Growthcap Insights

In this episode, we speak with Marcelo Gigliani, Managing Partner of Apax Digital, where he is focused on growth equity investments in the software, internet, and technology-enabled services areas. He serves as a member of the Apax Digital Fund Investment Committee and the Apax Inclusion & Diversity Council. Apax Digital partners with exceptional founders and leadership teams of innovative SaaS, internet, and tech-enabled services companies worldwide to unlock their maximum potential. The firm has 35 years of tech investing experience and typically invests $50-$200 million per partnership. Marcelo joined Apax in 1999 and co-founded Apax Digital in 2017. Marcelo has led a number of the Apax Funds’ digital deals, including Accurate Background, Boats Group (BoatTrader), Dealer.com, idealista, MetaMetrics, Solita, SoYoung, Trader Corporation (AutoTrader Canada), and Wizeline. Marcelo supports BUILD NYC.  To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  I

In this episode, we speak with Devyn Smith, the CEO of Arbor Biotechnologies, which is an early stage life sciences company pushing the boundaries of biodiscovery.  Arbor has raised over $200 million dollars and is backed by Temasek and other notable investors. Devyn also serves as Chairman of the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM) and advises multiple biotech companies. Previously, he was Chief Operations Officer and Head of Strategy at Sigilon Therapeutics, a clinical stage biotechnology company, and before that he was Head of Operations and Strategy, Medicinal Sciences at Pfizer. Arbor’s platform employs a diverse set of technologies and techniques – including artificial intelligence, genome sequencing, gene synthesis and high-throughput screening – for accelerating the discovery of proteins for improving human health and sustainability. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Robert Collins of Partners Group, where he serves as Co-Head of Private Wealth, Head of the firm’s New York Office and a member of the Global Executive Board. Partners Group is a leading global private markets firm. Since 1996, the firm has invested over $200 billion in private equity, private debt, private real estate, and private infrastructure on behalf of its clients. The firm seeks to generate strong returns through capitalizing on thematic growth trends and transforming attractive businesses and assets into market leaders. Partners Group is a committed, responsible investor and aims to create sustainable returns with lasting, positive impact for all its stakeholders. Robert leads Partners Group's US private wealth and defined contribution practice and is President, Portfolio Manager and Member of the Board of Managers of Partners Group Private Equity (Master Fund). He also chairs Partners Group (USA)’s Investment Committee. Robert joined the firm in 2005 as a member of the

In this episode, we speak with Andy Byrne, CEO and Co-founder of Clari. Clari is a platform that uses AI and machine learning to support sales teams by integrating with their existing CRM systems. Thousands of sales, marketing, and customer success teams at leading companies, including Okta, Adobe, Workday, Zoom, and Finastra, use Clari’s execution insights to make their revenue process more connected, efficient, and predictable. The company is backed by Blackstone, Silver Lake, Sapphire Ventures, Tenaya, Bain Capital, Sequoia and other notable investors. Prior to Clari, Byrne was a founding executive at Clearwell, which he helped grow from pre-product and pre-revenue in 2005 to an $80 million annual revenue run rate until its acquisition by Symantec in 2011. Andy supports Rise Against Hunger. To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba. We hope you enjoy the show. If you like the episode, click to subscribe.  

In this episode, we speak with Mike Palmer, CEO of Sigma Computing. Sigma is a cloud-native analytics platform that uses a familiar spreadsheet interface to give business users instant access to explore and get insights from their cloud data warehouse. It requires no code or special training to explore billions of rows, augment with new data, or perform “what if” analysis on all data in real⁠-⁠time. Mike joined Sigma in 2020 and brought with him more than two decades of experience in the technology industry, developing and delivering solutions for the enterprise at startups and Fortune 500 companies. Mike supports Teach For America. To learn more about this organization click here. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Juan Marcos Hill, a Partner at Stride Consumer Partners, which is a private equity firm that focuses on investing in the next generation of great consumer brands. Founded in 2019, Stride’s unique approach brings together a fully integrated team of successful investors working alongside seasoned operators to help high-growth and disruptive consumer products and services businesses hit their stride. The Stride Consumer team has worked with the founders and teams of Brew Dr, drybar, Essentia, First Aid Beauty, Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams, Simms Fishing Products, Tatcha, Urban Decay, and Yasso, among other brands. Juan Marcos’ passion for founder-led business began at an early age on his family’s coffee farm in El Salvador. Growing up in a family business cultivated his desire to understand the challenges of growing a business and the people behind them. Before joining Stride, he was with Castanea and Bain & Company. Juan Marcos supports Glasswing International. To learn more abo

