Not an operator by background but spent 8 years in PE/M&A which ended at the Sr. ASO/Director-level with ~$200M equity deployed into platforms then the last 3 years at a sub-$1B HF doing special sits. I'm putting together a large single-asset deal, have the debt sorted and contingent on raising $50M equity (secured ~20% commits so far). It's the first of what I want to build into a larger private roll-up across several verticals but it's a long-term vision that doesn't involve an outright sale in a traditional 7-10 year PE time frame; I've structured it so investors get largely paid out a solid return in that traditional window and retain common equity that rides beyond that. I've been approaching some smaller groups/family offices to get the early checks but was thinking about reaching out to some of the aforementioned search funders given the profile and my planning to join full-time as an operator (relocating, involved in new business generation, and professionalizing some of the internals).
Has anyone worked with the funds mentioned or firms like them?
Am I wrong to assume this deal could fit the search funder-style model more vs looking at it as an independent sponsor?
Could you share how the fundraising experience might differ from what I'd get with a mid-sized family office or other non-institutional investor groups?
Happy to PM privately if that's your preference, deeply appreciate any advice more experienced operators/PE folks can provide.
