Nicole is Airbus Ventures’ Partner based in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining the fund, Nicole worked at Arnold & Porter LLP. She advised domestic and international borrowers, lenders, and private equity funds on a broad range of syndicated, secured, unsecured, senior and/or asset-based credit facilities and acquisition financings. Nicole received her J.D. from Fordham University School of Law and her B.A. from University of Richmond in International Studies: World Politics & Diplomacy and Women, Gender & Sexuality Studies.
Q&A:
You have a fairly unconventional path to venture capital. How did you wind up working with Airbus Ventures?
I am a lawyer by training and began my career in New York City. I had brief segues at the UN Office of Drugs and Crime and the Center for Reproductive Rights before starting at White & Case in the debt financing team. During my time in big law, I worked on a wide variety of financing structures and cross-border deals throughout the capital stack. In 2017, Airbus Americas' in-house legal team needed assistance, and I had the opportunity to support all of Airbus Ventures' financing transactions, as well as a few Airbus business lines and operational teams. While working side by side with the Airbus Ventures Partners on those deals, and while structuring and fundraising Fund-Z, we clicked -- not only in how we approached challenges with creative thinking and tenacity, but also as humans who operate with growth mindsets (and a love of jazz). We also saw the unique benefits of my legal, deal, and operational experience in complement to that of the AV team. I began exclusively working for Airbus Ventures in 2018 before becoming a Partner in 2020.
What advice would you give to an aspiring entrepreneur or investor?
Be curious. Seek excellence, then improve.
Illustrate your fondest childhood memory:
Before I learned to read on my own, I hauled tote bags full of books around and would ask people to read to me. Unfortunately, my mother had to rein me in when I started wandering off and asking complete strangers at the mall to do so.