In this episode, we speak with Blair Greenberg of Bregal Sagemount, a leading growth-focused private capital firm with more than $5.5 billion of capital raised. The firm provides flexible capital and strategic assistance to market-leading companies in high-growth sectors across a wide variety of transaction situations. Bregal Sagemount has invested in over 60 companies in a variety of sectors, including software, financial technology and specialty finance, digital infrastructure, healthcare IT, and business and consumer services. The firm has offices in New York, Dallas, and Palo Alto. Blair Greenberg is a Partner and member of the investment committee at Bregal Sagemount. Blair also serves on the boards of DentalXChange, Open Lending Corporation, and Scorpion Enterprises and has previously served on the boards of Accela, Align Financial Holdings, Discovery Data, and Irth Solutions. Blair is a Board Member at Per Scholas, a national organization that has been advancing economic mobility for more than 25 years

In this episode, we speak with Niclas Luthman, Founding Partner of Nick’s. Based in Sweden, Nick’s develops "better for you" alternatives to popular sugar packed and carb loaded foods, such as confectionery, ice cream, snacks and sweeteners. Nick’s seeks to eliminate the gap between indulgent and healthy, through food innovation, to empower more people to make better food choices. An entrepreneur with a mechanical engineering background, Niclas became a self taught food engineer in 2014 after having to change his diet and lifestyle.  He worked with food scientists to develop a range of sugar, wheat and gluten-free snacks that can be part of every-day life.  The Nick’s range has become a permanent fixture in the Swedish confectionery aisles and also has a home in the US. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode we speak with Ben Levin, Co-founder and CEO of Level Equity. Level Equity is a private investment firm focused on providing capital to rapidly growing software and technology-driven businesses. Level provides long term capital across all transaction types in support of continued growth. The firm has raised $3.0 billion in committed capital, has backed over 100 companies since inception, and has offices in New York, NY, San Francisco, CA, and Greenwich, CT. Level’s Operating Partner team, collectively known as NextLevel Operations, provides value-add strategies that allow it to develop world class management teams, financial sophistication, M&A capabilities, and exit readiness for its portfolio companies. Ben has been an investor in rapidly growing private companies since 1997 and one of the first institutional investors in numerous category-defining software and technology businesses. Prior to co-founding Level, Ben spent over six years at Insight Partners, most recently as a Managing Dire

In this episode, we speak with John Jahnke, the CEO of Tackle, the leading solution built to help software companies generate revenue through a data-driven Cloud go-to-market (Cloud GTM). John is a business and technology leader with a successful track record of building great teams to drive emerging technology patterns. Tackle works with more than 550 software companies including CrowdStrike, HashiCorp, Lacework, New Relic, VMware, and many more at every stage - from companies scaling their go-to-market to the largest software companies in the world. They are venture backed by three of the world's top SaaS investors - a16z, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Coatue. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Jack Purcell, a Managing Partner of Ridgemont Equity Partners, which is a Charlotte-based middle market private equity firm with $9 billion in assets under management that has provided buyout and growth capital to industry-leading companies in the business and tech-enabled services, industrial growth, and healthcare sectors for three decades. The principals of Ridgemont have refined a proven, industry-focused model designed to build distinctive middle market companies. Jack focuses primarily on investments in business and tech-enabled services as well as industrial growth.  Previously, Jack worked with Banc of America Capital Investors, which he joined in 2002. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Jim Donnelly, Co-founder of Restore Hyper Wellness. Restore delivers expert guidance and an extensive array of cutting-edge health modalities, such as IV drips and cryotherapy, integrated under one roof. With multiple franchise locations across the U.S., the company is a national presence and leading brand in the Hyper Wellness space. Restore was founded in 2015 in Austin, Texas after Jim used cryotherapy while training for a triathlon. The success of the Austin location accelerated the brand into a franchise entity, and they are planning to have 500 locations by the end of 2024. Prior to founding Restore, and after serving in the military, Jim founded and backed multiple ventures.  He also co-founded IgoUgo.com, a  leader in user-generated travel website content, which was later sold to Sabre Holdings / Travelocity. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Michael Fisch, Founder and CEO of American Securities.  Based in New York with an office in Shanghai, American Securities is a leading U.S. private equity firm that invests in market-leading North American companies with annual revenues generally ranging from $200 million to $2 billion. American Securities and its affiliates have more than $26 billion under management. Originating as a family office founded in 1947, in 1994, American Securities opened its private equity investment activities to outside investors seeking attractive risk-adjusted rates of return. Michael is a founder of American Securities and has been CEO since its inception in 1994. Before founding the firm, Michael was a partner in two private equity funds, a consultant in the Paris office of Bain & Company, and a professional in the mergers and acquisitions department of Goldman Sachs. Michael earned his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College, where he is a Member of the President’s Leadership Council

