# Ground Up Investing LLC

> Ground Up Investing LLC is a VC fund in Baltimore backing Manufacturing and Retail. See 2 investments, check sizes, portfolio. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: Baltimore, United States
- Total investments: 2
- Last investment: Nov 2023
- Lead investor: 100%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lutheran-world-relief
- Website: https://lwr.org/ground-investing-llc

Ground Up Investing LLC is a VC fund in Baltimore focused on Manufacturing and Retail. Social Impact Fund owned and operated by Corus International

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Manufacturing | 2 | 100% |
| Retail | 1 | 50% |
| Snack Food | 1 | 50% |
| Life Science | 1 | 50% |
| Biotechnology | 1 | 50% |

6 industries tracked in total.

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Seed | 1 | 50% |
| Venture - Series Unknown | 1 | 50% |

### Country

| Country | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ecuador | 1 | 50% |
| United States | 1 | 50% |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Biochar Now | Biochar Now specializes in the biochar industry with strong engineering, manufacturing, sales, and administrative personnel focused on making and selling quality biochar. Biochar Now was incorporated Nov 2011 with three primary goals in mind like understand biochar’s beneficial properties and potential markets.It was founded in 2011 andheadquartered in Berthoud, Colorado. |  | Venture - Series Unknown | Nov 23, 2023 |  |
| To'ak | To’ak started from a rainforest conservation project in Ecuador and has become the global pioneer of luxury dark chocolate. It uses the world’s rarest and most prized cacao variety to make extremely limited editions of single-origin Ecuadorian dark chocolate. It is celebrated for its cask-aged editions, its unique emphasis on specific harvestseasons, and its ultra-elegant packaging and design. To’ak also pays farmers the highest cacao prices in the world and is leading the movement to nurse an ancient cacao variety back from the brink of extinction. To’ak is a tree-to-bar chocolate maker proudly based in Ecuador—the native origin of cacao. It has been featured in Forbes, Fortune Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Robb Report, The Guardian, Wine Spectator, Vice Magazine, Huffington Post, TV channels such as BBC, CNBC, CNN, FOX, and ARD, and over a hundred other publications across six continents. | $565K | Seed | Aug 10, 2021 |  |

2 of 2 investments shown.

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## Featured in investor lists
- [Retail Investors in Ecuador](https://shizune.co/investors/retail-investors-ecuador)
- [Food and Beverage Investors in Ecuador](https://shizune.co/investors/food-and-beverage-investors-ecuador)
- [Marketplace Investors in Ecuador](https://shizune.co/investors/marketplace-investors-ecuador)

## FAQ

### What does Ground Up Investing LLC invest in?

Ground Up Investing LLC invests primarily in Manufacturing, Retail and Snack Food startups, most often at Seed and Venture - Series Unknown stage. Most of the 2 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in Ecuador. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### When did Ground Up Investing LLC last invest?

The most recent investment recorded for Ground Up Investing LLC closed in Nov 2023. Shizune tracks 2 investments in total for this profile, including round sizes, stages and portfolio companies, all sourced from confirmed public funding rounds and refreshed monthly.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

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