Private equity and brand aren’t often used in the same sentence. But, maybe that’s why ParkerGale Capital is not like most private equity firms.
The misconception of private equity is that they are buying companies, firing everyone, and outsourcing production to other countries.
Founders Devin Mathews and Jim Milbury made sure that ParkerGale was different.
“We buy from founders that love their business and put it into the hands of someone that will take care of the company and grow it.”
Hearing a businesses origin story is what fascinates the ParkerGale team.
The dynamic duo of Devin and Jim let their brand personality shine through in their storytelling.
“Almost all of their stories are totally true, they may not have happened to them, but they are all true.”
The duo jokes that you never want to start a story with “this happened to my brother” and the downside to this is you can never tell is they are pulling your leg or not.
And they love to tell other people’s stories on their PEFuncast. (Check out Brian Walker’s episodes 105 and 108)
“We take our business very seriously, but we don’t take ourselves seriously at all.”
According to the founders, “this isn’t rocket science.” They humbly say that they are just buying businesses and trying to make them better. And not better in what it does, but how they can help grow its size and help founders retire without worry.
It’s about finding the balance between urgency and empathy. The ParkerGale firm knows to value EQ over IQ in their employees and businesses.
“You need to let people feel confident. And businesses that invest in their people with resources, and help them become better at their job that do well. It’s not perform or else.”
So what do they look for in their private equity investments?
Basically, they are looking for heads down micro, not macro trends. They don’t play the “hot” market.
They look for the Total Addressable Market (TAMs). It’s in small TAMs where you can build the dominant player and that’s what ParkerGale tries to do.
Thank you for listening and we hope you enjoyed this episode of the Brand Lab Series™ podcast. Check out our other podcasts on iTunes.
Tags: Financial Services, Brand and Marketing
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