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The 16 most interesting people who work in London’s coolest startup office
Iwaan Baan/Rohan Silva/Twitter/Second Home
What a typical day at Second Home probably looks like.
Second Home is the unique East London office that’s home to a curated collection of tech companies, investors, novelists and even a chef.
But it’s not just the people inside Second Home that make it interesting. The space was designed by architects SelgasCano, and plays hosts to concerts, talks and even fitness sessions.
The office is also home to the Jago Restaurant, which serves modern food cooked by Louis Solley, formerly head chef of Ottolenghi.
We collected some of the most interesting people who work inside Second Home. See them here:
15. Artsy’s London representative Legacy Russell
Artsy is the New York startup that brings together artists and galleries to share and sell art online. The company has brought in over $50 million in funding, and is a favourite of the art world. Its investors include Larry Gagosian, Dasha Zhukova, and Wendi Deng. Legacy Russell is Artsy’s UK representative, and connects artists and galleries with the platform.
Russell is also an established artist and filmmaker, and held her first solo exhibition in New York in 2014.
Twitter: @legacyrussell
14. Chef Louis Solley
Solley is the chef behind Second Home’s in house-restaurant, Jago. He previously worked as the head chef of prestigious restaurant Ottolenghi. Solley graduated from Westminster University, and then went to work in London’s restaurant.
Jago serves a mix of southern European, Middle Eastern, and Ashkenazi food. Observer restaurant critic Jay Rayner praised the restaurant in his review, calling the orange tart a “contender for dessert of the year” for both 2014 and 2015.
Twitter: @jagorestaurant
13. Ksenia Zemtsova and Philippine Nguyen run Unlimited Productions
Zemtsova and Nguyen are the cofounders of Unlimited Productions, a production company that brings cultural events to urban environments. The company stages unique events, including performances that take place after dark, and is hosting an upcoming event in a former lighthouse in East London.
Twitter: @UNLTD_Prod
12. Second Home cofounder Sam Aldenton
Aldenton cofounded Second Home with Silva in 2014, and helps to manage the space, as well as the series of events held inside. He previously cofounded many different unique events and spaces in London, including Feast, The Long Table, and Dalston Roof Park.
No Twitter?
11. ASAP54 founder Daniela Neves
Neves is the founder of ASAP54, a site that uses image-recognition technology to help people discover fashion online. Shoppers can use the site’s app to scan clothes they’re interested in, and it automatically finds it online, or suggests similar items. But it’s not all algorithms: The site also employs personal stylists, and includes a social network about fashion. ASAP54 announced in 2014 that it had raised $3 million (£1.9 million) in funding.
Neves’ husband, José Neves, is also the CEO of a fashion technology startup. He runs online fashion retailer Farfetch.
Twitter: @dandacecilio
10. Fueled CEO Rameet Chawla
The New York Post called Chawla “the most stylish man in high tech,” and it’s easy to see why. He’s the CEO of Fueled, the development agency that works with startups to build their apps. The company owns stock in over 30 startups, and is worth over $30 million.
Chawla regularly attends the Burning Man festival, and is known for his outlandish fashion, which he documents on his Instagram account.
Twitter: @rameet
9. Investor Leila Rastegar Zegna
Rastegar Zegna cofounded VC fund Spring Partners with Llustre founder Tracey Doree. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, as well as a BS in Mathematics and Philosophy from Yale University. Rastegar Zegna was also part of the founding team of GenapSys, a DNA sequencing company that raised over $50 million.
Rastegar Zegna’s husband, Edoardo Zegna, is also based at Second Home. He was formerly the head of product at Everlane, and now works as the head of E-business at the Ermenegildo Zegna group.
