Get to know us!
You’ll discover our expertise and how we can ensure your legacy grows and prospers.
Our team of investors and entrepreneurs combine operational and strategic planning experience in businesses of all sizes and sectors. Most importantly, we have the energy, commitment and entrepreneurial spirit that is necessary to take your business to the next level.
Prior to co-founding MAGNUM Capital, Enrico was an Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company in Italy. As a management consultant, he was involved in an array of projects of strategic importance for large corporations in the telecommunications, grocery retail, travel, aerospace, banking and energy sectors. Enrico has also worked with SMEs in the distribution and clean-tech sector and co-led the launch of Easy Taxi, a technology based company that allows users to order a taxi through a smartphone app in Panama.
He holds an MBA degree from IESE Business School in Barcelona and a Master’s Degree in Physics (M.Sc. equivalent) which he completed obtaining the Magna Cum Laude recognition. He is an avid triathlete. In 2006, after years of mental and physical preparation, Enrico completed an Ironman in Zurich, Switzerland by swimming 3.8 kilometers, biking 180 kilometers and running a full marathon in 10 hours and 42 minutes.
Prior to co-founding MAGNUM Capital, Patricia Riopel, was launching and operating financial institutions in tough business environments in Africa and Latin America for the Desjardins Group. Prior to working for Desjardins, she was the Controller for Distex M&M inc., a distribution business in Montreal.
Patricia is a versatile and natural leader who enjoys the action of day-to-day operations and has led Operations, HR, Accounting, Finance and Risk Management departments in various SMEs.
She holds an MBA degree from IESE Business School in Barcelona and a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce with concentrations in finance and strategic management from McGill University in Montreal. Patricia also enjoys competitive team sports and has played varsity volleyball for her alma mater.
- Kent Weaver
Mr. Weaver is currently Chairman and CEO of Progressive Home Care, a Northern California-based home health care agency purchased using the search fund model.
Previously, Mr. Weaver held executive positions in marketing and product management for KnowledgeLINK, a venture-backed technology services company. Prior to this, he served as a regional CFO and business analyst in Pepsico's Pizza Hut Division and as a management consultant with Ernst & Young. Mr. Weaver received his MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles and a BS in finance from the University of Southern California.
- Peter A. Schober
Peter Schober has been in venture capital since the mid-1980s. He founded and runs Milk Street Ventures, a firm that specializes in secondary transactions involving the acquisition of stakes in venture-backed technology companies near liquidity events. Earlier in his career, Mr. Schober started and ran the international investment activity of Boston-based M/C Partners with an office in London. He helped develop business plans and recruited senior management teams for several sizeable telecommunications start-ups with recurring revenue models. Mr. Schober also co-founded MVP Ventures, investing in a wide range of sectors, including information technology, communications, hospitality, and industrial.
Throughout his career, Peter Schober has enjoyed working closely with entrepreneurs as they grow their businesses, frequently serving on their board of directors. Backing highly talented and ambitious search fund entrepreneurs is a natural extension of his interests and an important component of his personal investment activity. After growing up in Europe, Mr. Schober earned a bachelor’s degree in international economics from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and an MBA from the Wharton School of Finance at University of Pennsylvania. As a Fellow at Penn’s Joseph H. Lauder Institute, he also received an MA in International Studies.
- Scott Asen
Mr. Asen graduated from Harvard College in 1966. He spent many years in the venture capital industry, successfully managing a family of funds for a wealthy New York investor.
He is currently investing solely for his personal account, managing a portfolio of public and private equity investments. He sits on a number of corporate as well as not-for-profit boards.
- Search Fund Partners
Search Fund Partners invests in small, profitable companies with $5 to $30 million in revenue. The firm works primarily with Search Funds, partnering with entrepreneurs to find, acquire and build successful businesses. The firm’s team has over 40 years of management and investment experience in a wide spectrum of industries.
David Carver
David Carver is a co-founder of Search Fund Partners. He and his partner, Rich Kelley, have spent the last four years developing and managing the SFP portfolio. He is on the Board of iNet Interactive, Behavioral Health Group, iVize, WebEquity, and VRI. He was formerly on the board of ProService Hawaii.
