Saum Vahdat on facilitating a culture of innovation.

Saum Vahdat discusses his vision for Bridgewest Ventures and why he thinks New Zealand is an ideal place for cultivating deep tech.

“We really liked the ecosystem of comradery,” Saum Vahdat, the managing partner of Bridgewest Ventures, reflected as he recounted what drew Bridgewest to set up shop in New Zealand.

“Here, business is very relationship-based, and everyone knows each other. That builds a fantastic culture for innovation because parties are willing to work together and support each other to make innovation happen.”

Saum believes it’s this tight-knit, relationship-focused community that makes New Zealand ideal for cultivating deep tech. The scale of New Zealand and its supportive government and economy mean Kiwis feel safe to take risks and know that it’s okay to fail while innovating, a characteristic Saum believes is essential to start-up culture. 

Saum was born in New York and grew up on the opposite coast in Southern California. He studied Business Management with a focus in Entrepreneurship and Finance. During school, he took on a few internships at technology companies, hospitality, and in real estate, before joining Bridgewest Group post graduation. 

In his first years at Bridgewest, Saum worked in the real estate department helping with acquisition strategy, property management, and third party client management. This is the first time the New Zealand market really piqued his interest. 

“While building the residential and commercial real estate portfolio through 12 states across America, we identified a requirement to diversify outside of the United States,” Saum said. “We did a global search of desirable markets and landed on Australia and New Zealand every time, no matter how we adjusted our evaluation metrics. I knew New Zealand would one day be a part of Bridgewest’s future when I visited for the first time in 2014.”

Although fluctuating currency rates didn’t make real estate investment possible during that time, Saum continued to be interested in the potential of New Zealand.  

From 2013 - 2015, Saum earned his MBA from Cornell University. When he graduated, he rejoined Bridgewest full-time, this time looking after their quickly growing hi-tech ventures. 

He moved to Ireland to oversee one of the portfolio companies, Endura Technologies, a semiconductor business aiming to innovate the next generation of power management.  

Endura also has product lines in audio and Artificial Intelligence and is interested in optimising voice control for mobile and IoT applications, one of the fastest growing device markets of today. 

Now, Saum looks forward to bringing his experience growing European, Chinese, and American deep tech ventures to the Bridgewest incubator in New Zealand. Bridgewest entered New Zealand as a real estate play and very quickly expanded to technology and innovation after getting a sense of the available talent, culture, and market opportunities. He is proud of the approach, and track-record Bridgewest has for growing ventures globally to date, as well as their reputation for being a great organisation to work with.

“We have operating partners, entrepreneurs, and executives that have worked with us for over 20 years on multiple ventures. They don’t need the capital or the job due to mutually successful exits, but stay within our advisory and institutional network because they align with our ideals. This network is an amazing resource for the new ventures we start working with who can access a wealth of mentorship opportunities, or when needed, direct access for management hiring.”

An incredible network isn’t the only benefit ventures who participate in the incubator will receive.  

Through the partnership with Callaghan innovation’s 2020 Technology Incubator Programme, participating startups can receive up to $750,000 as a repayable grant from Callaghan Innovation. Further, Bridwest Ventures will seed the startup via a direct equity investment. The amount will vary depending on how to best support the R&D efforts of the business. 

In addition to funding and an accessible network, ventures will work with experts like Saum to bring their big idea to life. Bridgewest Ventures is committed to growing business capabilities alongside the venture to ensure the founder is equipped for growth.

“We can help with product and market definition to make sure the right problem statement and related buy-in from the target customer is being pursued. This takes away the ‘build it and they will come’ methodology and reduces risk.”

When asked about what his vision for Bridgewest Ventures over the next eight years, Saum described facilitating that innovative community culture he loves about New Zealand by setting up the go-to incubator program for investors, entrepreneurs, and professionals here in New Zealand. 

To him, Bridgewest Ventures is about supporting an entrepreneur or innovator with a dream while simultaneously creating new economic opportunities for New Zealand. 

“New Zealand already has a culture of mutual support that enables a strong, innovative deep tech ecosystem,” Saum describes. “However, I think it is missing the ability to catapult into the global marketplace. This is what I hope Bridgewest Ventures can bring. A bridge between New Zealand innovation and the rest of the world.”