Growth Partners for Experience Businesses

Human
Connection
Elevated.

ElevateX partners with founder-led experience businesses, providing capital, operating expertise, and the right technology to help them grow without losing what makes them extraordinary.

$1.2T

Experience economy
projected by 2035

Consumers choosing
experiences over things

80%

Willing to pay more
for great experiences

What We See

Structural forces are reshaping how people live, work, and connect. Across every demographic, the shift is unmistakable: away from passive digital consumption and toward real-world experiences, belonging, and community. This is not a trend. It is a return to what people have always valued most.

At the same time, the businesses best placed to serve this demand, founder-led, experience-driven and community-rooted, are often the least equipped to scale it. Not because of what they lack in vision, but because of what they need in execution.

ElevateX exists to close that gap.

“Human connection is becoming scarcer, and therefore more valuable.”

01

A Human Connection Problem

AI, automation, and digital platforms are accelerating disruption and optimising for attention rather than connection. Real-world community, shared rituals, and belonging are eroding, creating a growing void that digital experiences simply cannot fill.

02

A Shift in What People Want

Demand is shifting decisively toward real-world shared experiences, belonging and community, repeat participation over one-off consumption, and experiences tied to identity, wellbeing, and self-development. The experience economy is projected to grow from $10B in 2025 to $1.2T by 2035.

03

Constrained by Execution

Founder-led experience businesses deliver premium, best-in-class offerings, but may face structural constraints on growth. What they need are partners who bring capital, operational rigour, and the right technology without diluting what makes them special.

The Founders

Sangeeta Desai

Investor · Growth Builder · Board Partner

Sangeeta Desai

Goldman SachsJPMorganApax PartnersFremantleOSNHIT Entertainment

Sangeeta Desai is an investor with deep operating experience building and scaling consumer-facing, content- and experience-driven businesses across international markets organically and through acquisitions.

Her career spans senior leadership roles in global media and entertainment companies, where she has led growth, transformation, and expansion in both developed and emerging markets. She has held executive roles including Group COO and CEO of Emerging Markets at Fremantle, CEO of OSN, COO of HIT Entertainment, and President and Board Director of Anton, working at the intersection of brand, audience, and commercial strategy to build durable, high-quality businesses.

Sangeeta began her career in investment banking at Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, before becoming a Principal at Apax Partners, investing globally in media businesses. She has also served as a non-executive director at Boatrocker Media, Ocean Outdoor, Mopar Media, and OSN.

She now focuses on partnering with founders of experience-led businesses to help them scale thoughtfully, strengthen customer loyalty, and create long-term value.

Nnenna Ilomechina

Operator · Builder · Transformation Partner

Nnenna Ilomechina

AccentureAlixPartnersDentsuPublicis SapientOpodo Travel

Nnenna Ilomechina is an experienced operator, CEO, COO and transformation leader with over 25 years' experience helping businesses scale through growth, complexity, and change. She has worked across technology, digital, media, and professional services, partnering closely with founders, boards, and investors to turn strong propositions into resilient, scalable businesses.

She has held senior operational leadership roles including CEO of Crownpeak, a private-equity-backed enterprise SaaS company, and Global COO of Dentsu International, overseeing operations across more than 70 markets. In these roles, Nnenna focused on enabling scale through clear strategy, simplified operating models, faster execution, and strong leadership cultures, delivering growth and EBITDA improvement.

Earlier in her career, Nnenna held senior roles at Accenture Strategy, AlixPartners, and Sapient (Publicis Sapient), advising multinational and PE-backed businesses across sectors on growth, operational improvement, and technology-enabled transformation.

She is known for bringing structure without bureaucracy and ambition without ego, and now partners with founder-led experience and lifestyle businesses to help them grow sustainably while preserving the human connection at their core.

Investment Sectors

The experience economy runs on community. We invest in the businesses that build it, enable it, and help it grow.

We invest in both experience operators and the businesses that power them.

🎾

Sports & Active Leisure

Tennis and padel travel camps, amateur sports travel, cycling tours. Strong identity alignment, repeat participation, and a multi-year growth cycle from beginners to ambassadors.

🧘

Wellness & Longevity

Hiking and trekking clubs, longevity retreats, mindfulness communities, adventure wellness travel. Longevity trends creating long-term engagement and lifestyle identity.

🍷

Culinary & Food Experiences

Food tours, chef-led dining, regional culinary travel, wine communities. Deeply tied to culture, identity and storytelling, community forms around taste, learning, and discovery.

🎨

Culture, Learning & Festivals

Creative retreats, cultural immersion trips, literature festivals, expert-led learning journeys. Meaningful intellectual experiences that create annual rituals and deepen belonging.

Amateur & Community Sport

Amateur football leagues, women's sports leagues, community competitions, school-to-adult leagues. Powerful identity formation and multiple adjacent revenue streams.

How We Work

In Summary

We invest in experience- and lifestyle-focused businesses that want:

Capital aligned to real growth initiatives

Experienced partners who understand both people and systems

Technology that strengthens the experience, not replaces it

The Ideal ElevateX Partner

A founder with a compelling experience or community-building brand, a loyal or growing community, and the ambition to scale, without losing what makes them special.

Let's Start a
Conversation.

If our philosophy resonates and you're a founder building something special in experience, community, or active lifestyle. We'd love to hear from you.