David spent thirty years as an executive in the high tech industry, and has extensive experience in all phases of business, including M&A, fund-raising, corporate strategy and operations. He was CEO of HiFive!, an application service provider; CEO of Hipbone Networks, an online collaboration company; EVP and GM at Network Associates; COO of Network General; EIR at Institutional Venture Partners; and an executive at Hewlett-Packard, including ten years in the professional service/software divisions of HP.
Dave has an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.S. in Mathematics from the University of Arkansas. Dave and his wife Julia have two boys, RJ and Sam. He is active in community and non-profit organizations, having founded the Redwood Chapter of National Junior Basketball serving 650 children.
Rich Kelley
Rich Kelley is a co-founder of Search Fund Partners, having started the firm in 2004. He currently serves on the Boards of Directors of San Francisco Legal, HemaSource, Verengo, H&R Accounts, Asset Recovery Corporation and Medical Positioning, Inc.
Rich Kelley has been involved in numerous small businesses and start-up companies as an operator, owner, and investor. His varied experience includes: CFO of Score Learning Centers, CEO of San Jose Giants, General Partner of the Stanford Terrace Inn, developer of houses and subdivisions, owner of office buildings, investor in successful tech start-ups (Coinstar, PLX Technology, Corcept Therapeutics). He has also invested in many limited partnerships, including venture funds, and has been involved as a search fund investor since 1994.
Rich has an MBA from Stanford and a BA from Stanford. Rich and his wife Gina have two children, Riley and Sam. He was recently an elected school board trustee and is active with the Positive Coaching Alliance and Sustainable Conservation as an advisor.
Jim Edmunds
Jim Edmunds recently joined Search Fund Partners, bringing practical search fund and portfolio company management experience to the firm. Jim's search fund, Ephesus Capital, acquired Celebrity Kids Portrait Studios, a leading provider of upscale children's photography in 2005. Jim served as President and CFO of the company. Jim currently serves on the board of Ascentia and Consumeraffairs.com.
Before launching a search fund, Jim was an Associate at McKinsey & Company in Palo Alto. Prior to attending business school, Jim conducted business development for PetSmart.com, managed a successful political campaign in Texas, and worked in Investment Banking and Equity Capital Markets at Bear Stearns.
Jim holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he was named a Siebel Scholar, and an A.B. in History from Harvard University. Jim and his wife Christine have a daughter, Emiko.
- David Lazier and Tom Cassutt
David Lazier
Mr. Lazier is a private investor who has made more than 130 investments in search funds. He is also the president of American Security Products, a leading manufacturer of high-security safes.
Mr. Lazier currently sits on the boards of American Security Products, Columbia Sanitary Products, Datum Technologies, and Gogotech. He has previously served on the boards of Glendale Memorial Hospital Foundation, the San Gabriel Valley Habitat for Humanity and St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University.
Thomas Cassutt
Mr. Cassutt has made more than 130 investments in search funds. He is also the CFO of American Security Products, a leading manufacturer of high-security safes.
Mr. Cassutt currently sits on the boards of American Security Products, Columbia Sanitary Products, Dynamic Growth Dental, and Positive Coaching Alliance. He received a Bachelor of Physics Degree in 1982 from the University of California, Irvine, where he was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate. In 1986, he received an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar and the recipient of the Alexander A. Robichek Award, given each year to the top student in finance.
- Edward J. (Ted) McCarthy
Ted spent his early career as an engineer working on aircraft engine development and power plant consulting. He later spent eleven years with Citigroup in New York City; Sydney, Australia and Los Angeles in various positions. Ted purchased two Los Angeles area manufacturing businesses where he was CEO and owner. Ted sold his second business in 2012 and now concentrates on investments. He has served on the Board of the Pasadena Museum of California Art, currently serves on the Engineering Advisory Board at Villanova University and has served on the boards of several private companies. Ted has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Villanova University and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
- Ticonderoga Capital
Ticonderoga Capital is a private equity investor in small buyout and growth equity investments in profitable healthcare and software companies. We are active investors, often represented on the Board of Directors. We have served as Directors, Board Chairman, Executive Chairman and even CEO’s of our companies on an as-needed basis.
