Graycliff Partners Named to Inc.'s List of Founder-Friendly Investors

Graycliff Partners is honored to announce it has been named to Inc.’s Founder-Friendly Investors list. The award recognizes the private equity and venture capital firms with the strongest track records of successfully partnering with founders.

Graycliff has nearly two decades of experience partnering with founders and management teams to continue their legacies and build exceptional companies. “Partnership is at the center of what we do,” said Duke Punhong, Managing Partner at Graycliff. “We place the utmost importance on listening to and learning from founders so that we may best leverage our resources to address the unique opportunities and challenges at each company. Founders and management teams know their company best, and it is their expertise paired with our resources and strategic direction that empowers teams to achieve strong growth and create exceptional returns.”

Graycliff’s recent acquisition of Landmark Structures, a leading manufacturer of elevated water tanks, embodies this founder-centric mentality. Graycliff built a relationship with the founding family over several years and, as a result, was well positioned when they pursued a private equity partner. Chris Lamon, Landmark’s CEO and son of the company’s founder, commented: “The team at Graycliff took the time to thoroughly understand our company and goals. When it came time to choose a partner, Graycliff was the party we trusted most to support us in our next phase of growth.”

“Fully investing in an entrepreneur, and their innovative vision, involves far more than the financial investment. By developing relationships with and supporting entrepreneurs for the long-term, these private equity firms are more than investors, they’re partners,” says Scott Omelianuk, editor-in-chief of Inc. media.

Graycliff’s Founder-Friendly Approach

Graycliff's mission is to help companies and founders pursue their ambitions. Our approach is rooted in trust, collaboration, and curiosity and can be summed up in three words: Listen. Learn. Leverage. We call it L3. Read about it here..

The 2022 List of Founder-Friendly Investors was published by Inc. Magazine in October 2022. The “Founder-Friendly Investors” award is a program designed by Inc. Magazine to help founder-led companies accelerate growth and create revenue. Private equity and venture capital firms that have exited U.S.-based, founder-led portfolio companies are eligible to apply. For investments to qualify, portfolio company founders must have remained actively involved in their business for at least one-year post-investment. Winning firms are selected based upon their investments and founder references. Graycliff is not aware of the number of advisers also surveyed for the award. Like all entrants, Graycliff paid a fee to be considered for this award. This award is not to be construed as indicative of Graycliff’s future performance. Reference to an award is only one piece of information relevant to an evaluation of an investment adviser such as Graycliff. Finally, this award represents information as of a specific date and time and may not reflect important information related to an evaluation of the investment adviser which has occurred prior to, or subsequent to the award. To see the complete list, go to: https://www.inc.com/founder-friendly-investors/2022.