Buyers and Builders

What makes a family office choose to back an independent sponsor, and how can that first investment become a partnership that lasts for decades?I sit down with James Bohannon, a Principal at Belzberg & Co., a New York City-based multifamily office and merchant bank.We explore how family offices choose whom to back, what makes flexible capital valuable, and why talent and incentives are central to investment decisions. James explains what he looks for in independent sponsors, how to build relationships with family offices, and why investors on both sides of a deal need to do their homework.We also discuss what real skin in the game looks like and how a first investment can become a partnership that compounds for decades.Guest:James Bohannon is a Principal at Belzberg & Co., a New York City–based multifamily office and merchant bank, where he leads sourcing and origination. He began his career in equity research before building a shoe business that he later sold to a family office. That experience introduced him to the family capital ecosystem, where he now evaluates investment opportunities and builds relationships with independent sponsors and entrepreneurs.Are you interested in sponsoring the Buyers & Builders Podcast? Please email Mikk Markus at [email protected]'s Stay Connected (Mikk Markus):X/Twitter: https://x.com/PrivatEquityGuyLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikk-markus-2b5664204/?isSelfProfile=trueStay Connected with James Bohannon:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-bohannon-5411b2a/The Firm: https://belzbergco.com/Please enjoy my conversation with James Bohannon.TIMESTAMPS:0:00 From Shoe Entrepreneur to Family Office Investor2:22 The Story Behind Belzberg & Co.5:39 Why Flexibility Is Family Capital’s Greatest Advantage10:39 Direct Investing vs. Co-Investing: How Close to the Business?16:28 When the Plan Changes: The Value of Flexible Capital20:41 Staying Focused Within Your Circle of Competence24:01 Why Experienced Private Equity Investors Go Independent30:09 How to Build Relationships with Family Offices36:52 Why Sponsors Must Do Due Diligence on Their Investors42:20 Skin in the Game, Fees, and Incentive Alignment47:28 Adding Value, Governance, and Choosing Your Investor Mix51:08 Turning a First Deal into a Decades-Long Partnership#privatemarkets #privateequity #fundraising #familyoffice Disclaimer:This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

What does it really take to build a successful private equity firm from scratch, and what can 30 years and more than 150 transactions teach you about investing?I sit down with James Andersen, co-founder of Clearview Capital, a lower middle market private equity firm managing approximately $2 billion in assets, to unpack the journey of building the firm since 1999. James shares how Clearview navigated difficult early investments, turned one healthcare investment into a 29x return and developed an investment philosophy built around backing exceptional people.We also explore why the golden era of private equity may be over, the hidden costs of ambition, and James's decision to step back from day-to-day leadership to invest his own capital and pursue a new chapter.We discuss:- What it really takes to build a private equity firm from scratch.- How Clearview survived an early investment that nearly went to zero.- The story behind a 29x return in healthcare.- Why great people matter more than great business models.- The costly lessons of partnering with the wrong founder.- How Clearview creates value without relying on financial engineering or cost-cutting.- Why incentives often fail to motivate management teams.- Why 40 years of falling interest rates created an illusion of private equity outperformance.- Where James still sees opportunities in the lower middle market.- Why humility, transparency, and self-awareness matter when evaluating founders.- How James thinks about deploying his own capital and backing the next generation of entrepreneurs.- The trade-offs between ambition, family, and building a life well lived.Guest:James Andersen is the co-founder of Clearview Capital, a Connecticut-based private equity firm founded in 1999. Over its history, Clearview has completed more than 150 transactions and grown to approximately $2 billion in assets under management. James has recently stepped back from day-to-day leadership to focus on investing his own capital, advising entrepreneurs, and writing about business, investing, and life through his Substack, You Read It Here.Are you interested in sponsoring the Buyers & Builders Podcast? Please email Mikk Markus at [email protected]'s Stay Connected (Mikk Markus):X/Twitter: @PrivatEquityGuyLinkedIn: Mikk MarkusStay Connected with James Andersen:LinkedIn: James AndersenThe Firm: https://www.clearviewcap.com/SubStack: https://substack.com/@youredithereTIMESTAMPS:00:00 Building Clearview Capital: 27 Years and 150+ Deals02:04 The Hidden Price of Ambition and Success07:05 The Experience That Changed James's Approach to Failure09:38 Why He Walked Away to Start His Own Firm16:41 The $155M Deal That Proved Clearview Could Succeed18:37 How Their First Investment Nearly Went to Zero24:25 The Cost of Partnering With the Wrong Founder29:25 Inside Clearview's Extraordinary 29x Return32:49 Why Private Equity Is Ultimately a People Business35:44 The Difference Between Rewards and Incentives38:58 Why Great PE Firms Build Businesses Instead of Cutting Costs42:08 The Great Private Equity Illusion: Why There Will Be Blood47:29 Why James Stepped Back and How He'll Invest His Own Capital#privatemarkets #privateequity #fundraising #familyoffice This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