The Managing Partner of Ticonderoga Capital is Craig Jones, a 30-year veteran of the private equity and venture capital fields. He has served on the Boards of 50 companies over the past 30 years and experienced every outcome from write-offs to 15X returns. Over time Ticonderoga has narrowed its focus to only two fields, healthcare and software. The healthcare investment focus includes healthcare services, healthcare IT, healthcare payment management systems, and other healthcare business services. In software and Internet driven companies, Ticonderoga invests in enterprise software, SaaS, and Internet B2B companies.
Ticonderoga typically invests as part of syndicate mostly in majority purchases of companies with $4.0 to $40.0 million in revenue and at least $2.0 million in EBITDA. Occasionally Ticonderoga also participates in growth equity minority investments in profitable companies in these niches. We seek to provide liquidity to founders and early investors and to help in the transition of management if necessary. With professionals in the Denver and Boston area, we invest anywhere in the U.S.
- Other investors
Our investors also include business operators and leaders with expertise in manufacturing, healthcare, technology and many other fields.
Kent Weaver
Mr. Weaver is currently Chairman and CEO of Progressive Home Care, a Northern California-based home health care agency purchased using the search fund model.
Previously, Mr. Weaver held executive positions in marketing and product management for KnowledgeLINK, a venture-backed technology services company. Prior to this, he served as a regional CFO and business analyst in Pepsico's Pizza Hut Division and as a management consultant with Ernst & Young. Mr. Weaver received his MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles and a BS in finance from the University of Southern California.
Peter A. Schober
Peter Schober has been in venture capital since the mid-1980s. He founded and runs Milk Street Ventures, a firm that specializes in secondary transactions involving the acquisition of stakes in venture-backed technology companies near liquidity events. Earlier in his career, Mr. Schober started and ran the international investment activity of Boston-based M/C Partners with an office in London. He helped develop business plans and recruited senior management teams for several sizeable telecommunications start-ups with recurring revenue models. Mr. Schober also co-founded MVP Ventures, investing in a wide range of sectors, including information technology, communications, hospitality, and industrial.
Throughout his career, Peter Schober has enjoyed working closely with entrepreneurs as they grow their businesses, frequently serving on their board of directors. Backing highly talented and ambitious search fund entrepreneurs is a natural extension of his interests and an important component of his personal investment activity. After growing up in Europe, Mr. Schober earned a bachelor’s degree in international economics from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and an MBA from the Wharton School of Finance at University of Pennsylvania. As a Fellow at Penn’s Joseph H. Lauder Institute, he also received an MA in International Studies.
Scott Asen
Mr. Asen graduated from Harvard College in 1966. He spent many years in the venture capital industry, successfully managing a family of funds for a wealthy New York investor.
He is currently investing solely for his personal account, managing a portfolio of public and private equity investments. He sits on a number of corporate as well as not-for-profit boards.
Search Fund Partners
Search Fund Partners invests in small, profitable companies with $5 to $30 million in revenue. The firm works primarily with Search Funds, partnering with entrepreneurs to find, acquire and build successful businesses. The firm’s team has over 40 years of management and investment experience in a wide spectrum of industries.
David Carver
David Carver is a co-founder of Search Fund Partners. He and his partner, Rich Kelley, have spent the last four years developing and managing the SFP portfolio. He is on the Board of iNet Interactive, Behavioral Health Group, iVize, WebEquity, and VRI. He was formerly on the board of ProService Hawaii.
David spent thirty years as an executive in the high tech industry, and has extensive experience in all phases of business, including M&A, fund-raising, corporate strategy and operations. He was CEO of HiFive!, an application service provider; CEO of Hipbone Networks, an online collaboration company; EVP and GM at Network Associates; COO of Network General; EIR at Institutional Venture Partners; and an executive at Hewlett-Packard, including ten years in the professional service/software divisions of HP.
Dave has an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.S. in Mathematics from the University of Arkansas. Dave and his wife Julia have two boys, RJ and Sam. He is active in community and non-profit organizations, having founded the Redwood Chapter of National Junior Basketball serving 650 children.
Rich Kelley
Rich Kelley is a co-founder of Search Fund Partners, having started the firm in 2004. He currently serves on the Boards of Directors of San Francisco Legal, HemaSource, Verengo, H&R Accounts, Asset Recovery Corporation and Medical Positioning, Inc.
