Previously Unavailable Venture Fund 1
Previously Unavailable and Icehouse Ventures partnership lockup

Previously Unavailable Venture Funds are a Sequential Fund Series providing investors the opportunity to invest alongside PU in the high-potential early-stage ventures we choose to work with and invest in during each fund's season.

PU Venture Fund 1 - the first of these venture portfolios represents PU's investment opportunities through to 31 March 2023.

Previously Unavailable Venture Fund 1 is now fully invested, but remains open to new investors in the PIE. Please get in touch if you are interested in the opportunity to invest in this portfolio.

Current Investments

Accelerating first-home buyers to their deposit, faster Aera offer a range of headstarts and incentives to get people to their deposit and homeownership at life-changing pace.
Making the drink for when you aren’t drinking ‍AF Drinks are leading the non-alcoholic cocktail in a can movement, with incredible ranging in Walmart, Target and across Australasia.
Delivering behaviour-based food brand insights through an engaged community Appetise helps food-lovers choose recipes to plan their meals and simply shop online or in-store. From this community innovative food brands gain trends, understanding and insights to grow brands shoppers love.
The smart electrical panel that saves money and keeps you safe A world-leading smart panel that monitors your energy in real-time, alerts you to electrical faults before they become disasters, and puts over $1,500 back in your pocket every year.
The venture fund that backs companies where brand defines the winner Brand Fund 1 is a partnership between Previously Unavailable and Icehouse Ventures, built on a single conviction: in the right company, brand isn't a cost - it's the compounding advantage that separates category leaders from the rest.
The platform that turns employee wellbeing into data you can act on Most organisations guess at employee wellbeing, chnnl measures it. Built on clinical research by Dr. Elizabeth Berryman, chnnl gives leaders a connected system to listen to their teams, manage wellbeing resources, and report on psychological safety, all in one place.
Super effective cleaners and soaps - Safer for you & better for the planet Cleanery reinvented household cleaning from the ground up. Powerful plant and mineral-based formulas, delivered as a powder sachet you mix with water in a reusable bottle. More effective, better for the planet, and cheaper too.
The all-in-one platform powering the people who power your sport CoachMate gives sports organisations the tools to engage coaches, volunteers, schools and communities. From practice plans and skill-building challenges to real-time analytics, it's purpose-built for sport and trusted by national bodies.
World-leading home compostable kitchen convenience ‍The world’s first home compostable cling-wrap and now full range of kitchen non-plastic fantastic options. Leading their category in Wholefoods and Target, US wide.
The furniture platform that makes custom design simple and affordable ‍Consilio lets you design furniture entirely to your specifications - dimensions, configuration, materials, colour, finish - then see your creation in real-time with live pricing. From confirmed order to in-home delivery in just 3–5 weeks. Custom furniture, finally without the custom-furniture headache.
The Employee Experience Design programme transforming how HR teams work Excellent equips HR teams with design thinking skills to move beyond best practice and create tailored employee experiences that drive real business impact. Trusted by leaders at Uber, Patagonia, Deloitte and Sharesies - it's the world's leading EX Design programme.
Icehouse Ventures logo in white
New Zealand's leading venture capital firm backing Kiwi founders globally Since 2003, Icehouse Ventures has invested over $600 million into 350+ New Zealand-founded companies - from pre-seed to pre-IPO. They back exceptional founders with global ambition, and give investors access to the companies building Aotearoa's most exciting future.
The rapid research platform that helps you grow great ideas ‍Ideally are changing the way people who make products, software and marketing bring the voice of customer into their development process through fast, affordable and robust insights.
The wearable that shows you exactly when to do your best work Pylot tracks your brain wave activity and heart rate variability in real time, measuring your mental flow and fatigue as you work. So instead of guessing, you know precisely when to attack deep work - and when to take a break.
Radically affordable, beautiful, always on brand-tracking Tracksuit are changing how consumer brands work worldwide. They’re creating a new common language for measuring, reporting and making the case for more great brand work.
The slow-dried veggie mince made from real New Zealand vegetables Vince packs over 500g of real NZ-grown vegetables into every bag — slow-dried, no preservatives, no nasties. Just add boiling water for a quick, healthy meal in minutes. Perfect for busy families, trampers, and anyone who wants to eat more vegetables without the effort.
Zavy logo in white outline lettering
The social media management platform that tells you what actually works Zavy gives brands and agencies an all-in-one platform to publish, benchmark, report, and uncover AI-powered strategic insights - including competitor intelligence. Trusted by Fonterra, Westpac, Air New Zealand and more, it turns social media data into decisions that drive real results.

Investment Committee

Portrait of James Hurman, bearded man in glasses with arms crossed
James Hurman Chair & Founder
Previously Unavailable
Portrait of Simon Pound in an olive shirt
Simon Pound Co-CEO
Previously Unavailable
Portrait of Chris Paykel
Chris Paykel Co-CEO
Previously Unavailable

Get in touch

We take on select projects, working with companies who are inventing or reinventing. If there’s a project you’d like to talk to us about, please get in touch.

Auckland

Shop Future Demand

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Future Demand Vol. 2

Buy Now ↗

How marketing to tomorrow’s customers will break your brand out of the performance trap

Social Updates

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LinkedIn

29 May

Portrait is a new bespoke process from our venturing and strategy teams, built for marketers who want more ROI from their media spend.

LinkedIn

14 May

Hot off the press: our latest rebrand for Spoke just launched earlier this month ☎️

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LinkedIn

8 May

James Hurman has been on a world wide book tour — Helsinki, New York, Chicago, Toronto... and now finally, back in NZ!

By The Numbers

$500m+

Launched
Companies

40+

Equity
Companies

4

Venture Funds

Weekly Whakatauki

He iti te mokoroa, nāna i kati te kahikatea
Something much larger can be overcome by something much smaller.

Where in the world is James Hurman?

Cannes

43.5539° N, 7.0170° E

Bookshelf

The Boy and the Lemon – James Hurman & Juliet Burton

AUX

Retrograde – James Blake

Overheard at Previously

“Walking is actually good for you”

Studio Snaps

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Black and white photo of a man sitting on a sofa
Black and white photo of a dog sitting indoors
Black and white photo of people chatting in a room
Black and white photo of a busy open-plan office
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Clients & Partners

Icehouse Ventures
Westpac
AF Drinks
Ārepa
Fonterra
Emma Lewisham
MedWorld
NZTE
DB Breweries
Education Perfect
Torrens University Australia
OnBoard
Shuttlerock
Pylot
Lion
Mānuka Health
Ideally
Tracksuit
Breast Cancer Foundation NZ
Helius
Brothers Beer
ASB
BNZ
Fonterra
Melodics
Sunfeld
Contact Energy
Simplicity
Futurity
PieFunds
DB Breweries
WOOP!
Ārepa
Hawker & Roll
Stolen Rum
21C Skills Lab
Ascential
Heineken
Clearhead
Westpac
Stuff
AF Drinks
Spark
The Comfort Group
NZ Trade & Enterprise
Serious Food Co.
Toothcrush
Timely
Compostic
Medworld
Growbright
Sanford
Emma Lewisham
Goodman Fielder
TVNZ
PĀMU