SBICs Are Highly Aligned
SBIC/mezz lenders are under-rated for their strong alignment with independent sponsors. Typically they’ll be your senior lender (70-90%
Annual Budget For Searching
Annual budget for searching: Rent: $0 (home office) CRM: <$2k (e.g., Sevanta, Pipedrive, Hubspot) Email augmentation: <$1k
Syndicate vs. Anchor
Equity raises are (i) syndicated or (ii) anchor-led: (i) Independent sponsors usually prefer to syndicate equity from 5-10 minority investors.
Why 30% IRR Is Needed
"Why do I need to show 30%+ IRR in my base case?" A high return is needed to
Minds Capital Happy Hour
This was our fifth Minds Capital Happy Hour this winter (Dallas, Orlando, Saint Petersburg, Washington DC, Houston) where we have
DOGE, an SBA(7)a killer?
SBA 7a loans weren’t meant to subsidize lower middle market private equity. They weren’t meant to serve as
Exponential Growth in Independent Sponsors
The independent sponsor space is growing exponentially. # of sponsors (📈) x $ size of deals (📈) #: Barriers of entry are low -->
Start with Capital or Deal?
"Should I start by finding capital or deals?" It's much easier to find capital than good
Lame Duck Deal
definition: lame duck private equity deal (noun) A "Lame Duck PE Deal" refers to a private equity investment
Continuous Base Cases Are Best
The closer your base case is to “just do more of what we’re already doing”, the better. If a
Experience = Conservative
Experienced serial sponsors tend to present more conservative base case scenarios than first-timers. • They already have investor relationships who don’
Pre-Fill Investor Docs
I learned the hard way that it’s best to pre-fill the investor documents. Once I had an investor who
1 LOI is Better Than 2 LOIs
1>2 If you have 2 new platforms under LOI: well done, but focus each investor meeting on 1.
Expand Multiple
For outsized equity returns, you need to expand the multiple. How? (1) Buy cheap. Proprietary sourcing or asymmetric insights can
Covenant Territory
Covenant territory is when your TTM P&L is hovering close to the covenant thresholds. Being in covenant territory
Org Chart w/ Rock Stars
Organization chart coloring. In board meetings I like to present a current view of the organization, and I use four
Crushing Victory in Court
A few months ago, I won a crushing victory in court. My takeaways: (1) The justice system isn't
Screen Time
Email from me: "Sorry I didn't reply sooner - I've been slammed this week."
Presenting Purchase Agreement
When I deal with a business owner, this is how I roll out the legal purchase agreement: “We will send
Ass-Sitting is Tax-Efficient
“Sitting on your ass is tax-efficient.” - Charlie Munger Long hold periods = tax-efficient If you own two consecutive investments making
BOI Filing Requirement
Happy Thanksgiving week to all, except the bureaucrats at FinCEN who mandated the filing of BOI (Beneficial Owner Information) reports
A+ Rejection Response
This is an A+ reply when a prospective investor has passed on your deal. (1) He replied. (2) He expressed
The Light Park Announcement
Let there be light! 🎄 Thrilled to announce the closing of The Light Park as an independent sponsor. The Light Park
Different Buyers From Seller's Perspective
Table: Different business buyers from a seller's perspective. Minds Capital invests equity into deals led by independent sponsors