Rich Kelley has been involved in numerous small businesses and start-up companies as an operator, owner, and investor. His varied experience includes: CFO of Score Learning Centers, CEO of San Jose Giants, General Partner of the Stanford Terrace Inn, developer of houses and subdivisions, owner of office buildings, investor in successful tech start-ups (Coinstar, PLX Technology, Corcept Therapeutics). He has also invested in many limited partnerships, including venture funds, and has been involved as a search fund investor since 1994.
Rich has an MBA from Stanford and a BA from Stanford. Rich and his wife Gina have two children, Riley and Sam. He was recently an elected school board trustee and is active with the Positive Coaching Alliance and Sustainable Conservation as an advisor.
Jim Edmunds
Jim Edmunds recently joined Search Fund Partners, bringing practical search fund and portfolio company management experience to the firm. Jim's search fund, Ephesus Capital, acquired Celebrity Kids Portrait Studios, a leading provider of upscale children's photography in 2005. Jim served as President and CFO of the company. Jim currently serves on the board of Ascentia and Consumeraffairs.com.
Before launching a search fund, Jim was an Associate at McKinsey & Company in Palo Alto. Prior to attending business school, Jim conducted business development for PetSmart.com, managed a successful political campaign in Texas, and worked in Investment Banking and Equity Capital Markets at Bear Stearns.
Jim holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he was named a Siebel Scholar, and an A.B. in History from Harvard University. Jim and his wife Christine have a daughter, Emiko.
David Lazier and Tom Cassutt
David Lazier
Mr. Lazier is a private investor who has made more than 130 investments in search funds. He is also the president of American Security Products, a leading manufacturer of high-security safes.
Mr. Lazier currently sits on the boards of American Security Products, Columbia Sanitary Products, Datum Technologies, and Gogotech. He has previously served on the boards of Glendale Memorial Hospital Foundation, the San Gabriel Valley Habitat for Humanity and St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University.
Thomas Cassutt
Mr. Cassutt has made more than 130 investments in search funds. He is also the CFO of American Security Products, a leading manufacturer of high-security safes.
Mr. Cassutt currently sits on the boards of American Security Products, Columbia Sanitary Products, Dynamic Growth Dental, and Positive Coaching Alliance. He received a Bachelor of Physics Degree in 1982 from the University of California, Irvine, where he was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate. In 1986, he received an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar and the recipient of the Alexander A. Robichek Award, given each year to the top student in finance.
Edward J. (Ted) McCarthy
Ted spent his early career as an engineer working on aircraft engine development and power plant consulting. He later spent eleven years with Citigroup in New York City; Sydney, Australia and Los Angeles in various positions. Ted purchased two Los Angeles area manufacturing businesses where he was CEO and owner. Ted sold his second business in 2012 and now concentrates on investments. He has served on the Board of the Pasadena Museum of California Art, currently serves on the Engineering Advisory Board at Villanova University and has served on the boards of several private companies. Ted has a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Villanova University and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Ticonderoga Capital
Ticonderoga Capital is a private equity investor in small buyout and growth equity investments in profitable healthcare and software companies. We are active investors, often represented on the Board of Directors. We have served as Directors, Board Chairman, Executive Chairman and even CEO’s of our companies on an as-needed basis.
The Managing Partner of Ticonderoga Capital is Craig Jones, a 30-year veteran of the private equity and venture capital fields. He has served on the Boards of 50 companies over the past 30 years and experienced every outcome from write-offs to 15X returns. Over time Ticonderoga has narrowed its focus to only two fields, healthcare and software. The healthcare investment focus includes healthcare services, healthcare IT, healthcare payment management systems, and other healthcare business services. In software and Internet driven companies, Ticonderoga invests in enterprise software, SaaS, and Internet B2B companies.
Ticonderoga typically invests as part of syndicate mostly in majority purchases of companies with $4.0 to $40.0 million in revenue and at least $2.0 million in EBITDA. Occasionally Ticonderoga also participates in growth equity minority investments in profitable companies in these niches. We seek to provide liquidity to founders and early investors and to help in the transition of management if necessary. With professionals in the Denver and Boston area, we invest anywhere in the U.S.
Other investors
Our investors also include business operators and leaders with expertise in manufacturing, healthcare, technology and many other fields.