In this episode, we speak with Sarah Jones Simmer, CEO of Found, a company with a mission to make evidence-based, sustainable weight care accessible for all. Prior to joining Found in 2021, Sarah was the COO of Bumble, where she was responsible for core strategy, international growth, marketing initiatives, and business operations, as well as the expansion of Bumble’s rapidly growing team. She started her career analyzing equities and market conditions at a Los Angeles-based hedge fund with ~$5 billion AUM. Found has raised over $130 million and is backed by WestCap, Google Ventures, Atomic and other notable investors. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Guillermo Rauch, Founder and CEO of Vercel, the frontend cloud that gives developers the frameworks, workflows, and infrastructure to build a faster, more personalized web. Founded in 2015, the company has raised over $300 million dollars and is backed by GGV Capital, Accel, Bedrock Capital, CRV, and other notable investors. Vercel unlocks developer potential and enables users to go from idea to global application in seconds. Vercel enables customers like Under Armour, Nintendo, The Washington Post, and Zapier to build delightful user experiences on the Web. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Eric Dawson, Founder and CEO of RIVET, which channels the collective economic power of young people to fund their work as social innovators. Young people control over $3 trillion of spending power and are hungry for authentic avenues to express their values.  Meanwhile brands are hungry to connect to young consumers.  Combine those two facts and add in the tremendous energy driving the youth social change movement and you have RIVET. Prior to RIVET, Eric co-founded Peace First as a freshman at Harvard, leading it to become a global nonprofit that now supports over 13,000 youth-led projects in over 150 countries. As an Ashoka, Echoing Green, and Pop!Tech Fellow and best-selling author, Eric is a globally recognized expert on youth empowerment. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Kristin Gunther, a Partner at Revolution Growth which has more than $1 billion in assets under management and backs category-defining companies. Revolution is a D.C.-based investment firm founded by AOL cofounder Steve Case in 2005. Through its family of funds – The Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, Revolution Ventures, and Revolution Growth – Revolution partners with founders at every stage of the startup lifecycle. Kristin brings over 15 years of experience in private equity, finance, and operations. Prior to joining Revolution, she spent five years at Perseus where she worked with portfolio companies and management teams on growth strategies, operating and finance matters, and exit planning. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.

In this episode, we speak with Kevin Frick, Co-Founder and Partner of Serent Capital, a leading lower-middle market private equity firm focused on investing in high growth service and technology businesses. Serent’s portfolio includes more than 60 founder-led, industry-changing companies that it partners with who are scaling up by using Serent’s toolkit of growth resources. Kevin has a long track record of working with CEOs and their management teams to help their companies achieve their full potential, and has engaged on topics of strategy, organization, sales & account management, marketing and lead generation, product road-mapping, pricing, operations, and mergers & acquisitions. Prior to co-founding Serent, Kevin was a partner at McKinsey & Company, where he led McKinsey's West Coast Private Equity practice. He has worked with over 100 companies in a counseling capacity with an exceptional track record of helping management teams achieve bottom-line improvements. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We h

In this episode, we speak with Rajeev Shah, the Co-Founder and CEO of Celona, the enterprise 5G company that enables a new generation of AI-powered business critical apps in the enterprise and helps organizations accelerate their digital transformation journey. Before founding Celona, Rajeev was the VP of product management and marketing for Federated Wireless, where he launched the industry’s first and leading Spectrum Access System. Prior to Federated, Rajeev held multiple product management leadership positions at Aruba Networks, including creating its Cloud Wi-Fi business. Taking advantage of the Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) spectrum, Celona’s solution architecture is designed to simplify and automate deployment of cellular wireless technology by enterprise IT organizations and managed service providers. The company was born with the idea that a combination of 5G radio technology, edge computing and machine learning software will fundamentally change how organizations work and do business. Celo

In this episode, we speak with Vivek Sunder, CEO of Cuemath, an online supplemental learning platform. Cuemath started in India in 2013 with a mission to transform the way children learn math. The company started as an offline tutoring center with a small group of students but is now the world's leading online math education platform. Backed by marquee investors such as Google and Sequoia, Cuemath is present in 80+ countries today and is trusted by over 200,000 students for all their math needs. Prior to working at Cuemath, Sunder worked for more than two decades at P&G and served as COO of Swiggy, an India-based food ordering and delivery platform. Sunder leads Cuemath’s mission to be a global math powerhouse with 21st century techniques and technology. I am your host RJ Lumba.  We hope you enjoy the show.  If you like the episode, click to subscribe.