chagrined when they listed us in the corporate VC category!).

The word "flybridge" appealed to us because (in addition to being available, two syllables and easy to pronounce/spell) it represents a nice metaphor to what we do every day - give entrepreneurs (who are steering the ship on the main bridge!) a different perspective on the landscape and waters ahead.

Closing the fund in the context of the current malaise in the general economy is also a nice endorsement for the early-stage venture capital market - something that should give all of us some hope.

Comments

[Adam Rubenstein]

Congratulations Jeff! And the entire team at Flybridge! Let’s see if some Colorado-based teams and technologies tickle your new funds' fancy…

[Jason Vu]

Nice to hear the good news Jeff. Would love to see the new partnership flying higher ...

[Desmond Pieri]

Congrats on the great new name; it’s tough to find an available name that’s a real word vs. a made up word requiring millions to brand, like ‘Verizon.’ The change from IDG makes sense to me for three reasons: 1. Mentally I never could get past the ‘corporate / media’ focus of the IDG brand. 2. Acronyms work for many large organizations (IBM, FBI, NBC) but real words are usually clearer (Dell, Apple, Red Sox). (I often had to ask, “Is it IDC or IDG Ventures where Jeff works?”) 3. A new name means a new web site, which means your Webmaster had to replace your picture that looked like it came straight out of your Lexington High School yearbook. That picture made me wonder if the Webmaster thought the list BBJ named you to in 2006 was called ‘40 under 14’ not ’40 under 40’