NYC-based James Bohannon works at Belzberg & Co, a multi-family office with a keen eye to the independent sponsor asset class. Drawing on years of conference repetition and real world deal experience, James explains how family offices truly think about backing independent sponsors.

References and how to contact today's guest:
James Bohannon | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov

Based in New York, Michael ("Mike") Healy began his career as an attorney before deciding the real fun and action were on the deal side.

After a stint in PE, he founded Gardner Standard in 2010. The early years were rocky, marked by failed deals and long stretches of uncertainty. Momentum finally arrived when a sizable closing fee on a deal he sourced and sold to a PE fund provided the liquidity needed to persevere. Today, Mike is an accomplished independent sponsor with a clearly defined strategy built around sourcing deals with legal complexity.

References and how to contact today's guest:
Michael Healy | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov

Peter Lehrman founded Axial in 2009, the leading deal origination platform for lower-middle-market M&A. Today, roughly 10,000 attempted transactions are launched on Axial each year, with approximately 25% closing, making it one of the most active M&A marketplaces in the U.S. lower middle market, and independent sponsors are the single most active buyer type by closed-deal volume. In this episode, Peter shares unmatched market intelligence and highly tactical insights on how independent sponsors source, win, and fund deals.

References and how to contact today's guest:
Peter Lehrman | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov

G.R. Kearney, a former inner-city Chicago teacher, was thrust into leadership when his senior partner tragically passed away. He navigated the emotional and legal complexities of sustaining the firm and ultimately rebranded it as Stacker Holdings, reshaping the platform into an employee-centric, EOS-driven, long-term investment firm.

References and how to contact today's guest:
G.R.Kearney | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov

Dan Tamkin, based in California and co-founder of Resurgent Capital Partners, is an operator, technologist, and turnaround investor, in that order. After a career revolving around tech turnarounds and challenged VC portcos, he has found the lower-middle market to be a better channel for value creation, especially when done via the deal-by-deal model of independent sponsorship.

References and how to contact today's guest:
Dan Tamkin | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov

UK-based Sam Turner overcame a challenged first deal by pivoting the business model and eventually built a thriving facilities maintenance roll-up that targets market leadership in its space. He points to capital stack discipline as key when self-funding add-on acquisitions. Beyond work, Sam volunteers one full mentorship day per month to founders and prospective business buyers.

References and how to contact today's guest:
Sam Turner | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov

Craig Dupper, based in Park City, Utah, founded Elan Growth Partners after years of seeing how the traditional fund model fails to optimize stakeholder alignment and investment periods. At Elan, they prioritize high rollover equity to cement a true partnership mindset in each deal. On the LP side, they have built a tech-enabled, institution-grade back office that extends the flexibility of the independent sponsor model to the capital providers as well.

References and how to contact today's guest:
Craig Dupper | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov

Independent sponsor royalty Michael Kornman details how he built NCK Capital out of Dallas with his brother Grant, acquiring 5 platforms in 10 years. In 2024 they partnered with Align Capital Partners to form Align Collaborate, changing sides of the table to deploy a $233m sponsor-friendly fund that backs buyouts and buy & builds.

References and how to contact today's guest:
Michael Kornman | LinkedIn

Minds Capital invests equity into deals by independent sponsors and searchers. For independent sponsors with a deal under LOI, visit Minds Capital to start a conversation. Our website also contains more information about this podcast and for prospective investors.

Connect with Minds:

• See past + future interviews on the YouTube channel
• Connect with hosts Will Smith and Niklas James
• Visit Minds Capital

Credits:

• Edited by Anton Rohozov