Portfolio News

The backstory: Lazy Dog’s founder and CEO Chris Simms started the concept 16 years ago in Huntington Beach, Calif., with the goal of creating the “next generation of casual dining,” focusing on housemade, craveable dishes and a culture of respect. Last October, Lazy Dog started a beer club (similar to the well-known wine club run by…

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Pizza may have originated in Italy, but ever since it entered the U.S. market, Americans can’t get enough. But which fast-food pizza joint is the best, according to Americans? Market Force Information, a customer experience management company, conducted a survey of over 7,600 American adults to find out their favorite fast-food restaurants — and in…

Read More of LeBron James–backed pizza chain is America’s favorite: survey

Frog Street, a provider of early childhood curriculum and subsidiary of Excelligence Learning Corporation, and Beijing Oriental Star Children Technology Company, a provider of academic and social development education, have launched a partnership to provide Frog Street’s comprehensive, research-based curriculum to prepare children for school readiness in China and surrounding territories. Frog Street curricula encompass extensive research and…

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LeBron James, the Boston Red Sox, mall pretzels: These are crucial ingredients in Blaze Pizza’s  ambitious recipe for growth. Serial entrepreneurs and spouses Elise and Rick Wetzel co-founded their Pasadena, California-based company in 2011 with a simple, if hardly unique, idea: Let’s create the Chipotle of pizza. The dough and toppings would be “artisanal” (roasted garlic,…

Read More of These Founders Wanted to Create the ‘Chipotle of Pizza.’ Now, Their LeBron James-Backed Business Is Aiming for an IPO

Here’s a news flash: Guys don’t like shopping for underwear. Luckily, the same retail forces that disrupted razors, eyeglasses, luggage, mattresses and hair-loss treatments, have set their sights on men’s drawers. In the last decade, a handful of upstart labels are trying to dethrone old faithfuls like Hanes and Calvin Klein. Hate going to the store?…

Read More of New Men’s Underwear, Briefly