Oliver Van Vliet

Oliver van Vliet is a serial entrepreneur, operator and angel investor who describes his aim as being "the best partner for entrepreneurs building disruptive consumer and enterprise software companies." Across his public profiles he cites roughly a decade (~11 years) of deep experience in consumer technology, social media and mobile applications, and describes himself as an active investor in more than six startups. He is closely identified with the travel-discovery startup Exploy (formerly Hipexplore, Inc.), where he is listed as CEO/CMO — a mobile and web community for listing and discovering unique places and travel experiences around the world at any price point.

In addition to Exploy, records tie him to a cluster of consumer ventures under related brands, including Hipvilla and Fabtask, and to the investment vehicle Winston Venture ("Winston VC"). Public profile data (Crunchbase, F6S) associates the same individual with the name Oliver Louis Cartier, a Copenhagen-based operator who studied at Parsons School of Design – The New School and has also been listed as a Partner at Arkitektt, with prior roles across Exploy, Fabtask, Winston Venture and Hipvilla.

As an investor, van Vliet operates primarily through AngelList, running a syndicate ("ovv-hipexplore-com" / Winston VC) that lets other angels and micro-VCs co-invest alongside him. His stated model is to partner with quality angel investors and micro VCs to build a support network for young companies, forming relationships with tech entrepreneurs at the earliest stages and continuing to back them through growth. He has organized regional syndicates, including a Nordic Tech syndicate, and publishes occasional commentary on travel-tech investing, luxury brand collaboration and business transformation.

• Stage: Seed and early stage — "discovery seed" partnerships formed with founders at the earliest stages, with continued support through growth.
• Check size: Individual deals in the ~$50,000–$500,000 range; syndicate participants can join from a $2,500 minimum per deal, with a 20% carry, targeting on the order of ~25 deals per year.
• Sectors: Consumer and enterprise software, with a personal tilt toward consumer web, social media, mobile apps, growth-stage consumer products, and travel technology.
• Geography: Strong preference for the North European / Nordic region, while sourcing co-investment globally through the AngelList syndicate.
• In his own words: He wants to "be the best partner for entrepreneurs building disruptive consumer and enterprise software companies," and invites co-investors to "join WinstonVC's minor syndicates and invest alongside other great players worldwide" with the option to "syndicate specific startups before anyone else."
• What makes him say yes: Founder-first, hands-on partnership at the earliest stages, favoring disruptive consumer/software products where his operating background in mobile, social and growth is relevant.