Refinery Ventures
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersCincinnati, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
Refinery Ventures firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Refinery Ventures
- Legal name
- Refinery Ventures
- Website
- https://refinery.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Refinery Ventures industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated) (FSANAAAM)
Keywords
Where Refinery Ventures is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Cincinnati
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Refinery Ventures business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Venture Capital Returns / Carried Interest: Refinery Ventures generates returns through equity ownership in portfolio companies. As a VC firm, it earns carried interest (a share of portfolio profits) when companies achieve liquidity events such as IPOs or acquisitions. The firm invests capital from its Limited Partners (LPs) into early-scale companies and provides hands-on operational support to drive growth toward Series A and hypergrowth stages.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels7 records
Refinery Ventures product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Refinery Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests equity capital in early-scale tech companies on a trajectory toward Series A, paired with hands-on operational mentorship in market positioning, go-to-market strategy, forecasting/budgeting, and culture building. The firm also operates the X15 Leadership Expedition and X15 Network programs supporting founder development in the Midwest and Mid-South regions.
Product overview
Refinery Ventures is a midwestern venture capital firm that offers a unified investment and mentorship platform for early-scale tech companies. The core offering combines venture capital investment services with value-added programs including the X15 Leadership Expedition for founder development, complemented by content initiatives like the Fast Frontiers Podcast and Talent Roadmap Newsletter. The firm focuses on healthcare, human capital, media, and marketing sectors, providing portfolio companies with guidance through critical growth stages from seed to hypergrowth.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- X15 Leadership Expedition: A three-month leadership development experience with 4-6 peers preparing to embark on their next journey, designed for experienced leaders seriously exploring a founder role.
- X15 Network
- Fast Frontiers Podcast
Products and services
- Venture Capital Investment Services Seed-to-Series A venture capital investment combined with operational mentorship covering market positioning, GTM strategy, forecasting, budgeting, and culture development for early-scale tech founders.
- X15 Leadership Expedition A three-month leadership development cohort for experienced leaders exploring a founder role, including idea validation, business building, and funding preparation with 4-6 peers.
- X15 Network A curated talent network of hypergrowth-experienced leaders in the Great Lakes and Mid-South regions, offering peer circles, tactical working sessions, tech reverse pitches, deal flow reviews, and the X15 Summit.
- Fast Frontiers Podcast A podcast featuring interviews with founders and business leaders exploring innovation frontiers, startup growth, and venture capital topics.
- Talent Roadmap Newsletter A Substack newsletter covering talent, leadership, and startup growth topics for founders and operators.
Quantifiable outcome
- Portfolio companies have attracted top-tier co-investors such as Bain Capital partners
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Refinery Ventures
Customer profileNamed customers17 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Refinery Ventures technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Refinery Ventures partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Tim KightcoreTim Kight leads hypergrowth company training sessions for Refinery portfolio founders. His work has become foundational to portfolio companies, including Folio Photonics. He provides leadership development and culture-building guidance.
- Tim SchigelcoreTim Schigel is the Managing Partner of Refinery Ventures and a serial entrepreneur who created ShareThis and managed Cintrifuse. He is Refinery's primary network connector, actively introducing portfolio founders to investors (e.g., Bain Capital partners) and customers.
- Andy Winans (Venture Partner)coreRefinery Venture Partner Andy Winans joined StoryTap's advisory board, bringing hypergrowth scaling experience and deep understanding of the CPG data and analytics space.
- Joan Lewis (Investor)coreRefinery investor Joan Lewis joined StoryTap's advisory board given her extensive experience in the CPG industry and Consumer & Market knowledge.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Refinery Ventures competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Drive Capital: Columbus, Ohio-based venture capital firm investing across the Midwest in early-to-growth stage tech companies. Directly comparable as a geographically-focused Midwest VC serving similar founder segments and verticals.
- M25: Chicago-based seed-stage VC firm focused exclusively on Midwest-founded startups. Direct comparable given overlapping geographic thesis, seed-stage focus, and similar check sizes for early-scale companies.
- gener8tor: Milwaukee-based accelerator and venture fund operating investment programs across U.S. cities. Comparable as a Midwest-rooted investor-operating program with accelerator-style founder support, mirroring Refinery's X15 leadership development approach.
- JobsOhio Ventures Fund: Ohio's state-backed growth-stage investment fund. Already a co-investor with Refinery in Folio Photonics; directly comparable as a regional Ohio-focused investor serving the same geographic founder pool.
- EPIC Ventures: Salt Lake City-based venture capital firm investing across stages. Co-led RedCircle's Series A with Refinery in 2021, demonstrating overlapping deal sourcing and syndication patterns at the seed-to-Series A stage.
- Cintrifuse: Cincinnati-based startup catalyst and fund-of-funds previously managed by Tim Schigel himself. Highly comparable given shared geography, Midwest focus, and historical relationship — Refinery effectively is an outgrowth of the Cintrifuse ecosystem.
- Hyde Park Venture Partners: Chicago-based early-stage VC firm investing in Midwest B2B software startups. Comparable as a geographically-focused seed/Series A investor in one of Refinery's target metros.
Broad incumbents
- Techstars: Global accelerator operator running programs in multiple U.S. cities including the Midwest. Comparable as an investor-operated accelerator providing mentorship-driven programs; broader scope but overlapping founder-development thesis with Refinery's X15 expedition.
- Sequoia Capital: Premier global VC firm across stages and geographies. Comparable only as an investor archetype; Refinery's narrative positions itself as the alternative for Midwest founders unable to attract firms like Sequoia at Series A.
Emerging players
- Revolution Ventures: Washington D.C.-based seed and early-stage VC firm. Comparable as a focused early-stage investor with operational support model, though operating in a different region than Refinery's Midwest focus.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks2 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Refinery Ventures social profiles
Digital presenceRefinery Ventures financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Refinery Ventures leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Refinery Ventures funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Refinery Ventures M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments25 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Refinery Ventures
What does Refinery Ventures do?
Refinery Ventures is a venture capital firm that invests equity capital in early-scale tech companies on a trajectory toward Series A, paired with hands-on operational mentorship in market positioning, go-to-market strategy, forecasting/budgeting, and culture building. The firm also operates the X15 Leadership Expedition and X15 Network programs supporting founder development in the Midwest and Mid-South regions.
Is Refinery Ventures a public or private company?
Refinery Ventures is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Refinery Ventures founded?
Refinery Ventures was founded in 2017. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Refinery Ventures based?
Refinery Ventures is headquartered in Cincinnati, United States, in the North America region.
How does Refinery Ventures make money?
One revenue line is on record: venture Capital Returns / Carried Interest.
Who are Refinery Ventures's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Drive Capital, M25, gener8tor, JobsOhio Ventures Fund, EPIC Ventures, Cintrifuse and Hyde Park Venture Partners. Broad incumbents are Techstars and Sequoia Capital. Revolution Ventures is listed as an emerging player.
Does Refinery Ventures have an API?
No public API is recorded for Refinery Ventures.
What industry is Refinery Ventures in?
Refinery Ventures's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAD, Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists), with a secondary code of FSANAAAM, Accelerators & Incubators (Investor-Operated). Its NAICS code is 5259 and its SIC code is 6282.