South Loop Ventures was built to confront the systemic failures that have long distorted how venture capital flows in America and to ensure everyone the opportunity to design a better world in which to live.
At South Loop, this is more than a quote — it’s a responsibility to build, to lead, and to change things for the better that once seemed unimaginable.
This isn’t about inclusion for its own sake.
It’s about being empowered to solve one’s own problems, as well as craft the futures we want to live.
It’s about unlocking innovation where no one else is looking.
We believe lived experience isn’t a liability — it’s a superpower and a strategic edge.
That’s our advantage. And it’s how we win.
South Loop Ventures’ name is inspired by the southern half of US Interstate 610 (known locally as “The Loop”) in Houston, TX. This area encompasses the city’s 2nd and 3rd Wards, which are recognized as the historically Latino and Black communities of Houston.
Coincidentally, many underrepresented communities of color across the US reside in similarly named areas such as South Side Chicago, South Bronx, Southeast DC, South Central Los Angeles, and South Phoenix to name a few.
Our name is a salute to these communities, their vibrance, their resilience and their relentless pursuit of equity.
We are a diverse group of technologists, operators, and industry leaders with deep expertise across a range of sectors, united by a shared passion for helping visionary founders build enduring, scalable businesses.
Investment & Operations
Zach Ellis Jr.
Founder & Managing Partner
Zach Ellis, Jr. is the Founder and Managing Partner of South Loop Ventures, where he’s responsible for managing all elements of fund strategy, investment, operations, and portfolio management.
His previous experiences include Managing Director at Rev1 Ventures, corporate venture capital at PepsiCo; strategy consulting at Humana, and commercializing university research at The Ohio State University and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.
Zach is a member of Kauffman Fellows Class 30 and began his career as an active duty officer in the US Navy. He holds a BS from the United States Naval Academy, an MS in biotechnology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and an MBA from the Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business.
Winston Gilpin
Fund Accounting
Winston Gilpin is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of GSqrd Consulting, LLC, with over 30
years of experience in finance, operations, and executive leadership. He was the founding CFO
and is now COO of Mercury Fund and previously held CFO roles at several high-growth tech
companies, leading multiple successful acquisitions. Winston began his career in accounting and
finance leadership roles across construction, equipment, and financial services. He holds a
degree from St. John’s University and is a licensed CPA in Texas.
Andreas Galliker, CFA
Fund Administration
Andreas Galliker is a co-founder and managing partner at GSqrd Consulting, LLC where he provides and oversees fund administrative services to venture funds and SPVs. Andreas is also the Chief Financial Officer at Mercury Fund. Prior to GSqrd and Mercury, Andreas worked with Cintrifuse, a Cincinnati-based venture capital fund-of-funds, and for Northcreek, a mid-market mezzanine fund. Prior to that, he was a Mandate Manager for an Audit, Tax, and Financial Advisory Firm, where he was responsible for annual reporting, audit mandates, and investment accounts. Andreas received his BBA in Finance, and his M.S. in Finance, where he was a UGS Scholar, from the University of Cincinnati. He received a Swiss certified specialist in accounting and finance degree (CPA equivalent) from the Institute of Higher Business Education in Lucerne, Switzerland and is a CFA charter holder and a member of the CFA Society Houston. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family, cooking and tennis.
Sector Advisors
Manolo Sanchez
Fintech Advisor
Manolo Sánchez is currently a director at Fannie Mae (FNM), Stewart Information Systems (STC), the Boeing Employees Credit Union (BECU) and MPower Financing, after having served a 27 year career at BBVA bank, including as Chairman & CEO of BBVA Compass for 10 years. At Rice University’s Jones School of Business, he teaches disruption in financial services with a focus on crypto currencies and blockchain. Manolo is an advisor to several fintech and blockchain startups.
He has served as a director of OnDeck Capital (ONDK purchased by Enova in October 2020), BanCoppel Mexico, the American Bankers Association, the Institute of International Bankers, the Greater Houston Partnership, the Financial Services Roundtable and BITS (the technology policy division of FSR). He is currently a trustee at the Center for Houston’s Future.
Sánchez has volunteered extensively in the communities where he has worked, with a focus on education, health and the arts. He serves as a director of Good Reason Houston, KIPP Texas, Brighter Bites and Texas Children’s Hospital. Manolo is a past director of the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the Houston Grand Opera, the Houston Symphony, and past chair of the Post Oak Montessori School board.