Twitter: @lrastegar
8. State and Jawbone founder Alex Asseily
Asseily is the founder of State, an online opinion network launched in 2014 with his brother Mark. Users of State can share their thoughts on different topics, and the site connects them to similarly minded people. State’s advisers include World Wide Web inventor Sir Timothy Berners-Lee, Lady Gaga’s manager Troy Carter, author Deepak Chopra, and Upworthy CEO Eli Pariser. The company has raised over $14 million (£8.9 million) in funding.
Asseily is also known for founding hardware company Jawbone, makers of the UP fitness tracker and Jambox speakers. Asseily is an investor in Second Home, and gave every founding member a Jambox speaker when it launched. It’s OK, though, all the studios in Second Home are soundproof.
Twitter: @aasseily
7. 5×15 Stories cofounder Daisy Leitch
Leitch is the cofounder of a unique series of events. 5×15 Stories collects five speakers in one place, and gives them each 15 minutes to talk. The series of talks has brought in big names, including Brian Eno, Ranulph Fiennes, Niall Ferguson, Bear Grylls, Evgeny Lebedev, Joanna Lumley, and Max Mosley.
Twitter: @5x15stories
6. TaskRabbit’s European chief Uma Subramanian
Subramanian heads up on-demand services startup TaskRabbit‘s operations in Europe. The site lets people order people to help them with different things. You can hire everything from handymen, to people to shop for you, all charging by the hour. The company has raised over $37 million (£23 million) in funding since launching in 2008.
Before joining TaskRabbit, Subramanian worked in the space industry. She was a systems engineer at Northrop Grumman, as well as a principal in the Space Angels Network. Subramanian hasn’t left the space rocket industry behind, though, and regularly organises meet-ups for people working in the field.
Twitter: umita01
5. Google Ventures general partner Tom Hulme
Google bought its VC fund, Google Ventures, to Europe in July 2014, and angel investor Tom Hulme joined the team as a general partner. He also founded open design network OpenIDEO, and worked as managing director of British sportscar Marcos.
Hulme is also an investor in Second Home, and regularly works from the office.
Twitter: @thulme
4. Novelist Tahmima Anam
Anam is Second Home’s resident novelist, and is currently working on her third novel, which is due out in 2016. Her first book, “A Golden Age,” won the Best First Book prize at the 2008 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, and its sequel, “The Good Muslim,” was nominated for the 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize longlist. Anam also writes for The New York Times, The Guardian, and the New Statesman.
Twitter: @tahmima
3. Kovert Designs founder Kate Unsworth
Unsworth is the founder of Kovert Designs, a wearable tech company that produces a device made especially for women. The Kovert Altrius is a small device that looks like a gemstone, and can be worn as a ring, necklace, or bracelet. But it also helps users focus more, as it screens notifications to make sure that only the most important ones get through.
Unsworth is a former model who read maths and science at university. She also worked as a technology consultant at Accenture, as well as a ski instructor.
Twitter: @kateuns
2. Second Home cofounder Rohan Silva
Silva is the former government technology advisor who was part of the team that created the Tech City UK initiative. He worked closely with George Osborne since 2006, and oversaw the growth of the UK’s startup scene, playing a key role in the government’s relationship with the growing tech cluster.
Silva left government in 2013, and went to work for VC fund Index Ventures. But he quickly decided to launch his own project, and created East London coworking space Second Home.
Second Home was started by Silva, and is supported by over 30 investors who provided over £4 million to back the project. Some of those investors, including Alex Asseily and Tom Hulme, now work from the office.
Twitter: @rohan__silva
1. Investor Saul Klein
Klein is a well-known investor in Europe, formerly of Index Ventures. He joined Index in 2007, and invested in successful tech companies such as Songkick, Chartbeat, and MyHeritage. Another frequent visitor to Second Home is Klein’s father, investor Robin Klein. Together, they invested in companies such as MOO, Tweetdeck, and bit.ly.
Klein is also known for cofounding movie rental service LoveFilm and serving as its CEO, being one of Skype’s original executives, and cofounding the Seedcamp startup accelerator program.
Twitter: @cape
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