How we manage being principal AND advisor.
We acquire brands for our own portfolio. We also advise sellers and buyers. We take both businesses seriously — and we take the conflict between them seriously.
Four rules govern every engagement.
Published mandate.
Our acquisition criteria are public — revenue range, EBITDA range, categories, geography. You can see immediately whether your deal falls inside or outside it.
One role per deal.
When a deal falls inside our acquisition mandate, we choose — before any work begins — whether we engage as a principal or as an advisor. We never do both on the same deal.
Chinese wall.
Different team leads handle principal and advisory engagements. Data access is separated. Information from one side doesn't flow to the other.
Capital discipline.
Even when a deal fits our mandate, we don’t buy everything. We deploy capital against a defined annual budget — typically 3–5 brands per year — and pass, refer, or advise independently on the rest. This keeps us from competing with advisory clients.
Mid-engagement disclosure.
If we're working with you on advisory and realize halfway through that there's a potential conflict, we disclose it within 24 hours and let you decide whether to continue. The decision is yours, not ours.