Merged into Velo3D, ticker now VLD
SPFR

Completed

Velo3D

VLD
First $11.00
Merger $9.23
16%
Merger +6mo $4.40
60%
Merger +1yr $3.28
70%
Recent $0.45
96%

JAWS Spitfire Acquisition Corp

Raised
$250M
CIK
1825079
SPAC Ticker
SPFR
Merger
Velo3D
Merged Ticker
VLD
Focus
Consumer, Technology, Unicorns
External link: SEC Filings

SPAC Team

Leadership

Barry S. Sternlicht is the Chairman of the board of directors of Jaws Spitfire Acquisition Corporation and is a well-known entrepreneur and operator with an extensive deal-making history. He founded Starwood Capital in 1991, serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Starwood Capital is a private alternative investment firm focused on global real estate, hotel management, oil and gas and energy infrastructure with over $60 billion of assets under management as of March 31, 2020. Through the Starwood Capital platform, Mr. Sternlicht has created several multi-billion dollar public market companies, ranging from traditional real estate to branded hospitality. Throughout Mr. Sternlicht’s career, he has focused on capitalizing on emerging consumer trends; either directly via core operating assets or indirectly through Starwood Capital’s real estate portfolio. He has also executed several marquee public market transactions to enhance the scale of his core platform—including the creation and expansion of Starwood Property Trust (NYSE: STWD), the consolidation of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (formerly NYSE: HOT), the spin-off and growth of Invitation Homes (NYSE: INVH) and the formation of Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR). Similarly, he has been involved in numerous private market consumer businesses as an early investor.

Mr. Sternlicht currently serves as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of STWD, a leading, diversified real estate finance company with over $3 billion in market capitalization; and one of the first mortgage REITs launched post-crisis. Since inception in 2009, Mr. Sternlicht guided STWD through a steady evolution with over $61 billion in deployed capital, evolving from a pure-play commercial lender to a diversified commercial REIT with residential lending, commercial mortgage servicing, property ownership and infrastructure lending. Mr. Sternlicht also has deep operating expertise, serving as the Chairman, from January 1995 through May 2005, and as the Chief Executive Officer, from January 1995 through September 2004, of HOT; a period in which the share price appreciated at a compound annual growth rate of 16%. Over his tenure as Chief Executive Officer, he grew the total market capitalization of HOT to approximately $10 billion. As Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Sternlicht executed several key acquisitions, including Westin Hotels, Patriot American and ITT Corp., and led the development of the W Hotel concept.

Outside of his public market experience, Mr. Sternlicht has made a variety of investments in the consumer sector. Most notably, he has acquired or founded a number of independent hotel chains, including Baccarat Hotels, 1 Hotels and Treehouse Hotels, which are operated by SH Hotels & Resorts, a hotel brand management company and an affiliate of Starwood Capital. In addition to these investments, Mr. Sternlicht has invested in various consumer facing companies, including ThirdLove, a women’s clothing brand, Lyft, a ride share application, 2ndMD, which offers medical second opinions with virtual online consultations, Bonobos, an e-commerce-driven apparel company, Palantir, which specializes in big data analytics, and Lyric, a hospitality platform for business travelers.

Mr. Sternlicht’s other public market experience includes:

* Serving as Chairman of Jaws Acquisition Corp. (NYSE: JWS), a special purpose acquisition company which successfully conducted its IPO in May 2020;

* Serving as a Director of INVH, the largest publicly-traded investor, owner and operator of single-family homes in the U.S. INVH was formed via the spin-off of Starwood Waypoint Residential Trust from STWD in 2014; and the subsequent mergers with Colony American Homes and Invitation Homes;

* Serving as a Director of The Estée Lauder Companies, a multinational manufacturer and marketer of prestige skincare, makeup, fragrance and hair care products, since 2004;

* Serving as a Director of A.S. Roma, the professional Italian football club based in Rome, since 2014;

​* Serving as the Chairman of the Board of Baccarat, S.A., a French manufacturer of fine crystal glassware located in Baccarat, France, from 2005 to 2018;

* Serving as Chairman of TRI Pointe Group (NYSE: TPH), a leading builder of new homes, from the IPO until 2017, including through its $2.8 billion merger with Weyerhaeuser Company in 2014;

* Serving as a Director for Restoration Hardware (NYSE: RH), a luxury brand in home furnishings, from IPO in 2012 through 2014;

​* Serving as Chairman of iStar (NYSE: STAR; formerly Starwood Financial), the manager and largest owner of Safehold (NYSE: SAFE), which specializes in ground leases. Mr. Sternlicht served as Chairman until 2001; subsequently serving as a Director until 2003; and

​* Serving as a Director of Equity Residential (NYSE: EQR) from 1993 through 1998 after contributing a portfolio of apartment buildings in return for a 20% stake.

