Hollin Hills, 1961
About JEFF
I'm a recently retired angel investor (with my remaining startup investments now playing out) and former big box retail exec, avid birder and active lister, grandfather, author of the only book on the history of Kohl’s Department Stores, lifelong student of business models, collector of neat stuff, and a seeker of fun experiences. As I head toward my version of retirement, I am devoting little time and energy to producing online content. There's only so much time in a day, and I want to dedicate a nice chunk of it to enjoying this incredible golden age of series, movies, podcasts, and the written word. I've always loved the journey of planning and enjoying fun experiences with my family and friends; in the future, I’m now trying to make it an even more significant part of my life. I also have had a lot of fun collecting older, finely detailed things made by incredibly talented artisans. I’ve always been attracted to the romance of antiquity and have enjoyed the thrill of the hunt for that elusive item, although of late, it’s become more about culling the herd and focusing on what you love vs. what you just really like.
I'm really into birding. It's the source of my spiritual connectedness. When I go birding, it's like going to church, which is great because I don't have people between me and my maker. I live on 16 acres on Lake Michigan north of Milwaukee and spend a lot of my time now on the property. Keeping a life list plays to my competitive side. I'm world-ranked (#41) for having so far identified 850 species of birds in the ABA Area (the United States, including Hawaii and Canada). You can read more about my passion for birds here. I also really like (but am not addicted to) golf and have tried to play the Top 50 U.S. public golf courses (I’ve now played 47 of the 50).
After spending 22 years in retail management, I left corporate mainstream in 2000 and founded Milwaukee's first angel network. Over the next 22 years, I invested in dozens of early-stage companies after reviewing thousands and thousands of business plans and conducting what I thought was good due diligence. I have been very fortunate to have so much experiential variety being involved in so many startups from various industries and businesses. In November 2015, I was inducted into the Wisconsin Investors Hall of Fame, and in August 2012, I received the George Dalton Inspirational Entrepreneur Award. I've been on the board of directors of several private and public companies and non-profits. I've always derived immense satisfaction in helping to build something from nothing. And when there's a 'win,' it's exhilarating.
It’s hard to beat the rush of working with brilliant people as part of a team and on a mission to succeed and accomplish the agreed-upon goal. It’s immensely satisfying. I’m one lucky boy to have had some wins like that over the years. Conversely, it's no fun when a startup fails, as most of them do. More to the point, it sucks. People who know me will confirm that I don't like to lose! I now recall all the times the mantra ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ was a way too familiar part of the early startup lexicon. Projecting optimism is one thing, but I now find far too many startups pitching their wares in the same neighborhood as former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes. I now shake my head. Yes, it's a little crazy making that I've been so into startups for so many years and it probably helps explain why I’ve retired from making new investments. But to be clear, I still have a few dogs on the hunt. Since early 2020, I have recently leaned in as Chairman and lead investor of a digital health startup, MediCardia (www.medicardiahealth.com). I am also Chairman of SpayVac (www.spayvac.com), developing single-dose wildlife fertility control vaccines.
To put it simply, a big part of my journey, as it has been for so many years but even more so today, is about actively surrounding my little world -- literally, my space, inside whatever four walls I reside in at the moment as well as outside when I am in the open air -- with the good and the beautiful and the genuine and the intellectually honest, as best I can, and distancing myself from, you know, the craziness. Shields up, Scotty! At least, that's part of the plan and a cornerstone of one of my fundamental truths. This usually means spending a lot of time around birds.
I have been startled at just how hard it is to be heard in today's world. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t expecting this. There is so much noise, distraction, and content overload with ever-shrinking attention spans. So much for much value being put into a person’s experience and wisdom; those days now seem long gone. This website helps me to maintain my voice. You have access to my writings, thoughts, selected photos, book, and all kinds of stuff. I get genuine satisfaction from having a repository of an essential chunk of my world available for people to see and explore.
I hope you find some nuggets if you so choose to mine.
MY TRUTHS
I’ve spent a significant part of my life processing stuff in an attempt to figure it out. And I have some genuine peace of mind that maybe I’ve cracked the code a bit, particularly when understanding the human condition. Yet, as I get older, I realize there are so many things I'll NEVER be able to reconcile fully. It has taken me forever to reflect and dial into the truth that human history is fleeting, that civilizations rise and fall from war, weather, and the flaws of human nature. And that a republic is only as strong as its constituency. And our brains are wired so that many people (including persons you would swear would or should know better) can't filter and process, much less discern the difference between facts, science, and the nonsensical. How can you deal with that? By learning about the human condition. Then, have a strategy to deal with it as well as possible.
Also, sometimes people get dealt a crappy hand (no, I don't believe that everything happens for a reason). But there is always the next hand. Now, I am more accepting, or at least more resigned to much of this. The stuff I have figured out over recent years has helped ground me to some extent and has provided me with some genuine contentment that I honestly didn't have in the past. There’s nothing easy about a lot of this.
With this in mind, I've accumulated my truths, distilled and refined over the past couple of decades, about business, health and well-being, happiness, and various other topics.
Read my truths here.
MY Investments
To date, I've invested in about 60 startups, primarily pre-revenue. Many of these investments were unmitigated disasters and complete write-offs, but nine have had successful exits. I've been chairman and lead investor in two startups acquired by Fortune 500 companies: Internet retailer BUYSEASONS, which owned and managed the largest retailer of costumes in the world and was sold to Liberty Media in 2006, and ModernMed, a healthcare services company, which was acquired by DaVita in 2012.
I was also one of the few investing angels and was initially on the Board of Directors of Propeller Health, which was sold to ResMed in 2019.
You'll be able to read more about my investments here.
From the Blog
There's More
FAMILY Foundation
The Rusinow Family Foundation was founded in 2000, after I left corporate mainstream. Through mid-2024, the Foundation has donated over a million dollars (Note: the foundation was ‘closed’ in July, 2024, essentially put on hiatus as things play out in life and in the world in general).
THE FAMILY TREE
I've spent an extensive amount of time putting leaves and branches on my family tree. See the results and how I did it here.