Andrea Hippeau

I spoke with Christien Louviere of BDE Capital about his journey from a $330mm exit to becoming an independent sponsor. Christien shared excellent insights for folks looking to partner with business owners, rather than buy sellers out completely. Below are a few of the topics we covered: - Why he moved from “zero-to-one” startups to a buy-then-build strategy - How Christien's background shaped a focus on growth vs. cost-cutting - Why 20–40% rolled equity is central to his deal structures—and how it builds trust with sellers - Using scenario analysis with AI tools to evaluate management teams and uncover hidden key-person risks - How to identify when a $3–5M EBITDA company truly has a middle management layer—or is still founder-reliant For anyone investing in or buying small businesses, Christien’s approach provides a fresh lens on growth, alignment, and deal structuring. 🎥 Watch the full interview here → https://lnkd.in/ekfkaiej 🎧 Listen on Spotify: https://lnkd.in/e86Agx6V

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🚨NEW EPISODE: Recorded live at FUTURE TITANS 2026 - Jeff Perry of Carta sat down with the iconic Seth Levine, co-founder of Foundry. Seth has been in venture for 25 years, built Foundry from scratch as an emerging manager himself, and has backed about 50 emerging manager funds through his fund of funds. He has genuinely seen every side of this table. They went deep on building Foundry, why VCs are in the influence business, not the decision business, and why the concentration problem in venture is not only bad for LPs, but also for the innovation ecosystem overall. And why Seth's new book, Capital Evolution, is so important for the future of America. 🎧 Links to listen... Apple: https://lnkd.in/ehQUQ2EM Spotify: https://lnkd.in/eU4FExpg

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I’ve spoken to over 2 dozen MDs at PE firms I can confidently say that the arb of figuring out how to implement Vertical AI at portfolio companies is very real right now It will fundamentally change underwriting for those who can do it predictably and unlock generational returns. Most are aware they need to act. Very few have.

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Got to have a great call today with Jonathan Hakakian. Jonathan is the co-founder and Managing Partner of SoundBoard Venture Fund - an early-stage fund investing primarily outside major coastal hubs. They've built a portfolio of 40+ companies across the US in underserved geo., with notable exits including Jump (acquired by Uber). We didn't talk enough about what he's doing - because we got wonderfully sidetracked. We talked about The Fulcrum; Work. About Iranian food. About food as both a love language and a window into culture. About learning and the 2nd part of life journey... And then we got into something I care deeply about: how to fund the companies that aren't "VC backable" by traditional standards but are absolutely worth backing. Not every great business fits the venture mold. Jonathan gets that. SoundBoard is built on character over skill, close founder relationships, and creative structures that meet founders where they are. That's my kind of investor. Heidi Knoblauch you should be in this conversation. I think you'd connect on much of this part! I'm excited by Jonathan's approach. His thoughtfulness. The way he shows up for founders outside the usual corridors. Ive learned quite a bit from him. Very much looking forward to our next call - and to his next fund. This is how ecosystems get built. One good conversation at a time.

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💡Emerging GP Fundraising Insight #8: Rolling Closes Keep You Moving Small funds can't always afford to sit still until the target is hit. Rolling closes let you start deploying earlier, build a track record, and show momentum to prospective LPs. One GP told me that for Fund I ($5M target), he took capital as it came, signed, wired, and got to work. It wasn't perfect, but it kept the lights on and the deals moving. Sometimes the "sign and wire as it comes" approach is the only way to get moving. Takeaway: Momentum is a fundraising asset and rolling closes can help you keep it. Has anyone here used rolling closes as a strategic advantage?

