Investment Workshop: Networking Towards Accessing US Capital

Andrew M. Meadow

General Partner, Health Innovation Capital 

For over 27 years, Andrew has achieved a significant track record of success within three critical areas of healthcare innovation: overseeing and advancing novel therapeutics and medical technologies from inception to NDA approval; executing complex corporate development transactions including capital formation, alliance management, and acquisitions; and venture finance and initial company creation.

Prior to founding Health Innovation Capital, Andrew was a Partner at Excelyrate Capital Fund I, during which time he was responsible for: 1) building a pipeline of potential investment opportunities; 2) expanding and managing syndicate relationships,; 3) creating a healthcare centric venture portfolio that yielded significant returns to LPs, established a collection of investments that are either standards of care or best in class within their respective therapeutic areas. During his tenure, he created a proprietary set of integrated search, evaluation, and risk assessment methodologies and tools that have received praise within both the entrepreneur and venture communities. As a Principal investor with Essex Woodlands, the Michigan Economic Development Corp’s Life Science Venture Fund, and Excelyrate Capital, Andrew’s investing experience included the execution of 11 investments with 10 Exits that achieved a track record for providing significant collective net cash on cash returns for investors and exits that included 7 IPOs and 3 acquisitions.

Andrew’s tenure as a senior healthcare financial, business development and commercial strategy executive includes multinational experiences in both Large Cap pharma (Baxter) and rapid growth venture backed biotech and medtech companies including SkinAxis (SVP Commercial Operations and Corp. Strategy) and Conceivex, Inc. (Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer). During this tenure, he was responsible for originating and negotiating several multi-million dollar strategic partnerships, co-development/marketing alliances, and inorganic pipeline growth initiatives that yielded significant shareholder value. He was responsible for leading the commercialization of three (3) products, which grew from $0.00 gross revenues to between $85 to $250M respectively after 18 months of his leadership. As a C-Suite executive, Andrew has successfully led three healthcare companies to successful M&A exits at significant multiples to EBIDTA.

During his tenure at UBS Warburg, Andrew worked on a number of market leading biotech and medtech transactions, with over $10 BN in IPO, M&A, and Equity/Debt financing transactions executed.

Andrew is a key opinion leader in pediatric health innovation and venture capital investment targeting that patient population frequent speaking internationally on such topics as risk management, program and new product planning, early stage capital formation strategies, and healthcare commercial innovation strategy. In addition, Andrew has worked with the National Institute of Health (NIH) and nationally recognized indication specific advocacy groups.

Andrew lives in Boston’s Beacon Hill and is actively involved in a number of philanthropies dedicated to improving the lives of children. When not enjoying time with family, Andrew is actively traveling to cross “things” off his ever expanding “Bucket List”.

Cheryl V. Reicin

Partner / International Chair, Life Sciences, Mintz

Cheryl leads the country’s premier life sciences practice. She advises the industry’s largest investors and most innovative startups on highly complex transactions worldwide. With an international reputation for quality and helping clients advance their strategies, Cheryl combines a deep knowledge of the market with a business-minded practical approach. 

Cheryl is the International Chair, Life Sciences at Mintz, a leading AmLaw 100 firm of 650 lawyers, of whom 200 are dedicated to Health / Life Sciences. She represents the entire spectrum of biotech, medical device and health technology companies, from start-ups to large public companies, as well as venture capitalists, investment banks and academic medical centers. 

Cheryl is widely recognized for her long track record of helping life sciences companies at all stages formulate and evolve their domestic and international growth strategies, source capital, and develop and optimize their corporate and tax structures. When clients need transactional counsel in the life sciences sector, Cheryl has extensive experience advising on venture and later-stage financings, IPOs, mergers and acquisitions, licensing transactions and joint ventures or alliances with strategic partners. 

