Chris Burch, founder and CEO of Burch Creative Capital, has been an entrepreneur and active investor across a wide range of industries for nearly forty years. He has contributed to the rise of multiple technology and luxury brands, including Faena Hotel + Universe, Jawbone, Tory Burch, Poppin and Voss Water. He is a former board member of Tory Burch, Guggenheim Capital and The Continuum Group. Mr. Burch’s entrepreneurial success began in 1976 when he was still an undergraduate student at Ithaca College. With his brother Bob, he invested $2,000 to start Eagle’s Eye apparel, a business they grew to $165 million and then sold to Swire Group. After the sale of Eagle’s Eye, Mr. Burch was one of the earliest investors in Internet Capital Group, a well-known IPO story in the Internet space.
Mr. Burch relied increasingly on his ability to find the nexus between innovation and implementation and continued to realize unusual success, based in part on his intuitive understanding of consumer behavior and his experience utilizing superior sourcing infrastructure and direct-to-consumer channels.
Mr. Burch has invested in several domestic and international real estate ventures, including the partnership with architect Philippe Stark and hotelier Alan Faena in Argentina to redevelop an underutilized parcel of land into the Faena Hotel + Universe.
In July 2014, Mr. Burch announced a partnership with beloved entertainer, Ellen DeGeneres, to launch her lifestyle brand, ED by Ellen Degeneres. Later that year, he launched Cocoon9, luxury prefab homes with space-saving floor plans, contemporary design, energy efficient features, and sophisticated finishes. Burch’s investment portfolio also includes BaubleBar, Blink Health, Brad’s Raw Foods, Chubbies, Little Duck Organics, Poppin, Soludos, and the hospitality sourcing business Bur+Mah.
Mr. Burch was on the board of the Rothman Institute Orthopedic Foundation and is a past president of The Pierre Hotel Co-op Board. He has contributed funding toward research and philanthropic initiatives at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York, NYU Langone, The Sumba Foundation, The China Association of Social Work, The Child Welfare League of China and The Henry Street Settlement.
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