ETA Insider Podcast

On this episode, Mike Wallach with Levy Family Partners discusses special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, and provides listeners with an in-depth look into how the investment vehicles are structured and can be used to carry out a transaction. Mike speaks about his experience with the Levy Acquisition Corp. and their ultimate acquisition of Del Taco in 2015.

Co-Founding Managing Directors of Relay Investments, Sandro Mina and Martin Steber, touch on a variety of topics including launching an international search, working with a partner, and managing your search budget. Sandro and Martin have over 45 years combined experience in search fund investing, participated in 100+ deals, and invested in 16 countries on 5 continents.

This episode features Michael Miles, Co-Founder and Partner at the Operand Group, a fund that exclusively invests in search funds. A longtime search fund investor and operator, Michael shares his insights on forming a search fund, attracting investors, and closing a deal. He also goes through some do's and don'ts for budding entrepreneurs.

Devin Matthews, Partner at ParkerGale Capital, discusses his firm's investment strategy and the significance of a portfolio company's management team. He highlights the importance of putting together the right team and the qualities he looks for in an operator when evaluating a potential investment.

CEO of an Oregon-based company that provides educational marketing services for registered investment advisors speaks about the three roles of an entrepreneur. He discusses his path to pursuing entrepreneurship, why he chose to assemble a diversified group of investors to fund his search, and how he’s made the transition from investor to operator of a company.

Chris Killackey, Partner at Prairie Capital, has over 23 years of experience in private equity and middle-market lending, including time with Banc One Mezzanine Corporation (now part of Chase Mezzanine) and American National Bank. In this episode, Chris speaks from the point of view as an investor in search funds and provides insight into what behavioral qualities Prairie Capital looks for in the...

Patrick Dickinson, co-founder and Managing Partner of Ninth Street Capital Partners, discusses his early exposure to ETA through working with a merchant banking group specializing in acquiring and operating companies, and his eventual decision to pursue an MBA and round-off his business skills. He went on to found Ninth Street Capital Partners with Michael Weiner, which now has a diverse investmen...

Mark Egan, a founder and Managing Partner of Boston-based investment firm Marion Equity Partners, recounts the last 30 years of the search fund model and how he’s seen both searcher and investor’s approach change over the years. Mark provides his words of wisdom for those looking to start a search fund and emphasizes the power of community in entrepreneurship.

Matt Burr, General Partner at Matland Capital, lends his expertise to discuss the dynamics of the relationship between searcher and investor, and what leads to a rewarding partnership. Matt expounds on his own experiences as an investor in search funds, as well as those of his father, Craig Burr, to provide a glimpse into how the investor thinks. He highlights a key trait their entrepreneurs have,...

Austin Hall, Founder and Director of Brick Street Partners, reflects on the first six months of his search, looking back to his initial motivation to pursue entrepreneurship through acquisition, why he chose a self-funded search, and how he’s measured success thus far. Austin openly discusses the challenges of focusing his search in a confined geography, and explains the benefits of the self-funde...

This episode features Chuck Mishoulam, Founder of Alert Protective Services, and David Silberstein, Managing Principal of Anchor Light Partners, and CEO of Alert Protective Services. The duo provide a 360-view of the acquisition process – from making the decision to sell, working through a broker to source and execute the deal, and how they’ve ensured a smooth transition post-acquisition.

Coley Andrews, Co-Founder and Managing Member of Pacific Lake, a well regarded institutional investor in search funds, lends his perspective on a wide variety of topics. Beginning with his personal story and the inception of Pacific Lake, he delves into the common traits of successful search entrepreneurs, investment theses that can lead to good outcomes, the importance of having a bias to action,...

Dennis Chookasian, Adjunct Professor of Strategic Management at the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago and incredibly accomplished executive, shares tactics for juggling multiple professional responsibilities, how to work with your board as a young CEO, and key reasons why companies fail.

Brad Morehead, Adjunct Lecturer of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, recounts his own professional journey, moving through careers in investment banking, private equity, and ultimately to company operator as CFO of FeldCo, and later CEO of LiveWatch Security, which he acquired in 2010. In the conversation he reveals secrets to leading and...

Alex Schneider, adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University and the founding partner of Clover Capital Partners, talks about his personal career path to becoming an independent sponsor, shares the stories behind his initial investments, touts the merits of having an industry focus, and contrasts the differences between pursuing a business with...

Matt Taylor, Managing Director of search fund Gypsum Ridge Capital, shares his reasons for pursuing a search fund, working with a partner, choosing your investors, conducting the search from two locations, and tactics to maximize the probability of success.

Search fund entrepreneur Shamus Hines of Silverfield Capital talks about his strategies for finding the right business, how he balances his time between searching, assessing companies, and performing due diligence, getting the most out of interns, intermediated versus proprietary deal flow, communicating with investors, and how to effectively engage with business owners.

Steve Groya, Managing Director of Aldine Capital Partners, discusses best practices when raising debt financing in conjunction with acquiring a company. The conversation covers what information lenders evaluate during their underwriting process, the various different forms of debt - senior debt, mezzanine, and seller paper, and how entrepreneurs can position themselves for success during the proce...

Raam Jani, Partner at McDermott, Will & Emery, provides perspective on the legal aspects of the search fund through the full lifecycle, from raising the search capital to closing the acquisition. He covers what legal documents come into play and when, key terms that often receive attention, and when it's appropriate to use your attorney and when to DIY.

Matt Estep of Bosworth Capital shares insights gained from his own experiences as a search fund entrepreneur - deciding on the career path, raising search capital, acquiring a company, serving as the co-CEO, and ultimately selling the business. During the conversation he touches on a number of interesting topics - how his team positioned themselves to succeed versus other buyers on a basis other t...