The Hybrid Independent Sponsor
Lou Grabowsky doesn't fit the usual independent sponsor mold. Conventional wisdom: you start with nothing, fund your own
2026
103 posts
"Everyone wants a proprietary deal, until they get one."
"Everyone wants a proprietary deal, until they get one." - Fatigued independent sponsor who's dealing with a
Family Offices vs. High-Net-Worth: The Hold Period Divide
Logan Walters prefers indefinite hold periods. No forced exit clock, just a pragmatic eye kept open in case something spectacular
Losing a deal to a strategic
Losing a deal under LOI when a strategic buyer swoops in with $7m more = brutal. Time kills all deals, exhibit
VCs becoming PE (growth equity)
VC/Tech boomed through the 2010s and COVID, but there's been a sharp decline in the past 5
"Tropicalizing"
Christian Seale taught me a new word: tropicalizing. Taking a US concept and adapting it for Mexico. Officially adding it
$10m EBITDA platform w/ no equity
$10m EBITDA platform w/ no equity (real-life case study): The independent sponsor had 3 LOIs, with $4m, $4m, and
Add-on vs. Bolt-on vs. Tuck-in
Add-on vs. Bolt-on vs. Tuck-in The words are used interchangeably, but there are nuances. If I missed
Find the Bottleneck, Ignore the Rest
Jimmy Watson gave me a reading assignment I didn't know I needed. In our pre-call, he mentioned
Arrogant NDA
"Please return the signed NDA (no revisions please - we're juggling numerous potential investors and need to be
GP recap to >50% control
A GP (searcher/sponsor) can recap their way to majority control (>50%) of a successful deal, even with $0
Independent sponsor incentives are cleaner
Independent sponsor incentives are cleaner, more sustainable, and more aligned than those of traditional searchers. A traditional search deal that&
Realtors in LMM PE
Realtors would be great in lower-middle market PE. I'm surprised I don't see more (any)
3 X-Factors of a Deal
The 3 x-factors that get me especially excited about an investment: (1) Low entry. It's hard to
3 Bad Rs
The 3 Rs shunned by Private Equity: Retail, Resources, Real Estate However, valuations tend to reflect the lower popularity, and
Niklas on Athlete's Capital Podcast
Joining my friend Nikolay Dimitrov on his new podcast for professional athletes going into business & investing. Nikolay used to
Apologies for getting married
Isn't there a meme about this being the core difference between America and Europe? I was quick to
Smart Business Dealmakers Conference (Tampa)
Smart Business Dealmakers Conference in Tampa Florida yesterday. Compliments to the host for great panels & keynote speaker. Niklas'
Beware of deal fog
Beware of deal fog: Stay vigilant during the DD. The M&A process is designed to excite you and
Deal-by-deal rollups
There's been an uptick in the # of rollups pitched over the last 6 months. However, the deal-by-
Cost of a full deal team
$1.0-1.5m per year is the cost of a fully staffed deal team at a PE fund, excluding
New vertical: understand customers
When researching new verticals/industries, it's critical to understand the customer. • How does the customer make the buying
The importance of large-caps
"99% of US businesses employ 50% of the employees and generate 35% of the revenue." This line was
How to structure carry
How to structure carried interest as an independent sponsor: Standard PE is 20% after a pref (8-10%). Most sponsors