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What does the "new era" of private equity look like? This week at PEI NEXUS, Bain & Company's Chairman of Global Private Equity Practice Hugh MacArthur recapped the firm's latest Global Private Equity Report. Hugh noted that firms will need to focus on what they do well in a “new era” for private equity. These sentiments echoed much of what Private Wealth Forum speakers, including Arax Investment Partners Founder and CEO Haig Ariyan, Laird Norton Wetherby CIO Ron Albahary, CFA, Ardian Managing Director, US Private Wealth Solutions Ava Mallin, and Citi Wealth Head of Private Equity and Real Estate Jeffrey Locke, shared on stage at PEI. This week's AGM Alts Weekly dives into what a "new era" in private equity might look like, connecting dots and data points from Bain & Company and McKinsey & Company's 2026 reports on the state of the private equity industry. Some key themes defined the takeaways from both reports: ➡️ Returns will not be a dime a dozen: Bain's punchline? "12 is the new 5." ➡️ Megadeals, big questions: 2025 witnessed an increase in global buyout deal value. However, just 13 deals of $10B or more contributed 69% of the growth in 2025, accounting for $274B of the global gain. ➡️ A K-shaped industry: Private equity appears to turning into a K-shaped industry, with “a subset of elite funds [being] on the upswing while everyone else muddles through.” ➡️ No fun in fundraising: McKinsey noted that core, closed-end fundraising has “become more competitive, selective, and time consuming.” ➡️ Continuation nation: There’s been a marked rise in continuation vehicle activity, but only represents less than 10% of exit value. ➡️ Mid-sized deals not so mid: Megadeal activity grabbed the headlines. But deal sizes $1-5B deals grew 29%. Growth in the $1-5B deal size segment could be encouraging for specialist buyout funds. There are some key questions for allocators to grapple with as they think about what private equity might look like in the future. 1️⃣ Do allocators believe public markets will continue to outperform private markets? 2️⃣ Will fundraising bounce back? 3️⃣ Can firms kick value creation into motion? 4️⃣ Are both GPs and LPs ready to handle how investors might look to exit evergreen vehicles? 5️⃣ For LPs, are they finding managers that have an edge? Read on for more👇 This week's Alt Goes Mainstream's AGM Alts Weekly, brought to you by DealsPlus, covers: 🗂️ AGM Index, an index that tracks the leading publicly traded alternative asset managers. 💻 Who is hiring: Senior-level positions from companies Blackstone, KKR, Apollo Global Management, Inc., Ares Management, EQT Group, Blue Owl Capital, Franklin Templeton, Fortress Investment Group, iCapital, Goldman Sachs, Ultimus Fund Solutions, Krilogy, MSCI Inc. Subscribe👇 to see the latest trends & navigate this rapidly changing landscape as alts go mainstream. https://lnkd.in/eRKN25jy

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Venture has always been a power law. What’s changing is how tightly LPs are underwriting to it. In our conversation with David Clark, one point stood out: If a small group of managers consistently capture the outliers… That’s where capital concentrates. Which makes the middle a harder category to underwrite. Not because those firms are underperforming, but because the case for why this manager gets you to those outcomes is less clear. It’s not about returns in isolation. It’s about conviction. To earn real conviction from LPs today, what do you think a middle firm needs to show? 👇 Link in the comments.

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Growth at all costs is out. Strategic expansion is in. One stat from our new report that says it all: By $100M ARR, 67% of growth comes from expansion, not net-new customers. We’re seeing a mindset shift among top-performing founders. They’re prioritizing customer success early, building in product-led growth loops, and measuring how they grow, not just how fast. Full analysis and benchmarks here: https://lnkd.in/gZruurYs #AI #SaaS #CustomerSuccess #BeyondBenchmarks

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Big milestone for Firmable. We’ve raised $14m Series A led by Airtree. Sales has moved through a few big waves: intuition-led, CRM-led, data-led. We’re now entering the next one – intelligence-led sales. The opportunity isn’t just better data. It’s turning that data into clear direction and action, without adding more work for sales teams. That’s what we’re building at Firmable: a foundation of trusted external data, layered with intelligence that helps sellers know who to focus on and when. Led by Airtree, this round supports our expansion across Asia and into the US – and accelerates the build-out of AI agents that take the admin work off sales teams so they can focus on what they do best. Proud of the team, grateful to our customers and investors. We’re just getting started. Read the exclusive in the AFR. https://lnkd.in/gr66uknb Leigh Jasper | Tara Salmon | Karthik Venkatasubramanian| Chester Thompson| Chath Widanapathirana

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Company building in energy is shaped by early decisions that compound over time—how capital is structured, how technical risk is absorbed, and how teams prepare for scale well before it arrives.    Much of my work with founders centers on navigating those choices as deep science becomes real businesses. The details differ across power, materials, and industrial systems, but the challenge is consistent: building companies that can operate, adapt, and grow over long horizons.  You can see that work taking shape across the Breakthrough Energy portfolio. https://lnkd.in/eXd72trE

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The One Big Beautiful Bill Act just reshaped how QSBS works, and that has real implications for LPs. For starters, the five-year holding requirement is no longer all-or-nothing. Gains can now be partially excluded starting at year three, with a full exemption still kicking in at year five. That change alone increases exit flexibility and improves return outcomes for earlier liquidity events. The benefit cap has also been raised from $10M to $15M per taxpayer per company, and will be indexed to inflation starting in 2027, creating more headroom for concentrated wins. The asset ceiling for qualifying as a small business has expanded to $75M. That opens the door for QSBS treatment in many companies that were previously excluded, especially in later rounds. Taken together, these updates enhance the tax efficiency of venture strategies within a portfolio. Read more on our blog (http://bit.ly/4nTaMHm), or reach out to me directly if you have questions.

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It is incredible what care.fi has built - an OS for healthcare players —unifying RCM, claims intelligence, and embedded finance into a single execution layer. Welcome to July Family, Care.fi

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🥾 #bootstrapping as a mindset should be ephemeral, one that requires a deliberate transition away from as a business enters sustained growth Appointing an established auditor is often regarded as a luxury and not part of bootstrapping Audits discipline a business - to be methodical, thorough and deliberate - traits that acquirers often seek in due diligence After all, "What gets inspected, gets respected," Anon We will share the traits of venture businesses sought and respected by MNC acquirers, join us if your business is out of the #bootstrapping mindset #fulfillingpotential #hepmil #oobmil

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I've met a few founders recently who own 90%+ of their company and feel amazing about the prospects of future liquidity and not having to share in the upside. This is great, and most businesses are best built without outside capital or a deep cap table... That being said, you'll always have an invisible "shareholder" who is entitled to 23-37% of your business if you don't plan properly. This is a QSBS post.

