Vanterra Capital’s Steven Himmel on growth vs. profitability: ‘At the end of the day, cash is king’

Vanterra Capital was better positioned than many businesses going into 2020.

“The pandemic just pushed us to double down on our thesis,” said Steven Himmel, partner at Vanterra Capital, on the latest Glossy Podcast. “Everything that we were focused on before is even more relevant today.”

With its venture-specific fund, launched about two-and-a-half years ago, Vanterra invests in mission-driven consumer companies, which on the fashion side include Naadam. 

“A big focus for us is what we call the ESY [Investing]: [companies that are] better for the environment, better for society and better for you,” he said.

And those businesses are set to especially resonate in the post-pandemic world: “As the media cycle scales down the Covid conversation, we believe it's going to scale up the conversations around better-for-the-environment initiatives... It will [create] more of a 360[-degree] awareness around: How are you living? That’s in terms of: What are you eating? How are you treating your body? How are you treating your mind?”

Himmel broke down how that shift will impact Vanterra's future investments in fashion and beauty brands.