At 27, he had $0 in assets under management. By 32, he had raised $180 million. Today, Marc Stad's Dragoneer Investment Group manages over $40 billion.How did he do it?From getting rejected by TPG to being mentored by its legendary co-founder, David Bonderman, pitching Jeff Bezos in a bathroom, turning a $1 million investment into $4 million, and assembling a multibillion-dollar Uber deal with Warren Buffett, Marc Stad's story is a masterclass in ambition, persistence, relationships, and creative dealmaking.In this episode of Buyers and Builders, we break down the extraordinary career of Dragoneer's founder, the principles behind his investments in companies like Uber, Airbnb, Spotify, and Meta, and what entrepreneurs, investors, and business buyers can learn from his approach.The biggest lesson? Your current resources don't define the size of your opportunities.TIMESTAMPS0:00 The $12 Billion Uber Deal: Marc Stad's Extraordinary Story3:44 From $180 Million to $40+ Billion: Building Dragoneer7:22 The Inner Flame: From a Difficult Childhood to Harvard9:23 Breaking the Rules: How Marc Got Into TPG After 25 Rejections0:59 Creating Your Own Luck: The Jeff Bezos Bathroom Story12:53 Turning $1 Million Into $4 Million With MercadoLibre14:34 The Power of Mentorship: David Bonderman and the $5 Million IOU17:25 Finding Opportunities Others Don't See19:04 Lessons in Ambition, Leverage, and Building Great Businesses20:34 Building Relationships Before You Need ThemThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

What does it take to acquire companies, build a serial acquisition platform, and never sell?My guest today is Giuseppe Balzano, founder of Novaterra, an Italian permanent capital holding company acquiring niche industrial businesses with defensible technology and intellectual property.At just 30, Giuseppe has secured $25 million in equity commitments, pursued two acquisitions, and set out to build an industrial group that could endure for generations.We discuss why Italy's overlooked industrial champions present an extraordinary opportunity, how to find businesses with near-monopoly positions, the realities of raising permanent capital, and why patience may be the greatest competitive advantage in investing.We also explore Giuseppe's unconventional journey from venture capital to business ownership, his approach to acquiring and operating companies, and his ambition to build something his children might one day own.TIMESTAMPS0:00 Building a company he never wants to sell3:56 The mentor who shaped his long-term thinking7:20 Why he left venture capital to build something permanent9:42 Why Italy's industrial businesses are overlooked12:29 Solo founders, co-founders, and playing the long game15:05 How he learns and makes investment decisions18:29 Inside his first two industrial acquisitions23:37 The next acquisition: water management24:25 Growing businesses without chasing growth29:44 Finding acquisition targets other buyers miss34:14 How to win the trust of family business owners40:07 The brutal reality of raising $25 million44:22 The numbers behind his fundraising process48:12 Deal structuring: debt, equity, and ownership50:09 Managing acquisitions without replacing CEOs57:22 Founder incentives and building an ownership culture1:02:49 Why finding great people is harder than finding deals1:05:11 Building a legacy despite the odds1:10:49 The road to a self-funding industrial compounderThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

