Candice du Fretay, a former Accel investor known for backing breakout startups like agentic AI firm H Company and fantasy football unicorn Sorare. Is stepping out on her own with a new solo general partner (GP) venture fund. Her fund, called Outlier Grove, is targeting $20 million to invest in early-stage European B2B startups, with $10 million already secured.
Outlier Grove will write checks ranging from $200K to $500K at the angel and seed stage. With a clear goal: help European founders build with global ambitions from day one — particularly by navigating and entering the US market early.
“There’s this conventional wisdom that European startups should wait before engaging with the US,” du Fretay told Sifted. “But in reality, most of Europe’s most successful B2B platforms. Like Meero, UiPath, and Elastic — were already selling in the US ahead of their Series A.”
Her new initiative arrives at a time when many European entrepreneurs are feeling uncertain about crossing the Atlantic. Especially amid political headwinds like Donald Trump’s renewed ‘America First’ agenda. But du Fretay believes that despite macro challenges, the US remains an essential growth path for B2B startups.
“For most B2B categories, winning the US market is crucial to becoming a global category leader,” she said. “There’s no substitute for early traction there.”
Based in London, du Fretay spent four years at Accel, focusing on enterprise software, fintech, and consumer startups. Prior to that, she lived in the United States for nearly a decade. Working in financial advisory at Lazard before earning her MBA at Harvard Business School.
Her new fund is backed by a mix of institutional investors, family offices, and high-profile tech insiders. Including operators and C-suite execs from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Datadog, and Stripe. This influential LP base is a key part of her strategy to offer more than just capital.
“I’ll act as an extension of the founding team,” du Fretay explained. “From helping land early US customers to sharing best practices and opening up my LP network. It’s about removing friction and accelerating execution.”
Outlier Grove plans to back up to 25 startups over the next four years, with a strong focus on helping founders scale internationally from day one.
