Cassandra Jayne Harris
Cassandra Jayne Harris (born 4 January 1982) is a South African-born tech investor, business angel investor and entrepreneur.
Early life and education
Harris was born in South Africa but holds a UK passport. Her mother is from Wincanton, in Somerset. Harris moved to London after attaining a in Computers and Marketing from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Harris made the Tech City Top 100 list in 2015 for her work with start-ups and has won several awards.
Harris’s angel investments continued, first with Taylor Morris Eyewear, the British eyewear fashion brand created by her friend, Made In Chelsea celebrity Hugo Taylor, and subsequently with the world’s first ‘social petwork’, Petbu.
Harris went on to found Venturespring, an international venture development studio. Venturespring specialises in bringing global brands, investors and talented entrepreneurs together, in order to develop innovative start-ups into independent businesses. The company’s first big success came when it won the contract to become Vodafone’s first ‘co-creation partner’, a deal that enabled it to begin working with the telecommunications giant, to create new products and services, such as apps and wearable technologies.
Harris and Venturespring played a key role in the creation of Wileyfox, a British mobile handset that combines stylish handsets and service with CyanogenMod, a customised Android OS experience. Wileyfox in 2015 went from concept to launch in less than twelve months.
Also in 2015, Harris’s Venturespring launched a campaign backed by Mayor of London Boris Johnson and IBM. The campaign [https://www.forbes.com/sites/montymunford/2016/01/20/the-smart-city-challenge-finalists-will-change-the-face-of-london/#e6b1bd76bab6 Smart City Challenge 2015] joined calls for solutions to smart city living and working. Boris Johnson said of the campaign: and garnered celebrity support.
The venture’s 1-for-1 training model (for every SME undertaking training, Freeformers trains one young person at no cost) has attracted several high-profile corporate clients, including Vodafone and Unilever.
In 2013, Harris launched a programme, in partnership with the Knowle West Media Centre (KWMC) in Bristol to help young female victims of domestic violent relationships, to boost their employment prospects, raise self-confidence and develop a better awareness of digital technology.
In 2014, Venturespring launched a pilot to help ex-prisoners from HM Prison East Sutton Park into tech roles.
Personal life
In 2013, Harris is married to Formula One events entrepreneur Jonny Dodge and lives in London.
Early life and education
Harris was born in South Africa but holds a UK passport. Her mother is from Wincanton, in Somerset. Harris moved to London after attaining a in Computers and Marketing from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.
Harris made the Tech City Top 100 list in 2015 for her work with start-ups and has won several awards.
Harris’s angel investments continued, first with Taylor Morris Eyewear, the British eyewear fashion brand created by her friend, Made In Chelsea celebrity Hugo Taylor, and subsequently with the world’s first ‘social petwork’, Petbu.
Harris went on to found Venturespring, an international venture development studio. Venturespring specialises in bringing global brands, investors and talented entrepreneurs together, in order to develop innovative start-ups into independent businesses. The company’s first big success came when it won the contract to become Vodafone’s first ‘co-creation partner’, a deal that enabled it to begin working with the telecommunications giant, to create new products and services, such as apps and wearable technologies.
Harris and Venturespring played a key role in the creation of Wileyfox, a British mobile handset that combines stylish handsets and service with CyanogenMod, a customised Android OS experience. Wileyfox in 2015 went from concept to launch in less than twelve months.
Also in 2015, Harris’s Venturespring launched a campaign backed by Mayor of London Boris Johnson and IBM. The campaign [https://www.forbes.com/sites/montymunford/2016/01/20/the-smart-city-challenge-finalists-will-change-the-face-of-london/#e6b1bd76bab6 Smart City Challenge 2015] joined calls for solutions to smart city living and working. Boris Johnson said of the campaign: and garnered celebrity support.
The venture’s 1-for-1 training model (for every SME undertaking training, Freeformers trains one young person at no cost) has attracted several high-profile corporate clients, including Vodafone and Unilever.
In 2013, Harris launched a programme, in partnership with the Knowle West Media Centre (KWMC) in Bristol to help young female victims of domestic violent relationships, to boost their employment prospects, raise self-confidence and develop a better awareness of digital technology.
In 2014, Venturespring launched a pilot to help ex-prisoners from HM Prison East Sutton Park into tech roles.
Personal life
In 2013, Harris is married to Formula One events entrepreneur Jonny Dodge and lives in London.
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