Is the chicken-suit wearing contestant from 'The Bachelorette' really a venture capitalist? One journalist investigated and says the evidence just doesn't add up
- Bachelorette contestant David Ravitz has said that he runs a private equity/venture capital firm.
- According to the results of an investigation by Pitchbook reporter Dana Olsen, Ravitz doesn't appear to have any connections to venture capital or private equity firms.
- "David still says he's a VC, but all available evidence says he's not," writes Olsen.
"Bachelor in Paradise," a reality show featuring cast-off contestants from ABC's "The Bachelor" and "The Bachelorette" trying their luck at love once again at a resort in Mexico, has returned for its fifth season.
One contestant, David Ravitz, made a memorable debut in "The Bachelorette" season 14 when he appeared in a fluffy chicken suit in an unsuccessful attempt to woo the heart of a woman whom he hoped to make his future bride. He was also the guy who fell out of his bunk bed. After returning to the show following that injury, Ravitz was eventually eliminated from the show.
Ravitz's forthcoming return in "Bachelor in Paradise" has reinvigorated the compelling investigation of Pitchbook reporter Dana Olsen, who has been researching his claim to be a venture capitalist.
According to Ravitz's bio on ABC, he's a 25-year-old venture capitalist in Denver Springs, Colorado. His bio also identifies him as a "successful businessman" who "enjoys fitness" and "spending time with his family at their beach house."
Here's where Olsen takes issue: Is Ravitz really a venture capitalist? Would a venture capitalist and "successful businessman" really take multiple months off of work to devote himself exclusively to the pursuit of wooing a potential fiancée on a reality show?
Olsen has amassed a growing pile of evidence that suggests that Ravitz's might not be a VC at all: Ravitz seems to take lots of vacations, he doesn't appear to have a LinkedIn page, and most importantly, he doesn't seem to be connected to any Colorado-based venture or private equity firms.
Not only does Ravitz say that he's a venture capitalist, but he purports to run his own firm. In a June interview with Bustle, Ravitz said, "I run a private equity firm...venture capital, private equity...hence why I can take the time off myself."
From this information, Bustle concludes: "[T]o put it bluntly, Bachelorette contestant David is rich." Entertainment news site Flare also came to a similar conclusion: "He works as a venture capitalist and runs a private equity firm which basically means he's $$$$$$$$$$$$."
At the very least, Ravitz does appear to be well off. Olsen, however, suggests that Ravitz might be benefitting from his family's money.
In an earlier report in which she describes Ravitz as "the world's most secretive venture capitalist," Olsen writes, "David's family owns Ravitz Family Markets, which operates several grocery stores on the East Coast...One of my personal theories is that David's family runs an investment holding company that owns the supermarkets."
"David still says he's a VC, but all available evidence says he's not," writes Olsen.
Ravitz, who did not return Business Insider's request for comment, still appears to be very much man of mystery.
Read the full investigation over at Pitchbook.