Grew EV 10x in 5 Years
Ben Rudman knew he wanted to work in food before he knew what investment banking was. His first independent sponsor deal, Western Smokehouse Partners, started with ~60 employees in 2018. By the time it sold 4.5 years later, it had almost 700 employees across 4 facilities and enterprise value had grown ~10x.
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James Bohannon of Belzberg & Co explains how family offices evaluate independent sponsors, the power dynamics of LP relationships, and why choosing the right capital partner matters more than closing any deal.
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Michael Healy founded Gardner Standard in 2010, building a unique independent sponsor strategy focused on legally complex deals like bankruptcies and distressed situations.
Axial's Lessons From 10,000 Lower-Middle Market Deals
Peter Lehrman of Axial shares tactical insights on how independent sponsors source, win, and fund deals in the lower-middle-market M&A space.