Our Approach

We are partners, not bosses. We provide financial resources, operational insight and strategic counsel to entrepreneurs who understand that growth capital from an experienced financial partner will help them grow smarter and faster and substantially increase the value of their business.

We view our capital, expertise, and extensive network as the means for a company with a proven business model to accelerate its growth. Together, we will take your company to the next level.

Most of the time our capital is deployed to achieve faster organic growth, but we also have funded follow-on strategic acquisitions and provided liquidity to passive investors or outstanding entrepreneurs who want to continue building their business but would also like to “take a few chips off the table.”

We are long-term investors who focus on building and realizing value in the form of capital gains over a long period of time – typically three to seven years – and we prefer minority ownership stakes to control positions.

We view our capital, expertise, and extensive network as the means for a company with a proven business model to accelerate its growth.  Together, we will take your company to the next level.

Although we prefer to be the lead investor, we will participate in financings led by others who share our approach, objectives and values.

We seek to invest $5-$15 million in companies that meet our Investment Criteria and can arrange larger investments through syndication within our extensive network:

Outstanding Management Teams

We believe that great entrepreneurs build great businesses, so we target investments in companies led by experienced, focused management teams with deep domain and management expertise, a burning drive to succeed, and a high level of integrity. We are well-suited to help an outstanding entrepreneur build his or her team, and we are unlikely to invest in a business where a new leader for the business must be identified and recruited.

Large and Growing National Market

We look for companies operating in established market sectors that are projected to grow at an attractive rate over a five to ten year period. Markets with these characteristics afford well-managed companies the opportunity to grow at rapid rates and substantially increase revenues and profits over the life of our investment. We are hesitant to invest in businesses that are targeting “potential” markets that look promising but have yet to develop.

Revenues and A Proven Economic Model

We seek out companies that are already generating meaningful revenue and have proven economic models that allow for an attractive return on invested capital. We prefer to focus our efforts on assessing competitive and execution risk rather than product or business model risk, and we want to see tangible evidence of the unique value offered by a company’s product or service.

Domiciled In The Southeast and Texas

We like the business environment in Florida, the Southeast and Texas, and we have spent our careers building valuable relationships in the region. Our partner companies may well have operations outside these areas, but we prefer to invest in companies that are headquartered or have substantial operations in the region.

We have built an extensive network of entrepreneurs, industry veterans, service providers, and research analysts in the following Industries that thrive in our region:
  • Healthcare
  • Software
  • Technology-Enabled Business Services

We will selectively consider investments outside these industry sectors that meet our investment criteria, because great entrepreneurs can build leading companies in any industry. However, we invest only in operating companies and do not invest in the real estate or energy exploration sectors.

Entrepreneur Profile

We look for many of the same things in a business partner that you do: talent, drive, intelligence, experience, vision, integrity. Ultimately we hope to build long-term relationships with outstanding entrepreneurs – many of whom we back in more than one venture, and some of whom become investors in our Funds.

  • Deep domain and operating experience in your industry and a proven track record of success.
  • The reputation and integrity necessary to attract high quality co-workers capable of building high performance companies.
  • The character, determination, and work ethic needed to achieve their goals and to overcome the inevitable challenges associated with rapidly growing businesses.
  • A willingness to listen to sound counsel and to let us and our network of relationships help you enhance your prospects for success.

One thing we don’t necessarily look for may surprise you: our experience with “quiet and cerebral” entrepreneurs has taught us that you don’t have to be an extroverted leader to run a successful high-growth company.

You can read a little bit about our thinking on the subject in Do I put off a human vibe to you? where we share an excerpt from Susan Cain’s book, Quiet – The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking:

“[It’s a mistake] to embrace the Extrovert Ideal so unthinkingly. Some of our greatest ideas, art and inventions — from the theory of evolution to van Gogh’s sunflowers to the personal computer — came from quiet and cerebral people who knew how to tune in to their inner worlds and the treasures to be found there.”

Our Lineage

Ballast Point Ventures (“BPV”) was founded in 2001 as a joint venture between Raymond James Financial (NYSE: RJF) and the principals of South Atlantic Venture Funds. This partnership was a natural outgrowth of the twenty-year relationship between two of the Southeast’s most reputable investment firms.

Raymond James Financial was an investor in all four of the South Atlantic venture funds between 1983 and 2001 and became very familiar with South Atlantic’s disciplined investment strategy.

While BPV is independently owned and operated by its Partners, we enjoy a unique and valuable relationship with Raymond James.

Tom James, Executive Chairman, and other senior professionals, including the heads of both the capital markets and equity research divisions, serve as Advisors to BPV.  Raymond James remains BPV’s largest investor and many of its senior executives, investment bankers and industry research analysts are also investors in the Fund.

The founders of Ballast Point Ventures believe we have created a unique investment platform with the capital, expertise and key relationships to help entrepreneurs build their companies to their full potential. We work hard to make our motto – ‘Capital for Growth, A Partner for Success’ – a reality for all our partner companies.

© 2023 Ballast Point Ventures. All rights reserved.