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PE Boards as a Differentiator (for portfolio companies) If you heard the Shore Capital episode on "Invest Like the Best" podcast - there is one interesting insight for PE firms. Board Composition: - each board is built like a sports team with complementary skills - operators, VOC, adjacent sector experts This is a true differentiator because most boards are not intentionally built like a high-performing sports team. Also, there is one particular operator profile every B2B portfolio company should have on its board: a GTM expert (i.e. former CRO). All B2B portfolio company board discussions consistently focus on sales and revenue growth, making this one of the most impactful board roles. All top decile PE firms have a GTM expert in-house as an Operating Partner specializing in GTM who joins board meetings to spot upside opportunities and help see around corners and mitigate risks. P.S. Relating to the GTM, sales, and growth side, there’s a well-known story about Michael Ovitz serving on the board of Gulfstream Aerospace while it was owned by the PE firm Forstmann Little & Co. Michael Ovitz said that he and other board members, like Colin Powell, were so focused on GTM they even got on the phone to help sell jets. It was an entirely GTM-focused board which helped turn around Gulfstream. #pe #privateequity

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I recently joined Tim Tonella on the VENTURE 2 VICTORY podcast for a thoughtful conversation on where we are in the software cycle. Find the full episode here: https://lnkd.in/gdSGXXDZ

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Restructuring isn’t a failure. It’s often the price of growth. But let’s be honest change at scale is disruptive, political, and exhausting. You’re trying to realign people, processes, and systems while the business keeps running. M&A makes it harder. You’re not just merging org charts you’re colliding cultures, decision habits, and power structures. When it goes wrong, it’s chaos. When it goes right, it’s an art form. And that doesn’t happen by optimism. It takes: a clear operating model disciplined decision-making leaders who can hold the day job and the change agenda Most teams don’t need more enthusiasm. They need someone who understands the mechanics, the risk, and the human reality and can make the hard calls without drama. That’s leadership.

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Just wrapped up part 3 of a series on capital allocation for founders, operators, and finance leaders. Part 1 was about the $1 invested test and knowing whether your capital allocation is actually creating value .  Part 2  was about where the money goes and why most companies reallocate less than they should. Part 3 is about the bridge between strategy and communication: The Board Deck. Because none of the analytical work matters if your leadership team and your investors can't see it clearly. In Part 3, I introduce the AIMS Framework (Audience, Information, Movement, Support) to help you move away from "slide deck status updates" and toward rigorous capital allocation reviews. A few highlights: ↗️ Vectors over Scalars: Why reporting a single metric is useless without showing speed, distance, and direction. 🔭 Telescopes vs. Microscopes: Understanding how your communication must shift as you move from VC-backed growth to PE-led operational excellence. 🧩 The Disaggregation Requirement: Why blending legacy and growth units in your reporting hides the truth and confuses your investors. 👋 The Support Loop: How to turn your Board from "judges" into "active partners" by making specific, data-grounded asks. The board deck is your investor letter. It is the primary artifact through which your investors evaluate whether you are allocating capital wisely. This framework ensures you make it count. Read the final post here: https://lnkd.in/e3BpkX8b #CapitalAllocation #CFO #VentureCapital #PrivateEquity #GrowthEquity #FinanceStrategy #DigitalFinanceHQ

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I’m thrilled to officially announce our $3M seed investment in Propel People, a company we built inside the 1848 Ventures studio to tackle one of the biggest challenges facing the #construction industry today: the skilled #labor shortage. For small and medium-sized contractors, hiring isn't just a challenge. It's the number one threat to their growth, profitability, and safety. With 94% of contractors struggling to find qualified workers, it’s clear that traditional hiring methods aren't built for the trades. That’s why we built Propel People. It’s a mobile-first, AI-powered hiring platform designed for how construction actually works: in the field. By leveraging smart candidate ranking, instant #SMS-based screening, and a fully #bilingual interface, Propel helps contractors build great crews faster and more efficiently. I’m also thrilled to formally announce that industry veteran Dexter Bachelder is at the helm as CEO. Having worked with Dexter and the team over the last few months, we've already seen the impact of his leadership. His 25 years of experience scaling construction tech companies will be instrumental as Propel People enters this initial stage of growth. This investment reinforces our core thesis at 1848 Ventures: building AI-native companies that solve fundamental pain points for the #SMBs that form the backbone of our economy. A huge congratulations to Dexter and the entire Propel People team on this milestone. We are incredibly proud to partner with you to support the people who build our world. Read the full announcement below. #constructiontech #venturecapital #seedfunding #ai #skilledtrades #smb

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