Broadway Venture Partners Research
Overview
Broadway Venture Partners is a newly launched early-stage venture capital firm based in San Francisco and New York, founded in 2024 by Jett Fein and Jeff Truong. The firm's stated mission is to partner with "exceptional companies off the beaten path" — signaling an intentional focus on founders and markets that fall outside mainstream VC consensus. The firm operates as a partnership of two general partners and raised Fund I (SEC Form D filed June 2025).
Investment Thesis
Broadway invests in exceptional early-stage technology companies, with a pronounced focus on commerce software, AI-powered tools for consumer and enterprise markets, and marketplace businesses. The partners bring complementary expertise: Jeff Truong's background is rooted in the "future of commerce" from his time building VMG Catalyst's commerce software practice ($650M AUM), while Jett Fein brings broad early-stage technology experience from over a decade at Headline ($4B AUM).
The phrase "off the beaten path" signals that Broadway deliberately seeks companies in non-consensus markets or with unconventional founder profiles — avoiding the most competitive deal flow corridors. Jeff Truong's LinkedIn headline explicitly describes Broadway as "an early-stage, future of commerce venture capital fund."
Sector Focus
Broadway's portfolio reveals a consistent lean toward:
- E-commerce and commerce technology: Tools and platforms that serve merchants, consumers, and the commerce stack
- AI-powered marketing and customer acquisition: Helping brands grow more efficiently through data intelligence
- Marketplace businesses: Consumer-facing platforms in high-velocity categories (sneakers, waste services)
- Vertical SaaS: Software platforms addressing industries underserved by tech (waste management)
Portfolio evidence:
- Proxima AI (Series A, April 2024): AI-powered data intelligence platform for consumer brands to maximize ad performance, customer acquisition, and retention. NYC-based. $12M round led by Mucker Capital.
- WorkMagic (Seed, ~October 2023): Generative AI-driven multi-agent marketing SaaS for e-commerce companies; focused on marketing automation and self-governance. Co-invested with Sinovation Ventures. $2M raise.
- KICKS CREW (~December 2023): World's fastest-growing sneaker community and marketplace. Broadway invested alongside Kyrie Irving (who became Chief Community Officer and equity shareholder).
- Sourgum Waste (Series A, April 2025): AI-powered platform modernizing waste management for multi-location businesses. $12.5M round led by Spark Capital.
Stage Focus
Broadway invests at Seed and Series A. Their earliest portfolio investments (WorkMagic, KICKS CREW) appear to have been at the seed/early stage, while Proxima and Sourgum were both Series A rounds. As a newly launched fund, Broadway's sweet spot is likely pre-product-market-fit and early traction companies.
Check Size
Fund I's exact size is not disclosed in the SEC filing. Given the fund was newly launched in 2024-2025 with two general partners, and their participation in $12M+ Series A rounds alongside lead investors like Spark Capital and Mucker Capital, Broadway is likely writing checks of $500K–$3M as a non-lead or co-investor at Seed and Series A.
Lead Tendency
Based on the available portfolio data, Broadway does not appear to consistently lead rounds. In both the Proxima and Sourgum Series A rounds, other firms (Mucker Capital and Spark Capital, respectively) served as lead investors, with Broadway participating. At Seed stage, Broadway's role (lead vs. follow) is unconfirmed from available data.
Geographic Focus
Broadway maintains offices in both San Francisco and New York City. Their portfolio companies are based in NYC (Proxima, WorkMagic) and the broader US market. Their geographic focus is US-centric, with potential openness to international marketplaces given the KICKS CREW investment (Hong Kong-founded global sneaker marketplace).
Team
Jett Fein – Founder & General Partner
- General Partner at Headline from 2014 to 2025, helping grow AUM to $4B
- Portfolio at Headline: Gopuff, NomNom (acquired by Mars), Honeycomb.io, Trellis Research
- Prior: Palantir Technologies, Cambridge Associates
- Education: B.A. with distinction, Stanford University (J.E. Wallace Sterling Award); J.D., Berkeley Law
- Based in San Francisco
- Contact: jett@broadwayvp.com
Jeff Truong – Founder & General Partner
- Founding Partner at VMG Catalyst (commerce-focused fund), built to $650M AUM across two funds
- Led commerce software practice: investments in Attentive, Nuvemshop, Treat.io
- Prior: Altos Ventures (led first Latin American investment in Kueski), Tenaya Capital (ThousandEyes, PlanGrid), investment banking at Union Square Advisors
- Education: HBA from Ivey Business School, University of Western Ontario
- Contact: jeff@broadwayvp.com
Fund Status
Broadway Venture Partners Fund I, L.P. was the subject of an SEC Form D new filing dated June 5, 2025, indicating Fund I was actively deploying in 2025. Their portfolio spans investments from late 2023 through April 2025, suggesting early conviction investments preceded the formal fund formation.
Decision Process
As a two-GP partnership, Broadway likely operates collaboratively with both founders involved in all investment decisions. No external LP advisory board or investment committee structure is visible from available data.
Founder Profile Preferences
Broadway's portfolio suggests an affinity for:
- Technical or operator founders with domain expertise in commerce
- Founders with prior exits or demonstrated traction
- Companies at the intersection of AI and commerce
- Unconventional market niches or "off the beaten path" opportunities
Notable Co-Investors
Spark Capital, Mucker Capital, Founder Collective, 186 Ventures, Aglaé Ventures, Sinovation Ventures, BD Investment Management, RiverPark Ventures, Suffolk Technologies