Skip to content
Corporate VCPuts its own capital into companiesActive · deal in last 18 monthsLAST VERIFIED Oct 2026 · 6 SOURCES

Henkel Ventures

Corporate venture capital arm of Henkel AG & Co. KGaA

Corporate VC arm of Henkel (Düsseldorf): €300m AUM, €0.5–5m tickets, early stage to Series B, geography-agnostic, focus on sustainability and digitalisation.

HEADQUARTERS
Düsseldorf, Germany
FOUNDED
—
AUM
€300M (2026)
OUTSIDE CAPITAL
No — own capital only
TEAM LISTED
13 people

Focus

STAGES
SeedSeries ASeries B
SECTORS
Consumer & E-commerceClimate & EnergyDeep TechArtificial IntelligenceSoftware & SaaSBiotech & Life SciencesIndustrial & Manufacturing
ASSET MIX
Venture capitalDirect investments
GEOGRAPHY
Global

Overview

Henkel Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, the Düsseldorf group behind Loctite, Schwarzkopf and Persil; its website is published by Henkel. It invests in early-stage startups up to Series B with tickets of €0.5–5 million from €300 million of assets under management and describes itself as geographically agnostic. Its focus is 'Sustainovation' and digitalisation, with co-innovation alongside Henkel Consumer Brands and Henkel Adhesive Technologies and access to more than 3,000 Henkel R&D experts. Search fields include hair, laundry and home care technologies, sustainable ingredients, recycling, protective coatings, sustainable packaging and materials for electronics.

Investment thesis

Early-stage to Series B investments plus strategic partnerships in sustainability ('Sustainovation') and digitalisation, aligned with Henkel Consumer Brands (hair, laundry and home care, sustainable ingredients, packaging, recycling) and Henkel Adhesive Technologies (protective coatings, materials for emerging electronics, industrial automation).

PORTFOLIO (32)

  • THEKERNOTABLE
    Artificial Intelligence · since 2026
  • 3RT
    Industrial & Manufacturing
  • Actnano
    Deep Tech
  • Aether Bio
    Biotech & Life Sciences
  • AGORA
    Consumer & E-commerce
  • Anam
    Artificial Intelligence
  • Choco
    Food & Agriculture
  • CleanHub
    Climate & Energy
  • Copprint
    Deep Tech
  • Daibau
    Real Estate & PropTech
  • Direct-C
    Industrial & Manufacturing
  • Dobbi
    Consumer & E-commerce
  • Eeden
    Climate & Energy
  • FeelIt
    Industrial & Manufacturing
  • FeroLabs
    Software & SaaS
  • Great Many
    Consumer & E-commerce
  • Insempra
    Biotech & Life Sciences
  • IoTech
    Deep Tech
  • LoveLocal
    Consumer & E-commerce
  • Nourish3D
    Food & Agriculture
  • Omneky
    Artificial Intelligence
  • Passionfruit
    Software & SaaS
  • ResearchGate
    Software & SaaS
  • Ruka
    Consumer & E-commerce
  • Saperatec
    Climate & Energy
  • Smartz
    HealthTech
  • Software Defined Automation
    Software & SaaS
  • Start-up Insider
    Media & Entertainment
  • Streetbees
    Artificial Intelligence
  • Hashtag You
    Consumer & E-commerce
  • Persil Service
    Consumer & E-commerce
  • Washmen
    Consumer & E-commerce

People

  • Marc Thom
    Corporate Vice President & Head of Henkel Ventures · source
  • Michaela Bessell
    Corporate Director Ecosystem & Partnerships · source
  • Tobias Botenwerfer
    Investment Principal · source
  • Saskia Becker
    Senior Portfolio Manager · source
  • Lena Kahles
    Investment Manager · source
  • Delia Nagis
    Investment Manager · source
  • Matias Concha
    Investment Manager · source
  • Bryan Gamboa
    Investment Manager · source
  • Vivian Titze
    Investment Manager · source
  • Maximilian Kammerinke
    Investment Manager · source
  • Geetika Das
    Investment Manager · source
  • Samuel Hasenpusch
    Investment Associate · source
  • Anna Schauenburg
    Investment Associate · source

Links

Frequently asked questions

Henkel Ventures is a corporate venture arm based in Düsseldorf, Germany.

Yes. Henkel Ventures invests its own capital in private companies.

Henkel Ventures invests at Seed, Series A and Series B stages in Consumer & E-commerce, Climate & Energy, Deep Tech, Artificial Intelligence, Software & SaaS, Biotech & Life Sciences and Industrial & Manufacturing.

Henkel Ventures's stated ticket size is €500K–€5M.

Key people at Henkel Ventures include Marc Thom (Corporate Vice President & Head of Henkel Ventures), Michaela Bessell (Corporate Director Ecosystem & Partnerships), Tobias Botenwerfer (Investment Principal) and Saskia Becker (Senior Portfolio Manager).

Henkel Ventures's investments include THEKER, 3RT, Actnano, Aether Bio, AGORA, Anam, Choco and CleanHub, among others.

The most recent publicly reported investment by Henkel Ventures is THEKER (Series A ($85m, led by CRV; Henkel among participants)), announced in Jun 2026.

No. Henkel Ventures invests its own capital and does not raise money from outside investors.