Cheryl was 1 of 5 attorneys shortlisted for the 2022 LMG Life Sciences Awards for U.S. Venture Capital Attorney of the Year. Cheryl has also been recognized as one of WXN’s Top 100 of Canada’s Most Powerful Women 4 times and was inducted into the WXN Most Powerful Women Hall of Fame, as well as Canada’s Top 25 Women of Influence (No. 1 in Professional Services category). Cheryl has been repeatedly recognized by LMG Life Sciences as Canadian Finance & Transactional Lawyer of the Year, and for leading the Impact Deal of the Year, as well as numerous other recognitions. 

She is involved in numerous charitable endeavors, including, among others, having served as a trustee for The Hospital for Sick Children and as founder of Canadian Women in Life Sciences. Cheryl is a graduate of Harvard Law School. 

 Joella Almeida

CEO & Co-founder, MedEssist

• Brings a wide range of experience including time as a Shopify Partner designing and onboarding businesses across the country

• Previously, an Operations Specialist with US Bank supporting North American merchants, and The Director of Strategic Partnerships at the Canadian Women’s Chamber of Commerce

• Experience at Shopify showed her the power that customizable technologies can have in transforming the depth and reach of small businesses

David Kiewlich, PhD

Founder & CEO, Bay Area Disruptor and Startup Support Labs 

Dr. David Kiewlich (Ph.D.) is a serial founder and entrepreneur in biotech.  With over 30 years’ experience working for industry, as well as 6 startups of his own, his background is excellently aligned with the needs and struggles of pre-commercialization startups.  He founded and runs the Bay Area Disruptor and Startup Support Labs (BADASS Labs), a series of non-profit biotech incubators, which has supported dozens of pre-seed through series B (and beyond) companies.  With a three-year track record of 33 of 37 company successes for members of BADASS Labs, his approach to make it easier on founders has substantially changed the concept and expectations of what incubators should look like.  

In addition to BADASS Labs, David is also the CSO of a cell based therapy company, focused on autoimmune disease and frequent public speaker advocating for greater Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) in the sciences. 

BADASS Labs is more than a biotech incubator that rents lab space to small businesses. It is a strategic ally that empowers biotech entrepreneurs to achieve their full potential. By offering a comprehensive suite of services, such as purchasing, waste management, operations and even health insurance plans for its members, BADASS Labs enables its clients to focus on their core competencies and substantially reduce their operational costs. BADASS Labs bridges the gap between research and commercialization, by facilitating novel technologies from academic, national lab or self-generated sources into viable products that can enhance the domestic supply chain and generate regional employment. While we can incubate companies at any stage, we have a particular focus on the earlier side, from Pre-Seed through Series B stages. 

At BADASS Labs, you set off running with your own dedicated lab and office space, extensive equipment and unparalleled administration support, all included, for one flat fee. Our mission at BADASS Labs is to provide the maximum support for our members to achieve their scientific milestones as quickly as possible. We nurture new companies with the facilities and know-how they need to grow. We are led by Dr. David Kiewlich, PhD, who has 30 years’ experience in cell based therapies, autoimmune disease and oncology and has done the startup experience 6 times.  

In contrast to traditional biotech accelerators, we don’t require you to stay for a minimum or maximum of time, we do not have a high minimum of square footage, and we do not tie you into a high cost, high risk situation. As a 501c3, we never take equity and we never entangle IP, thus we are not incentivized to run through as many companies as possible. We are here to foster you, not push you out the door. Our purpose is to ensure you have the facilities you need and the support you deserve, for as long as you want to stay. 

Michael Floros, PhD

CEO & Founder, Cohesys 

Dr. Michael Floros is a dedicated entrepreneur and innovator, focusing on developing novel solutions within the healthcare field. As the founder of Cohesys, Dr. Floros leads the development and commercialization of the company’s flagship product, BoneTape, a medical device designed for improving fracture treatment. After obtaining his PhD in materials science from Trent University, Michael worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Toronto before founding Cohesys. He has authored more than 25 peer-reviewed publications and is an inventor on 14 patents.