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Nikhil Basu Trivedi

Nikhil Basu Trivedi is a venture capitalist focused on early-stage technology companies who co-founded the venture firm FootworkFootworkFootwork is an early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2021 by Mike Smith and Nikhil Basu Trivedi, with an office in San Francisco. It leads or co-leads seed and Series A rounds in consumer technology and the consumerization of enterprise technology. Its $175 million first fund launched in 2021, and it began investing its $225 million second fund in 2025.Open the full entry with Mike SmithMike SmithMike Smith is a co-founder and general partner of venture capital firm Footwork. He was chief operating officer of Walmart.com and held operating, menswear and executive roles at Stitch Fix as it grew from an early-stage business into a public company. He founded Footwork with Nikhil Basu Trivedi in 2021 and serves on the boards of Ulta Beauty and MillerKnoll.Open the full entry in 2021 and serves as a general partner; he previously spent nearly eight years at Shasta Ventures.

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Key facts

2012Joining Shasta Ventures as an Associate

According to his own description on Substack, he has worked in venture capital since 2010; Footwork’s website says he earlier worked at Insight Partners and was on the founding team of Artsy.⁠[1][2]

According to his 2020 essay, he was recruited by Shasta Ventures co-founder Tod Francis in 2012 and joined the firm as an associate at age 23.⁠[3]

2015Named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 List

A 2021 ForbesForbesForbes is an American business media brand that began with Forbes magazine, founded by B.C. Forbes in 1917. It is known for rankings such as the Forbes 400, the World’s Billionaires list and 30 Under 30, and operates Forbes.com, ForbesLive events and licensed editions in 81 countries. Since 2014 a majority stake has been held by the Hong Kong investment group Integrated Whale Media; a 2021 plan to list on the New York Stock Exchange through a special purpose acquisition company was terminated in 2022. It is headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey.Open the full entry article states that he was a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree in 2015.⁠[4]

2018Becoming a Partner at Shasta Ventures

According to Forbes, he became a partner at Shasta Ventures in 2018 at age 29. Footwork’s website says his investments at Shasta included CanvaCanvaCanva is an online design platform company headquartered in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 2012 by Melanie Perkins, Cliff Obrecht and Cameron Adams and launched in 2013, it offers template-based drag-and-drop design tools for non-designers and later expanded into team collaboration, video, email, forms and generative AI features.Open the full entry, Lattice, ClassDojo, Color Health, Frame.io and The Farmer’s Dog.⁠[4][2]

June 2020Leaving Shasta Ventures

In an essay published on July 1, 2020, he wrote that the previous day had been his last day at Shasta Ventures, describing the firm as a constant in his life for almost eight years. His Substack profile says he subsequently became a limited partner in Shasta Ventures.⁠[3][1]

April 15, 2021Launching Footwork with Mike Smith

On April 15, 2021, he announced that he and Mike Smith, former president and COO of Stitch Fix, had closed Footwork’s first fund with $175 million in commitments; he described the firm as an equal partnership whose capital came mostly from endowments and foundations of non-profit and charitable organizations.⁠[5][2][4]

According to his description, Footwork leads or co-leads seed and Series A rounds in companies showing early signs of product-market fit, focusing on consumer technology and the consumerization of enterprise technology.⁠[5]

As of October 2026: Co-Founder and General Partner at Footwork

His Substack profile describes him as co-founder and general partner at Footwork, focused on consumer technology companies and enterprise companies building consumer-like products. The portfolio listed on Footwork’s website includes companies such as Watershed, GPTZero, Elicit and WindBorne.⁠[1][2]

He also writes “next big thing,” a weekly essay newsletter on Substack about venture capital and the search for the next big opportunity.⁠[1][2]

Related Organizations, Websites, and Public Accounts

Footwork: Official website: https://www.footwork.vc/ (opens in a new window)⁠[2]

next big thing: Public link: https://nbt.substack.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[2]

X: Public account: https://x.com/nbt (opens in a new window)⁠[2]

Sources

  1. About - next big thing (opens in a new window)
  2. Footwork — official firm profile (opens in a new window)
  3. An Ending and Fallow Time (opens in a new window)
  4. Footwork, New VC Firm From Investor Nikhil Basu Trivedi And Former Stitch Fix Executive Mike Smith, Launches With $175 Million (opens in a new window)
  5. Footwork: announcing Fund I (opens in a new window)