Background

Platform Partners was founded in 2006 with the goal of creating a leading regional investment company whose objective and investment style was differentiated from most private equity firms.

Prior to forming Platform, the Principals had worked together for many years at a traditional private equity firm. We believed then, as we do now, that combining the traditional benefits of private capital with a very long-term focus can bring tremendous benefits to management teams and the companies they lead. As a result, we formed Platform with a few core philosophies.

First, Platform has an unlimited investment horizon without arbitrary time frames to exit investments. We believe in the maxim that the best time to sell a healthy, growing company is never. This core conviction led us to structure Platform as a perpetual investment company with a permanent capital base. Our strategy does not mean we will never sell a company. However, we manage our investments as if we will own them forever. We and our management partners can then afford to be opportunistic about exit opportunities without concerns about timing.

We also decided we wanted to concentrate our time and capital in a smaller number of companies. We believe that we can add more value to management teams and portfolio companies by focusing our efforts as opposed to simply showing up for quarterly board meetings. We try to find attractive, long-term investments and we operate with a “buy & hold” perspective. With this strategy, we actively work with our portfolio companies to create industry leading, valuable enterprises over the long-term.

In order to achieve our objectives, we sought an investor group that shared our patient approach to building long-term value. Platform’s shareholders include family offices, successful executives and select institutions, the majority of which have a history of investing with us that, in many cases, dates back over 30 years. We consider our investor base to be one of our greatest assets and rely on them for guidance, industry expertise and investment referrals. As the largest investors in Platform, our interests are directly aligned with our shareholders and management partners.