A graduate of Yale University, Sánchez earned master’s degrees in international relations from the London School of Economics and in advanced European economics from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium. A native of Murcia, Spain, Sánchez first came to the U.S. as a high school exchange student. In addition to English and Spanish, he speaks French, German and Arabic. A naturalized US citizen, he lives in Houston with his wife and three children.
John "JR" Reale
Healthtech Advisor
John S. Reale, Jr. (JR) JR is an experienced early-stage technology company investor, entrepreneur and executive. JR founded Integr8d Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm launched in 2017. Integr8d Capital partners with founders launching their ventures in-and-through the City of Houston to build transformative companies. JR also serves as Executive in Residence (EIR) at TMC Innovation. As EIR, he is an in-house resource for companies throughout the community. In addition, he advises the Healthcare Accelerator on strategy to advance how the TMC delivers value to its Member Institutions and entrepreneurs. JR also leads the TMC Venture Fund, a $25M fund that invests in early-stage companies changing the face of healthcare connecting through the Texas Medical Center.
JR serves on the Advisory Board for the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship; the Investment Committee for the Cougar Venture Fund at the University of Houston; as Entrepreneur in Residence for the Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (LILIE) at Rice University; was the past-President of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) Houston chapter; and mentor at numerous start-up acceleration programs. JR is a member of the Startup Champions Network, a national organization of startup ecosystem leaders. Finally, JR co-founded the Mentoring Initiative at Cristo Rey Jesuit Preparatory High School in Houston (Viva Cristo Rey!).
JR received his B.S. in Finance and Investments from Babson College in Massachusetts. JR and his wife, Kim, are the proud parents of the first Houston-born member of their family, their daughter, Juliana!
Andrea Course
Energy / Climatech Advisor
Andrea Course is a seasoned technologist, environmentalist, and champion for gender balance, with nearly two decades of experience in the energy sector as both a technical subject matter expert and investor. She has built a remarkable career rooted in sustainability and innovation, focusing on transformative areas such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, robotics, and decarbonization.
Andrea most recently served as Digital Innovation Program Manager and Venture Principal at Shell, where she invested in start-up and scale-up companies driving the energy transition. She has held board seats at multiple innovative companies, among them Innowatts (Digital Energy Platform), Osperity (Visual Inspection), Mirico (Methane Detection), and Wirescan (Digital cable monitoring). Before Shell, Andrea was a Venture Principal at Schlumberger Technology Investments, further cementing her expertise in identifying and supporting breakthrough technologies. She is also the founder and managing partner of Course Investments, where she actively supports minority-owned startups.
Andrea holds a degree in Engineering Physics from the University of Central Oklahoma, a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Oklahoma, and an executive MBA from the University of Houston.
Senior Firm Advisors
Blair Garrou
Senior Firm Advisor
Blair Garrou has spent the majority of his professional career advising, operating, and investing in software companies, with a focus on enabling technologies for retailers and brands. He is co-founder and Managing Partner of Mercury Fund, one of the largest early-stage venture capital firms headquartered in Texas. Blair is also an Adjunct Professor at the Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University where he teaches a course on venture capital.
Prior to co-founding Mercury, Blair was CEO of Intermat, a leader in product information management software (acquired by IHS). During this time, he was also named to the Houston Business Journal’s inaugural “40 under 40.” Prior to Intermat, Blair was a Principal of Genesis Park, a Houston-based venture capital and private equity firm, where he focused on software investments. Prior to Genesis Park, Blair helped launch and was the Director of Operations for the Houston Technology Center (HTC), the largest technology incubator in the state of Texas, and led the formation of the Houston Angel Network (HAN), one of the largest and most active angel investment organizations in the U.S. Previously, Blair was an investment banker with Nesbitt Burns (BMO Capital Markets), a credit analyst with Compass Bank (BBVA Compass), and an auditor with Deloitte & Touche (Deloitte).
Garrou received a B.S. in Management with special attainments in Commerce from Washington & Lee University. Through his work in the Houston entrepreneurial community, Blair is also a co-founder of the coworking accelerator Station Houston (now a part of the Ion and Capital Factory), and SURGE Accelerator, a mentor-driven seed accelerator focused on entrepreneurs seeking to solve the world’s energy problems using software. Outside of Mercury, Blair serves in board and/or advisory roles for The Artemis Fund, DivInc, Houston Exponential, UTHealth, and Washington & Lee’s Connolly Center for Entrepreneurship.
