Our team of experienced investors and operators has a long history of success in marketing, technology and eCommerce. Our team of experienced investors and operators has a long history of success in marketing, technology and eCommerce.
Senior Team
Carson Biederman
Founder and President
Carson is the founder and President of Digital Fuel Capital. He is also a co-founder and a Managing Partner of The Mustang Group, an affiliate of Digital Fuel Capital that invests in innovative companies within the consumer products, technology and business services sectors. Prior to founding Digital Fuel Capital in 2012 and co-founding The Mustang Group in 2003, Carson was at Bain Capital for seven years, where he invested in both start-ups and mature companies across a range of industries. He was also a founding member of two investment practices within Bain Capital: Bain Capital Credit and Bain Capital Ventures. Carson began his career in the investment banking group of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. He received a B.S. in Economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Carson is committed to working on scalable solutions to improve economic opportunity for Americans and serves on the board of Economic Mobility Pathways (EMPath).
Stephen Owen
Vice President
Steve joined Digital Fuel Capital at its founding in 2012. He is a Vice President and focuses on investment execution and portfolio company support. He is also a Principal of The Mustang Group, an affiliate of Digital Fuel Capital. Previously, he was at Advent International for five years, focusing on buyout transactions in a range of industries including industrial, building materials, and business services. Prior to that, Steve was at Credit Suisse First Boston in the investment banking department, where he was a member of the CSFB Technology Group focusing on mergers and acquisitions. He received a B.A. from Williams College.
Atle Skalleberg
Operating Partner
Atle joined Digital Fuel Capital in 2021 as the firm's first Operating Partner. Prior to joining the firm, he spent five years at Flight Centre Travel Group (ASX:FLT), first as the group's Chief Digital Officer, then Chief Operating Officer. Prior to these roles, Atle was the CEO of Boston based StudentUniverse (acquired by FLT). He received his undergraduate degree from BI Norwegian Business School and his graduate degree from Boston University, as well as Executive Education from MIT.
Kiran Gowda
Vice President of Digital Marketing & eCommerce
Kiran joined Digital Fuel Capital in 2019. He is a Vice President and focuses on digital marketing and eCommerce. Previously, he was Vice President of digital and eCommerce at Bulletproof 360. Kiran's prior roles include Senior Director of Digital and Technology at TRX and owning eCommerce and digital marketing for Goorin Bros. and TravelSmith Outfitters. He received an M.B.A. from San Francisco State University, a B.Sc. from Nottingham Trent University and an Executive Education in Strategic Marketing Management from Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
Kirk Ciarrocchi
Director of Digital Marketing
Kirk joined Digital Fuel Capital in 2020 as Director of Digital Marketing. He supports the portfolio of companies with performance marketing initiatives at both strategic and tactical levels. Previously, he was a part of Camelot Venture Group where he was Director of Marketing for Sharper Image and consulted on special projects for the portfolio of brands, including SmileDirectClub. Prior to that, he held digital marketing positions at Quicken Loans (Rocket Mortgage) and Search Optics. He received an M.B.A. from Eastern Michigan University.
Jeffrey Coughlin
Director of Analytics
Jeff has been consulting with Digital Fuel Capital since 2017 and joined full time in 2020 as Director of Analytics. He is responsible for advancing analytical competencies at portfolio companies and building data solutions. Prior to Digital Fuel, he managed both data science and analytics at Care.com for 10 years and previously worked in research and modeling at Economic Development Research Group and on the finance team at Brightcove. Jeff holds an M.A. in Economics from Northeastern University and a B.S in Economics from the University of New Hampshire.
Brooke Newbury
Director of eCommerce
Brooke joined Digital Fuel Capital in 2020 as Director of eCommerce. She is responsible for supporting portfolio companies in improving their digital experience. Since the beginning of her professional career in 2007, her focus has been in both digital marketing and management of digital products including websites and apps across many industries. As a strong proponent of the test and learn methodology, she has applied it at a broad set of businesses including Keurig, Dr. Pepper, CVS Health, and at Goodair Marketing, an agency where she was the founding member. Brooke received a B.S. in Marketing from Franklin Pierce University.
Erika Gesner
Director of Talent
Erika joined Digital Fuel Capital in 2021 as Director of Talent Acquisition supporting Digital Fuel and the portfolio of companies with talent acquisition and broader hiring initiatives. Previously, she was a Sr. Account Manager at RevelOne where she focused on placing senior marketing professionals across various eCommerce businesses. Prior to that, Erika worked in the Financial Practice at True Search where she executed on financial executive searches across both B2B and B2C companies. She received a B.A. in Neuroscience & Economics from Boston University.
Charles Clay
Senior Associate
Charles joined Digital Fuel Capital in 2021 as a Senior Associate and is responsible for deal execution and portfolio company support. Prior to joining Digital Fuel Capital, he was the Director of FP&A at BodyBuilding.com focusing on financial analysis and M&A transactions. While there, he worked on the sale of Bodybuilding.com by Liberty Expedia Holdings to Expedia, and then the sale by Expedia to the Najafi Companies. Prior to that, Charles spent five years at Lazard Middle Market in the Consumer & Retail group focusing on mergers and acquisitions where he was the recipient of the Andre Meyer award. He received a B.S. from Brigham Young University - Idaho.
Katie Griset
Director of Operations & Investor Relations
Katie joined Digital Fuel Capital in 2019. She is the Director of Operations & Investor Relations. Previously, she was at Bain Capital Credit for 15 years, most recently as a Sr. Manager focused on investor relations, marketing operations, and event management. Prior to that, Katie was a Sr. Manager of the client services team. She received a B.A. from Syracuse University.
