Phil Giesler
Phil Giesler is the Director of Innovation for Unilever Corporate Ventures. He is based in San Francisco as a full-time member of the Physic Ventures operating team. Phil is responsible for leveraging Unilever’s technical and marketing resources to the full advantage of the Physic Ventures team and its portfolio companies, including access to more than 5,000 scientists and engineers involved in new product development, access to deal flow, market research, scientific data, marketing and distribution expertise, due diligence capabilities and a broad network of contacts.
Phil was formerly a Board Director of Textronics Inc., a UTV portfolio company successfully sold to Adidas Inc. He is currently involved with the Boards of Attune Foods, Corazonas Foods, Own, and Rayne Corporation. Phil is Chair of the National Venture Capital Association's (NVCA) Corporate Venture Advisory Group.
Formerly, Phil led Unilever's Global Technology Center for Household Care in Milan, responsible for global research and development for all elements of Unilever's $1.5 billion Household Care business. Phil has gained extensive experience at Unilever, mainly focused on its Home & Personal Care business in R&D, Innovation, Category Management, and its Supply Chain.
He has a degree in Industrial Chemistry from York University and an MBA from Bradford University.
Featured Interviews & Publications:
Phil Giesler on Corporate Venturing, GCV Issue 09, February 2011
Keynote Address, NVCA Annual Conference Corporate Venturing Session, May 2010
Phil Giesler Joins Dialogue on Corporate VC Trends, Private Equity Analyst, April 2010
