Campfire is financially backed by over 30 former and current lululemon executives, all of whom worked closely together to create tremendous value for lululemon during its high growth period from 2002 to the present, in addition to 20 other consumer and retail industry leaders from across North America.
Collectively, our investor network brings deep operating expertise and networks from global brands including lululemon athletica, Starbucks, DAVIDsTEA, Abercrombie & Fitch, Nike, Skull Candy, VEGA, ALDO, and Zara. Each individual brings an average of 15 years experience across key functions such as brand, store & e-commerce operations, merchandising, real estate and distribution & logistics. Our investor base’s combined background spans sub-industries including apparel & footwear and food & beverage.
Our group lends operational support and expertise to Campfire’s portfolio company management teams, seeking to positively impact growth and ultimately create value for all Campfire stakeholders.
John Currie | Partner
John Currie was formerly Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of lululemon athletica. Along with lululemon’s executive team, John led the growth of the company from US$150mm to US$1.8B in revenues, and from 75 stores to 300 stores, over a 7 year period.
Prior to joining lululemon in 2007, he was Chief Financial Officer of Intrawest Corporation, a world leader in destination resorts and leisure travel. In 2014, as the head of the special committee of the Board of Coastal Contacts Inc., the worlds’ largest online retailer of vision care products, John oversaw its sale to Essilor. He is also a board member of the Vancouver Airport Authority. John brings more than 30 years of experience in sound financial management of private and public companies in the retail & consumer space.
Manica Gautam | Partner
Manica co-leads Campfire Capital, where she actively sources, investigates and conducts due diligence on investment opportunities in the early-stage consumer & retail industry. She is also responsible for leading the firm’s overall fundraising initiatives and LP relations. Prior to Campfire, Manica spent five years with Onex, one of North America’s oldest and most successful private equity firms. Manica was initially on the investment team for Onex’s dedicated mid-cap private equity platform, ONCAP (2010-2013), and later moved into Onex’s Funds Group as a Director (2013-2014) where she was responsible for fundraising initiatives and LP relations. Prior to Onex, Manica was with Citigroup’s Global Consumer & Retail Investment Banking team based in London, UK (2007-2010), and during this time she worked alongside some of the world’s largest and best-in-class consumer and retail companies in a deal execution capacity, as well as through numerous corporate finance advisory assignments. Manica brings over 10 years of experience in private equity investing, fundraising and corporate finance.
Christine Day | Partner
Christine is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Luvo Inc., a company producing frozen meals prepared with nutritionally-dense, healthy ingredients. Prior to Luvo, Christine was Chief Executive Officer of lululemon (2008-2013). Along with John Currie and the rest of lululemon’s executive team, Christine created and executed lululemon’s long-term business strategies, directing its continued development and reinforced its position as a global leader of yoga-inspired athletic apparel. During her tenure, the company grew in revenue from $290 million to $1.6 billion and became the most profitable retail apparel company in the world.
Prior to lululemon, Christine held several senior leadership positions at Starbucks over a 20-year period, most recently serving as Starbucks’ President of Asia Pacific (2004-2007). At Starbucks, Christine helped build a solid innovative company culture at one of the world’s most recognizable brands. Christine has been named Fortune Magazine’s “Top 5 International Most Powerful Women”, Canada’s “Top 100 Women”, and named “CEO of the Year”, by Globe and Mail and Business in Vancouver. Christine brings more than 30 years of senior leadership experience in building profitable, global brands in the food & beverage and apparel categories.