Manolo Sanchez
Senior Firm Advisor
Manolo Sánchez is currently a director at Fannie Mae (FNM), Stewart Information Systems (STC), the Boeing Employees Credit Union (BECU) and MPower Financing, after having served a 27 year career at BBVA bank, including as Chairman & CEO of BBVA Compass for 10 years. At Rice University’s Jones School of Business, he teaches disruption in financial services with a focus on crypto currencies and blockchain. Manolo is an advisor to several fintech and blockchain startups.
He has served as a director of OnDeck Capital (ONDK purchased by Enova in October 2020), BanCoppel Mexico, the American Bankers Association, the Institute of International Bankers, the Greater Houston Partnership, the Financial Services Roundtable and BITS (the technology policy division of FSR). He is currently a trustee at the Center for Houston’s Future.
Sánchez has volunteered extensively in the communities where he has worked, with a focus on education, health and the arts. He serves as a director of Good Reason Houston, KIPP Texas, Brighter Bites and Texas Children’s Hospital. Manolo is a past director of the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the Houston Grand Opera, the Houston Symphony, and past chair of the Post Oak Montessori School board.
A graduate of Yale University, Sánchez earned master’s degrees in international relations from the London School of Economics and in advanced European economics from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium. A native of Murcia, Spain, Sánchez first came to the U.S. as a high school exchange student. In addition to English and Spanish, he speaks French, German and Arabic. A naturalized US citizen, he lives in Houston with his wife and three children.
Mark Kahn
Senior Firm Advisor
Mark Kahn is a Managing Partner at Omnivore, a venture capital firm that supports visionary founders creating impact at scale across India by advancing food security, agricultural prosperity, resource efficiency, and rural resilience. Omnivore pioneered agritech and climate-smart venture investing in India, and currently manages USD 295 million across two active venture funds.
Previously, Mark was the Executive Vice President (Strategy & Business Development) at Godrej Agrovet, one of India's foremost diversified agribusiness companies. At Godrej Agrovet, Mark was responsible for corporate strategy, M&A, R&D, and new business incubation. Earlier in his career, Mark worked for Syngenta and PFM. He earned a BA (Honors) from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from Harvard Business School, where he graduated as a Baker Scholar.
Former Interns
Andres Bryan
Former Intern
Biomedical engineer and finance professional pursuing his Master’s in Finance at UH. At South Loop Ventures, he focuses on early-stage biotech and healthcare startups, with prior research in advanced medical imaging.
Sarah Nash:
Former Intern
MBA candidate at Rice University with a background in Petroleum Engineering. Sarah brings experience from Accenture and Two Sigma and is set to begin a full-time role in Investment Banking after graduation.
Millad Mortazavi
Former Intern
Petroleum Engineer and MBA candidate at Rice University. With prior roles at Accenture and Two Sigma, Millad is preparing to launch his career in Investment Banking following graduation.
Patrick Okorafor
Former Intern
Accounting professional with private equity firm experience. Earned an MBA from Rice University. After graduating, he obtained a full-time role in venture capital fund administration working for Mercury Fund.
Jarell Mason
Former Intern
Jarell Mason is a Partnerships and M&A professional with a strong track record of leading strategic investments and partnerships across the climate tech and software sectors. He brings a unique blend of technical and financial expertise, holding an electrical engineering degree from the Pennsylvania State University and an MBA in Finance and Entrepreneurship from the University of Chicago. He is now a partnerships and M&A professional.
He has led end-to-end execution of high-impact deals—sourcing opportunities, conducting diligence, building financial models, negotiating terms, and deploying capital. His work spans both project-level investments and corporate transactions, with a focus on solar financing platforms, technology integrations, and growth-stage SaaS partnerships. Whether structuring joint ventures, equity investments, or commercial agreements, Jarell brings a strategic lens and operational rigor to every deal.
To drive innovation, impact, and lasting societal change by investing in remarkable, underrepresented founders of color — and equipping them with the capital, community, and conviction to build transformative companies.
We envision a future where venture capital fuels innovation that benefits and reflects the full breadth of America — where success is not pattern-matched, but powered by the benefits of diverse perspectives, experiences; cultural insights, and untapped genius.