What does it actually take to build a world-class roll-up?After spending a day at the RollUpEurope Serial Acquirers Summit with some of Europe’s most active serial acquirers, we break down the operating playbooks behind groups that have completed hundreds of acquisitions—and the lessons that matter whether you’re pursuing acquisition #1 or #50.This episode covers how great acquirers choose markets, build proprietary deal flow, win sellers without simply paying the highest price, keep founders engaged after closing, integrate without destroying what made a business special, and eventually turn a collection of companies into an institutional platform.The examples are remarkable: one group has acquired roughly 680 pharmacies. Evergreen has completed roughly 160 acquisitions. Another platform deliberately stopped acquiring for nearly a year after its first two deals because the founders wanted to understand the operating model before scaling it. Later, they completed an additional 18 acquisitions.Roll-ups look like finance from a distance. Up close, they are a combination of sales, psychology, operations, hiring, negotiation, capital allocation, culture, and endurance.TIMESTAMPS0:00 Inside Europe’s most active roll-up builders2:36 Find the pain you actually enjoy6:11 Why the best roll-ups start extremely niche7:22 Your acquisition pipeline is part of the research9:23 Seller psychology: why the highest price doesn’t always win11:58 Don’t scale a roll-up you don’t understand13:09 M&A is not value creation15:08 Integration, capital partners & building an institutional platform18:54 Reputation as an economic asset20:08 The roll-up flywheelThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

My guests today are Deiya and Dean Pernas, founders of Pernas Research, who have compounded capital at roughly 30% annually over the past nine years.We explore their private equity-like approach to public markets: understanding businesses from the inside out, judging management teams and capital allocation, and finding inflection points before they show up in the financials.We also discuss their “motor” investing framework, why trajectory matters more than absolute quality, lessons from poker and bankroll management, and how they think about position sizing, averaging down, and knowing when a thesis is broken.TIMESTAMPS0:00 The opportunity in public markets2:49 From poker and engineering to investing6:08 Private equity lessons for public investors11:35 The Motor investing framework14:40 Finding potential before the numbers17:02 When to sell19:20 How to judge great CEOs23:39 Capital allocation: good and bad29:59 Trajectory over quality33:32 Finding inflection points36:45 Incentives and shareholder alignment41:48 Poker lessons for portfolio management45:16 Position sizing, averaging down, and surviving mistakesThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

My guest today is Sam Allsopp, co-founder of Neal Roofing and Waterproofing, a home services company he started with Andrew Neal in 2020 and has since grown from zero to roughly $50 million in annual revenue—all organically.What makes Sam’s story interesting is that he didn’t come from roofing. Before starting Neal Roofing and Waterproofing, he ran a marketing agency and worked with more than a dozen roofing companies, where he began to see firsthand why some contractors could turn leads into profitable growth while others struggled. That experience eventually became the foundation for Neal Roofing and Waterproofing: build a world-class customer acquisition and sales machine, then pair it with excellent execution and fulfillment.In this conversation, Sam breaks down how the business changed at every stage—from the first few million in revenue to building management layers, professionalizing the sales organization and eventually creating the systems required to operate at $50 million of scale. We go deep on marketing spend, lead generation, speed-to-lead, booking rates, sales capacity, one-call closes, compensation plans, hiring ahead of growth and the KPIs he watches every day.We also explore how Neal Roofing and Waterproofing has remained profitable while growing aggressively, why Sam prefers opening new markets from scratch over acquiring competitors, how he thinks about incentives and accountability across the organization and why he believes the underlying playbook can work far beyond roofing.TIMESTAMPS0:00 From zero to a $50M roofing company1:11 The real business: customer acquisition + sales3:25 $1M → $2.5M → $6M → $14M → $25M → $36M → $50M8:33 What changes at every stage of growth15:01 The KPIs Sam tracks to run the business17:52 Facebook, PPC, LSA & the marketing mix19:15 Why they contact leads in under a minute23:15 Building the sales machine & one-call close27:24 The operating system behind $50M of roofs33:07 Growing fast while staying profitable38:48 Hiring, incentives & performance pay40:34 Why they prefer organic growth over M&A46:14 How Sam actually learned sales & marketingThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

