ESPN's Cynthia Frelund Details 50x Return on Mac and Cheese Investment
The short version
- Cynthia Frelund said her 2021 investment in Goodles returned 50x after Barilla acquired the company.
- Goodles was co-founded by Jen Zeszut; Frelund connected through Kellogg professor and co-founder Paul Earle.
- A beekeeping investment roughly 12-13 years ago did not produce a return but was donated to Cornell's agriculture school.
- She also invested in Audigent, later acquired by Experian, and is exploring large tabular models and alternative energy.
The NFL analytics analyst told Front Office Sports about her stake in Goodles, its sale to Barilla, and her other ventures in data and beekeeping.
Cynthia Frelund, a data analyst at ESPN and NFL Network, discussed her investing track record in an interview with Front Office Sports published Tuesday, describing a mix of hits, misses, and ongoing projects.
Her biggest win was Goodles, a macaroni and cheese company co-founded by Jen Zeszut. Frelund invested in 2021, contributing both money and sweat equity that included data work and content, and said she earned a 50x return when the company was recently acquired by Barilla.
Frelund said she was introduced to the company through Paul Earle, one of her professors at Northwestern's Kellogg business school and a Goodles co-founder, and that she was drawn to the founder and the goal of a cleaner nutritional version of comfort food.
Not every venture paid off. She said she made a small investment in a beekeeping-related company about 12 or 13 years ago that was later donated to Cornell's agriculture school, calling it a valuable learning experience even without a financial return.
She also invested in the data firm Audigent in 2021, which was later acquired by Experian, and said she is currently looking at large tabular models, naming Fundamental as one option, along with an alternative energy investment in a company called Arbor.
