A Northern Kentucky-based venture capital firm known for its AI-driven investments has tapped a former Fortune 20 executive to its recently expanded chairman role.
Connetic Ventures, based in Covington, elected J. Michael Schlotman, former CFO and executive vice president at the Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), to serve as chairman of the board, effective immediately.
Schlotman succeeds Brad Zapp, Connectic’s co-founder, in the role. Zapp, the firm’s CEO and head of fundraising and strategic partnerships, was serving as chairman on an interim basis, but Connetic said growth has necessitated the addition of a more formal paid position.
Schlotman will serve as an active member of the executive team along with Zapp and Kyle Schlotman, president and head of investments.
Mike Schlotman will also be active in nationwide fundraising and serve as a liaison between the board and Connectic’s leadership team.
“Mike brings extensive operational, financial and CPG (consumer packaged goods) experience to our team,” Zapp said in a release. “Hiring a former Fortune 20 executive as our chairman continues our commitment to being top-of-class in early-stage CPG investing.”
Schlotman spent the bulk of his career at Kroger, joining the supermarket giant from accounting firm Coopers & Lybrand in 1985. He held a variety of leadership positions before being named executive vice president and CFO in 2015; Schlotman retired from Kroger at the end of 2019.
He currently serves as a member of the board of directors of the Kellogg Co. (NYSE: K) and Ohio National Financial Services. Schlotman is also a member of the Gatton College accounting advisory board and is a member of the Kenton County Airport board.
Connectic partner Chris Hjelm told me Schlotman brings a natural synergy. Schlotman is an investor and shareholder in Connectic’s holding company, Connetic Ventures Inc., and an investor in its institutional venture fund.
About 20% of Connectic’s portfolio includes consumer goods companies, a majority in the food space, selling both online and through traditional retailers like Kroger. Another 20% of the portfolio includes financial technology companies.
“Mike was a liaison to Wall Street,” Hjelm said. “He has tremendous experience with innovation and the process of raising money and exiting a company. This will be very valuable to portfolio companies as they mature and exit or IPO (go public).”
Connetic Ventures, founded in 2014, is considered a pioneer in data-driven investing. The firm leverages AI to remove bias in how startups are evaluated and funded.
To date, the firm has invested in more than 90 early-stage companies in software, consumer, data and fintech industries.
Its portfolio locally includes Cloverleaf, IncludeHealth, ReadySet Surgical and Astronomer. Connetic celebrated two exits in 2021: Cuddle Clones and SuperFan, both Louisville-based startups, which were acquired by Boston-based Dianthus and Arizona-based PrestoSports, respectively.
Connetic last raised a $25 million fund in 2019 and plans to write a total of 20 initial checks with six follow-on investments, Hjelm said.