My guest today is Felix Jander, co-founder of Arsipa, a buy-and-build company focused on occupational health and safety.Felix and Stefan began exploring the idea during COVID, studying roughly 60 niche industries before choosing a fragmented market with significant room for consolidation.Arsipa went on to complete more than 40 acquisitions, grow to over 1,100 employees across 60+ locations, and surpass $100 million in annual revenue. In 2024, the company partnered with Warburg Pincus, with Felix remaining invested in the business.We discuss how they chose their market, built proprietary deal flow, and used highly personalized outreach to generate reply rates as high as 80%. Felix explains why the first acquisition matters so much, how Arsipa financed its early deals, and the operational playbook behind recruiting, finance, pricing, integration and culture.He also shares the story of splitting with his original co-founder, finding his next partner, and transitioning from operator to investor.This is a practical conversation about acquisitions, capital allocation and building an institution from a collection of small businesses.Please enjoy my conversation with Felix Jander.TIMESTAMPS0:00 From zero to 40+ acquisitions and $100M+ in revenue3:33 Why boring businesses beat venture-backed hypergrowth5:08 How they chose one market from 60 niche industries7:40 The 1% conversion math behind proprietary deal flow11:08 Raising the first pool of acquisition capital18:00 Buying businesses without brokers20:41 The first acquisition changes everything23:04 Equity first, debt later24:58 Turning acquisitions into an operating company28:13 Losing a co-founder in the middle of fundraising32:27 Selling to Warburg Pincus and rolling equity40:08 The roll-up integration and value-creation playbook44:32 The economics of scaling a roll-up48:06 What changes after a major private equity investment51:24 Felix’s advice for aspiring buy-and-build founders54:18 From operator to investor56:12 Final lessons from building ArsipaThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

My guest today is Justin Escajeda, an entrepreneur who owns 12 trade businesses around Pittsburgh, employing roughly 250 people and generating more than $50 million in annual revenue.What makes Justin’s story interesting is that he never set out to become an acquisition entrepreneur. He started in masonry, construction and real estate before buying his first roofing company which did $600k in SDE in 2018 for $846k. That acquisition changed how he thought about building businesses.Today, Justin owns companies across masonry, roofing, insurance, material supply, general contracting, property management and luxury remodeling. His approach is unusually simple: buy businesses that already work, preserve what made them successful, put great operators in charge and resist the temptation to change things simply because you can.We also explore how he manages 12 businesses without micromanaging them, the four KPIs he watches every day and why he stopped taking cash from portfolio companies to fund new acquisitions.TIMESTAMPS0:00 Building a $50M portfolio of trade businesses1:24 The first acquisition that changed everything4:34 Buying a roofing company for under $1M with an SBA loan6:21 Why Justin never wants to start another company8:15 Why he avoids changing businesses after buying them12:24 Inside a portfolio of 12 trade businesses15:00 The acquisition Justin overpaid for16:49 SBA loans, cash, and why he prefers seller financing22:25 Solving key-person risk after an acquisition27:14 Growing companies without micromanaging operators31:05 Why Justin went an entire year without buying anything34:38 The four numbers he watches every day37:42 A $300K mistake, liquidity, and why ownership isn’t passiveThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.

In 2010, Robert Finkel wrote the book The Masters of Private Equity and Venture Capital: Management Lessons from the Pioneers of Private InvestingIn this episode, I explore the ideas, decisions, successes, and failures of two people who helped define modern private equity: Joseph Rice, co-founder of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, and Warren Hellman, co-founder of Hellman & Friedman.TIMESTAMPS0:00 The Masters of Private Equity2:15 Private equity is more than buying and selling companies5:42 What separates the best private equity investors7:14 Joseph Rice: Building Clayton, Dubilier & Rice10:13 Jack Welch’s advice during the 2008 crisis: “Hammer them”15:23 The failed deal that changed how Rice invested forever19:28 Lexmark: Turning an IBM division into an entrepreneurial company22:06 Kinko’s, a total loss, and the danger of believing you can do anything26:20 Joseph Rice’s five lessons from 40+ years in private equity31:03 Warren Hellman: Building Hellman & Friedman32:23 “This time is different” — the investing lesson Hellman never forgot36:35 Every investment is guilty until proven innocent39:51 Think like an owner, not an employee42:38 Levi Strauss and the deal that put Hellman & Friedman on the map45:34 Why a great security can still be a terrible investment49:08 Warren Hellman’s five rules for investingThis podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.