10 Things You Didn’t Know About Irving Fain
Irving Fain is an American businessman and entrepreneur. He is the chief executive officer of an agricultural tech startup called Bowery. Mr. Fain has made some significant contributions to the agricultural industry with new and improved growing methods that are showing promise for delivering greater efficiency in land use and higher yield in production. He is one of the best minds in the industry today. If you’re not yet familiar with him, here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about Irvin Fain to bring you up to speed.
1. He is also the genius behind Bowery
According to The Proof Wellness, Irving is not only the CEO of Bowery, but he is also a co-founder of the company. He and his partner put their heads together to create a business that had the potential to improve the agricultural industry through the development of commercial indoor farms. This is the main goal of Bowery. He leads the company that works with farmers to implement technologies that will aid in growing healthy foods that consumers feel comfortable eating.
2. Fain is a brilliant negotiator
Irving Fain is good with people. He is also good at selling ideas when he’s in front of a group of potential investors. He and his co-founders worked hard to convince venture capital investors to give Bowery consideration for funding. They piqued the interest and support of several top investors including First Round Capital, GGV, General Catalyst, Google Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, Temasek, Henry Kravis, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, Jeff Wilke, David Barber, Carla Hall, Jose Andres, co-founders of Sweetgreen co-founders and several others.
3. He takes time for himself
Before Irving Fain starts his workday, he takes the time that he needs for self-care. This is sage advice for other entrepreneurs and business leaders. He attends to his personal needs, and then he starts his workday by going through emails. He prioritizes the most urgent issues and those that can be quickly resolved then go on to other matters. He makes time to walk his dog named Basil wherever he is. It’s a part of his routine.
4. Irving Fain is athletic
Mr. Fain knows the value of keeping his physical body fit. Good health means a healthier brain and sharper cognition. He makes the time to either surf, runs, box, swim, or participate in some other type of physical exercise. He explained that he can tell the difference psychologically when he doesn’t find the time to work out. This is one of his recommendations for staying mentally sharp.
5. He is a native of Providence, Rhode Island
Irving was raised in Providence, Rhode Island. He shared that he prefers having the dual advantage of being in the city of Providence with the countryside and farms nearby to get fresh food that is grown seasonally in the small state. He feels privileged to have grown up in this small but unique area. His mother taught him the importance of eating high-quality and nutritious foods, which inspired him to launch Bowery.
6. He’s helping Americans to have better access to quality local food
The tech company that Mr. Fain established is intended to address the problem that people have in accessing local foods of high quality. Bowery is tackling some of the issues in the agricultural industry by providing new solutions for growing crops while minimizing the amount of space needed and improving the health and nutritional value of the foods produced.
7. Irvin Fain is an English major
According to his LinkedIn profile, Irving Fain is an alumnus of the prestigious Brown University. He enrolled in courses and became matriculated in 1998. He completed his studies in English and earned his bachelor of arts degree in 2002. One would have expected him to enter into agri-business with his current occupation, but this was not the course that he took for his academic endeavors.
8. He started his career at Citi
Irving Fain’s first job out of college wasn’t even close to being related to agriculture. In 2002 he joined Citi as an analyst for private equity group investment banking. He served in the position for 2 years before leaving Citi in 2004. While there he was involved in all aspects of the work with interaction with clients and investors, marketing, private debt and mezzanine placements, buyouts, mergers, and more. It’s no small wonder that he knows how to secure millions in venture capital funds for his company Bowery. In 2005, he joined Trilea Partners as an associate where he worked with a venture capital fund focused on early-stage retail investing. He remained at Trilea for one year before leaving for another opportunity in 2006.
9. He served on the Estimize board
In April of 2013, Irving became a board member and advisor for the Estimize company. This is an open financial estimates platform, which is an industry that Mr. Fain is intimately acquainted with. His advisement and direction were in high demand because of his previous business and financial experience and his proven track record of success. Mr. Fain served on the Estimze board for 6 years and 2 months, exiting in May of 2019.
10. He is a serial entrepreneur
According to Silicon Valley Bank, Irving Fain has founded more than one successful startup. After leaving CitiGroup, he built a company called IHeartRadio for ClearChannel. In addition to that, he co-founded a startup that was involved with marketing analytics. Irving Fain has built a total of three different businesses. He is a devout believer in the power of technology to solve problems and he has proven this in three different ways through the businesses that he has built so far. Bowery is a company that helps to automate agriculture and solve many of the current problems that have been identified with the processes. He is a visionary and a builder and he is careful to look toward the available technology to address those issues and provide clients with solutions.
