Name

Anacapa Partners

Legal name

Anacapa Partners

Website

https://anacapapartners.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Equity / Search Fund Investments

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Buy-Side Search & Acquisition Advisory (FSAEAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Management Buyouts (MBO/MBI) & Sponsor-Led Transactions Advisory (FSAEAGAI), Capital Raising Advisory (Debt/Equity/Private Capital) (BPAHADAG)

Keywords

• Search fund investments
• Lower middle market
• Private equity investing
• Entrepreneurship through acquisition
• Search fund capital

Headquarters

HQ city

San Mateo

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns from Portfolio Companies: Anacapa Partners generates returns through equity investments in search fund companies. They invest capital for long-term appreciation and develop a broad-based portfolio of investments. Returns are realized through liquidity events including outright sales, IPOs, debt or equity recapitalizations, or dividend distributions. The average hold period for search fund investments is seven years, with the most successful deals held for over ten years.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Anacapa Partners is a private investment firm that provides capital, credibility, and operating support to first-time entrepreneurs who acquire and operate lower middle-market businesses through the search fund model. The firm invests alongside 10-20 institutional and individual co-investors per search fund and takes active board seats to guide strategy, operations, and exit planning across its portfolio companies.

Product overview

Anacapa Partners is a private equity investment firm specializing in search fund investments. The firm operates a unified investment platform focused on acquiring and managing lower middle market businesses. Their core offering is providing capital, operational expertise, and industry credibility to first-time entrepreneurs acquiring companies with $1.5-5+ million EBITDA. The firm supports portfolio companies through active board participation, strategic guidance, and access to a network of experienced investors and operators. Anacapa also offers an investor portal for limited partners to access fund documentation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CPS Management Partners: Active management firm focused on business continuity and long-term value creation, working with business owners on investment opportunities.

Products and services

• Search Fund Investment Services Capital commitment and operating partnership with first-time search fund entrepreneurs to search for, acquire, manage, and grow lower middle-market companies (typically $1.5-5+ million EBITDA). Investors syndicate 10-20 institutional and individual LPs per search fund and take active roles through the search and ownership phases.
• Portfolio Company Management Active board participation, operational oversight, growth strategy development, and exit planning for acquired companies held in Anacapa's portfolio, with average hold period of seven years and the most successful investments held for over ten years.
• Investor Portal Access (Fundpanel) Secure investor login portal (Fundpanel) for limited partners in Anacapa Partners Funds to access fund-related information and documentation.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Stanford Center for Entrepreneurial StudiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative research partnership with Stanford GSB on search fund studies. Anacapa's Sara Heston previously served as Associate Director of the Search Fund Project at Stanford. Jeff Stevens participates in classroom case discussions and mentors students in entrepreneurship courses.
• Yale School of ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative research on entrepreneurship through acquisition topics. Co-authored white papers including 'Exploring the CEO's Leadership Role in a Search Fund–Acquired Small Business' and 'Exploring the Future of Entrepreneurship through Acquisition'.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Relay Investments: San Francisco-based search fund investor that backs first-time entrepreneurs acquiring lower middle-market businesses. Anacapa director Warren Chan previously worked at Relay Investments, and the two firms operate the same investment model competing for the same searcher talent pool.
• Acacia Capital Partners: Long-established sponsor of search fund entrepreneurs with a focus on lower middle-market acquisitions. Directly comparable to Anacapa in target customer (first-time searchers), investment size, and active board participation model.
• IndieVest: One of the original search fund sponsors (formerly IFS – Investors in First Searches). Operates the same model as Anacapa: capital + guidance for first-time entrepreneurs acquiring small businesses, with broad-based LP participation per fund.
• Aldebaran Capital Partners: Active search fund investor backing first-time searchers in lower middle-market acquisitions. Same target customer, same investment criteria ($1.5-5M EBITDA), and competing for the same deal flow of high-quality search fund entrepreneurs.
• PivotNorth Capital: Search fund sponsor providing equity capital to entrepreneurs acquiring lower middle-market companies. Direct competitor to Anacapa for both LP capital and searcher deal flow, with similar hold-period and board-participation model.
• CFS Financial Group: Pioneering search fund investor and sponsor of first-time entrepreneurs. Operates the same business model as Anacapa – backing individual searchers with pooled LP capital – and competes for the same limited pool of MBA-quality search fund candidates.
• Weathergage Capital: Active search fund investor providing equity capital for first-time searchers acquiring small businesses. Directly comparable in fund size, investment criteria, and emphasis on patient long-term capital.
• Indus Valley Capital: Search fund sponsor investing in first-time entrepreneurs acquiring lower middle-market businesses. Operates with similar small-team structure and broad LP participation model as Anacapa.

Broad incumbents

• Mainsail Partners: Lower middle-market growth equity firm that does not specialize in search funds but invests in similar-sized companies. Comparable as a buyer of $5-50M EBITDA businesses and a competitor for assets at the upper end of Anacapa's searcher targets.
• Sterling Investment Partners: Lower middle-market private equity firm that, while not a search fund specialist, competes for the same acquisition targets and management talent. Provides a broader-scale benchmark against which Anacapa's small, focused model can be evaluated.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments5 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Anacapa Partners