Richmond football and construction helmet innovator Tigeraire is seeking to raise $20 million in equity and debt, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
The company has raised $825,000 toward that goal, according to the Feb. 29 filing. So far, two investors have participated in the investment round. The company landed its first commitment on Oct. 30, according to the filing.
Tigeraire did not return multiple requests for comment. Sometimes companies decline to discuss active funding rounds for fear of running afoul of SEC rules.
According to a Feb. 28 entry on venture capital data site PitchBook, Tigeraire raised $3.83 million in the form of convertible debt from undisclosed investors. Of the total amount, $3 million was originally raised in the form of convertible debt and converted to equity, according to PitchBook.
Tigeraire was formed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in the summer of 2020 by Jack Karavich, an engineer and Louisiana State University football fan. LSU’s mascot is the Tigers; the football team used the helmets in 2023. The first Tigeraire product clipped into football helmets to increase airflow and help players feel safer during Covid-19. It kept players cool during long practices and hot games and became known as helmet air conditioning. College and professional athletes playing in Riddell Speedflex II and Schutt F7 helmets can use it. The product can be bought individually or for the whole team.
When the company discovered the product improved overall focus and performance of players in extreme heat, Tigeraire expanded with a second category for industrial workers to use in hard hats. The Tornado was designed to help reduce brain fog and improve efficiency on job sites, giving workers an air-conditioned experience. A third product, the Zephyr, clips onto a baseball hat and has a pro model with a light to expand performance on hot summer nights.
Jack Karavich, Tigeraire’s founder and CEO, was chief digital architect at Honeywell, and has engineering and design experience at GSK, Walmart Labs and Capital One Financial Corp, according to an online bio. He went to high school in Northern Virginia.
Last June, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported Tigeraire leased 2,675 square feet for a new office at 11551 Nuckols Road in Henrico.