citybiz+ Topher Brewer Announces Switch to Grit Capital Partners

Topher Brewer has joined New York-headquartered Grit Capital Partners as partner and chief operating officer, the former ABS Capital Partners executive said in a LinkedIn post last week.

“Grit Capital Partners is an emerging venture capital firm that brings a new way of doing business to early-stage investing,” said Brewer, whose profile shows he joined the firm last November.  Saying the “incredible opportunity” perfectly aligned and reflected “closely with my core values and ethos,” Brewer said it has “felt like I found a mission that resonates precisely with the person I see when looking in the mirror.”

After starting his career at Legg Mason, Brewer worked at Brown Advisory, Facet Wealth and Sands Capital. At Brown, he helped create and build the firm’s asset management business from the ground up. At ABS Capital, which he joined in 2021, Brewer was a senior advisor. Brewer has a BA in Business Administration and Economics from Washington College.

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Grit Capital Partners, established in 2005, says it invests in high-potential entrepreneurs who aim to disrupt industries with technology and data. Its portfolio companies include zeel, PrivCo and SpeechLab. Its notable exits include clean.io, StreamMetrics and Bodeswell.

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The firm is led by founder and managing partner Paul Palmieri, a management veteran and successful entrepreneur. The Baltimore-based Palmieri previously co-founded Incremental and Millennial Media.

Prior to his entrepreneurial career, he held management positions at Verizon, Advertising.com, and Tessco Technologies. At Grit, Palmieri focuses on data and AI-based businesses in consumer software, marketing technology, media, and commerce. Palmieri is a graduate of Mount St. Mary’s University, where he serves as a trustee.