We believe Mr. Sternlicht’s significant investment experience make him well qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors.

Matthew Walters is the Chief Executive Officer of Jaws Spitfire Acquisition Corporation. Since 2015, Mr. Walters has served as a Principal at JAWS Estates Capital LLC, a public and private direct investing focused single family office. He directs the private investment strategy with a particular emphasis on the consumer and technology sectors. Through Jaws, Mr. Walters has sourced and executed investments in Oyo Rooms, Color Genomics, Illumio, Didi, Flaschenpost, Parachute Home, Qualia, Sweetgreen, Third Love, Hyperloop, and Domino’s China. Further representative Jaws Estates investments managed by Mr. Walters include Pre IPO Lyft, Artsy, Away Luggage, Delos Living, Flipkart, Oscar Health, Sarcos Robotics and Wish. Prior to joining Jaws, Mr. Walters spent his entire career at L Catterton, the largest, most global consumer-focused private equity firm, where he worked on sourcing and investment strategy for both the buyout and growth oriented funds. Mr. Walters sits on the board of Sempre Life and is a board observer at Bluestone Lane and Parachute Home. Mr. Walters received a B.A. from the University of Virginia (cum laude) and an M.S. in Finance from Fairfield University (Dolan Scholar recipient and Valedictorian candidate).

We believe Mr. Walters’ significant investment experience make him well qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors.

Michael Racich is the Chief Financial Officer of Jaws Spitfire Acquisition Corporation. Since 2010, Mr. Racich has also served as the Chief Financial officer of JAWS Estates Capital LLC. Previously, Mr. Racich was a director at Frydland Stevens LLC from 2007 to 2014 and also worked for JAWS Estates Capital LLC from 2005 to 2007. While at Frydland Stevens LLC, Mr. Racich advised JAWS Estates Capital LLC on tax related issues and was responsible for preparing JAWS Estates Capital LLC’s tax filings. Mr. Racich graduated from Villanova University in 1994 with a Bachelor of Science in Accountancy.

Andy Appelbaum has agreed to serve on the board of directors of Jaws Spitfire Acquisition Corporation. He is the Managing Partner of RiverPark Ventures, a venture capital firm focusing on high growth, early stage businesses. RiverPark Ventures is part of the RiverPark family of funds, a multi-strategy portfolio management firm. Mr. Appelbaum is a career entrepreneur with a focus on creating marketplaces and disrupting inefficient supply chains. The companies he has co-founded have spanned a broad diversity of industries, including technology, energy, food services, e-commerce, media and real estate. Mr. Appelbaum is the co-founder of Seamless (formerly Seamless Web), Cleaner Options, mdenergy, Blue Ribbon Partners and domino Media Group. Prior to founding RiverPark Ventures, he was an active angel investor. Mr. Appelbaum received a BA in Philosophy and Political Science, summa cum laude from SUNY Binghamton in 1988 and a JD from New York University School of Law in 1991. From 1991 through 1992, he was an associate with the New York office of Latham & Watkins, specializing in corporation transactions and restructuring. Mr. Appelbaum serves on the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the JCC of Manhattan and is a member of New York Angels.

We believe Mr. Appelbaum’s significant investment experience make him well qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors.

Mark Vallely has agreed to serve on the board of directors of Jaws Spitfire Acquisition Corporation. Mr. Vallely is a private investor who has found success both as a founder and as an investor. Mr. Vallely started in the commodity paper business, having founded Clayton Forms Paper and Clayton Impressions before subsequently acquiring Eliezer (formerly J.S. Eliezer & Associates), a print management company, and A.T. Clayton & Co., Inc., a magazine and catalog company. Mr. Vallely brought all four companies together under Intragrated Resources Holdings, Inc., which were subsequently acquired by Marubeni Corporation in 2007. Mr. Vallely continued to serve as a Chief Executive Officer of Intragrated Resources Holdings, Inc. until 2013. Since 2013, Mr. Vallely has managed his personal investments. Mr. Vallely earned his BS in Economics from Hamilton College in 1979. Mr. Vallely is an active member of YPO and is involved in many conservation and municipal causes. He is an active Director of the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation and serves on their Executive Committee.

We believe Mr. Vallely’s significant investment experience make him well qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors.