Relay Investments

What Relay Investments does

Relay Investments is a Boston-based private investment firm founded in 2013 that specializes in the search fund asset class, providing equity capital, mentorship, and operational support to entrepreneurs seeking to acquire and operate small-to-medium-sized businesses. The firm acts as a lead investor in the majority of search funds it participates in, typically taking 15-25% of search cap tables with equity checks ranging from $1M to $3.5M, and also participates in follow-on rounds for portfolio companies. Relay's core product is its proprietary "Relay Searcher Portal," a curated platform providing search partners with templates, guides, deal-flow tools, and exclusive technology-provider deals to support sourcing, LOI negotiation, due diligence, and deal closing.

The firm's go-to-market is relationship-driven and sales-led, primarily reaching prospective searchers through MBA program lunch-and-learns, conference speaking engagements, coffee chats, and direct outreach via its alumni and search-fund network. Relay monetizes through equity returns on search-fund investments (a 6-10 year hold pattern) rather than disclosed management fees or licensing, and reports no public fee schedule. Its customer base spans three primary segments: search fund entrepreneurs (primary), search fund investors/LPs, and post-acquisition CEOs of portfolio companies. The portfolio is industry-agnostic and geographically diversified across 20+ countries spanning North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Oceania.

Relay differentiates through a 30+ year pattern-recognition advantage built by Managing Partner Sandro Mina, an extensive Operating Partners Network (specialists in SaaS, healthcare, behavioral health, financial services, and European technology), and active board participation in acquired companies. The firm operates as Relay Investments Management, LLC under Massachusetts jurisdiction, with an 11-50 person core team supplemented by approximately 10 operating partners. Named portfolio outcomes include Omatic (35 to 100+ employees), Apex Physics Partners (16 to 170+ employees), and Empower Community Care (2,500+ clinicians across 34 states and 15 countries), with an NPS of 74 reported among search fund entrepreneur relationships.

Name

Relay Investments

Legal name

Relay Investments Management, LLC

Website

https://relayinvestments.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Relay Investments is a Boston-based private investment firm that provides equity capital, mentorship, and operational support to search fund entrepreneurs acquiring small and medium-sized businesses. It acts as lead investor in 15-25% of search fund cap tables with $1M-$3.5M checks across 20+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Search Fund Private Equity

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940), Other Financial Vehicles (525990)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Micro-PE / Lower Middle Market ETA Funds (FSANALAG)

Keywords

• Search fund investing
• Private equity
• SME acquisitions
• Entrepreneur mentorship
• Venture capital

Headquarters

HQ city

Boston

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

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns from Search Fund Equity: Relay generates returns through equity investments in search funds and portfolio companies. They act as lead investor in majority of search funds they participate in, typically taking 15-25% of a search cap table with $1M-$3.5M equity check for future acquisitions. They also participate in follow-on funding rounds for promising portfolio companies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Relay Investments is a private investment firm that leads equity investments in search funds, providing capital ($1M–$3.5M for 15–25% of cap tables), one-on-one mentorship, educational resources, deal sourcing and due diligence guidance, board participation, and post-acquisition operational support to aspiring entrepreneurs acquiring small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs).

Product overview

Relay Investments is an investment firm that specializes in search funds — an entrepreneurial path where one or two individuals form an investment vehicle to search for, acquire, and lead a privately held company for 6-10 years. The firm provides capital, mentorship, educational resources, and operational support to searchers and CEOs throughout the search and acquisition process. Relay does not offer a software product but rather provides investment and advisory services including deal sourcing guidance, due diligence support, board participation, and follow-on capital. The firm leverages its proprietary Searcher Portal to provide portfolio companies with curated resources including technology deals, templates, guides, and tools for sourcing strategies, LOI negotiations, and deal closings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• NPS score of 74 from search fund entrepreneur relationships

Named customers9 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Sandro Mina (Founder/Managing Partner)coreOthersFounder and Managing Partner with 30+ years of search fund experience. Provides pattern recognition and leadership to the firm.
• Operating Partners NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeep roster of operating partners with specialized industry experience including: Mark McKenzie (SaaS), Hiten Varia (Business Development), John Frishkopf (Financial Services), Alex Stavros (Behavioral Health), Keith Burns (Health Care Services), Tom Thorne (Technology), Nicolás Lulli (Search Fund Investing), Raymond Fan (Health Care Services), Graham Weihmiller (Home Health Care).

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Pacific Lake Partners: Pacific Lake Partners is a dedicated search fund investor that takes lead-investor positions in search funds targeting SMEs. It is a direct competitor to Relay in the same ETA / search fund asset class with a similar deal-size profile and lead-investor model.
• Sand Hill East: Sand Hill East is a search fund investor focused on providing capital and mentorship to searchers. It competes directly with Relay for lead-investor roles in US-based search funds.
• Calera Capital: Calera Capital is a lower middle-market private equity firm that invests in operating businesses. While it sometimes partners with searchers, it is a direct comparable in the lower middle-market SME space where Relay's portfolio companies operate.
• Stony Lane Partners: Stony Lane Partners is a search fund investor that provides capital to searchers targeting SMEs. It is comparable to Relay in deal size, lead-investor positioning, and mentorship-oriented model.
• Search Fund Partners: Search Fund Partners is a search fund investor that takes equity stakes in search funds and supports entrepreneurs. It is a direct comparable to Relay in deal size and lead-investor positioning.
• Nick Stevens Search Fund Investors: A search fund investor providing capital to searchers; comparable in deal-size range, lead-investor positioning, and operator-support focus.

Emerging players

• Search Fund Accelerator (Catalyst Capital): Catalyst Capital operates the Search Fund Accelerator, providing capital and support to early searchers. It overlaps with Relay in serving the same searcher population, though typically at the search-capital stage rather than equity-round stage.

Broad incumbents

• Pritzker Private Capital: Pritzker Private Capital is a family-office-backed lower middle-market investor that participates in search and ETA-style transactions. It is a broader incumbent that occasionally competes with Relay in the same lower middle-market SME space.
• MiddleGround Capital: MiddleGround Capital is a lower middle-market private equity firm focused on B2B industrial and specialty distribution businesses. Comparable in targeting the same SME / lower middle-market segment where Relay's portfolio companies operate.

Others

• Imperial Dade (Search Fund-Acquired Platform): A large food service distribution platform originally acquired through a search fund. Comparable not as a competitor to Relay, but as a downstream outcome — the type of platform exit Relay's portfolio companies aspire to become.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Relay_Invest
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/relayinvestments

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments8 records

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

Frequently asked questions about Relay Investments