David Ravitz from ‘Bachelorette’, ‘Bachelor in Paradise’ may not be a venture capitalist

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• 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.