Tom Simpson Biography

Tom Simpson has over 35 years of experience as an investment banker, venture capitalist, angel investor and entrepreneur. Tom was co-founder and Executive Chairman of Kaspien, an innovative eCommerce company which grew to $120 million in revenues and 175 employees prior to being acquired in 2016.

He is CEO of Ignite Northwest which focuses on funding, mentoring and accelerating explosively growing companies in the Spokane region, President of the Spokane Angel Alliance and Managing Member of the Kick-Start Seed Fund. Tom serves on the boards of Collabra Technology, Litehouse Health, Medcurity, Treasury4 and Vaagen Timbers, as a board observer for Gestalt, Spiceology and Vega and on the advisory board of Voyager Capital.

Previously, he had been Managing Partner of NWVA, a family of venture capital funds. NWVA invested over $125 million in emerging companies throughout the Northwest. Prior to forming NWVA, Tom was a Managing Director in Dain Bosworth's Seattle-based investment banking group and managed public offerings, private placements and mergers and acquisitions for multiple companies in the region. He began his career as a CPA for Deloitte, Haskins + Sells.

He has a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Washington, an MBA from The Wharton School and has served as an adjunct professor in Gonzaga University’s Hogan Entrepreneurial Leadership Program.

In 2018, Tom was inducted into Spokane's Citizen Hall of Fame for his contributions to Economic Development and Business in the region. In 2022, he received the Downtown Spokane Partnership's Legacy Award, which recognizes an individual person who has left a mark on Spokane by creating exceptional contributions to the business community and downtown vitality. In 2023, he was selected by the Spokane Journal of Business as one of its 24 People of Influence in the Spokane Region.

Tom is married with 6 children, holds a private pilot's license and has completed 5 IronMan Triathlons.