Cranemere
Cranemere is a London-based private holding company founded in 2014 that uses permanent capital to acquire and indefinitely hold majority stakes in operating companies across services, industrial, and consumer sectors, partnering with founders, family-owned businesses, and management teams who retain material equity.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Cranemere does
Cranemere is a London-based private holding company founded in 2014 by Vincent Mai, the former CEO of AEA Investors, that operates with a permanent capital structure. Unlike traditional private equity, Cranemere does not have a fund life or forced exit window; instead, it acquires significant or majority stakes in operating companies and holds them indefinitely, partnering with founders, family-owned businesses, and incumbent management teams who retain material equity and operational control. The firm focuses on three sectors: services, industrial, and consumer. It is governed by a board that includes representatives of institutional shareholders such as Oman Investment Authority, Bahrain Mumtalakat, and Railpen, alongside independent directors from Trainline, NCC Group, Koval Capital, and MidFirst Bank.
Cranemere's portfolio currently comprises nine core operating companies spanning healthcare services (NorthStar Anesthesia with 2,000+ anesthesiologists and CRNAs across 170+ facilities, Outpatient Imaging Affiliates with 56 imaging centers across 18 markets, Extant Healthcare, and Arietis Health), commercial vehicle distribution and financing (Velocity Vehicle Group in the US, Australia, and Mexico, plus Crossroads Equipment Lease & Finance), specialty manufacturing (Exemplis office seating and the Engineered Stone Group's portfolio of bathroom-products brands including Marmite, Acquabella, F&D Group, Mcbath, Nuovvo, Fiora, MTI Baths, and Aquatica), and consumer home services (System Pavers, which has served 85,000+ homeowners with a 95% customer satisfaction rating). The company pursues growth through tuck-in M&A at the portfolio level, exemplified by the OIA joint ventures with BJC HealthCare in Missouri and Piedmont in Georgia announced in November 2025, the ES Group roll-up of European and US bathroom-products brands between 2021 and 2022, and Velocity's exclusive US distribution agreement for Daimler Truck's Rizon electric medium-duty brand.
The firm has a small core team of 11-50 employees based in London, New York, and Washington, D.C., led by CEO Kamil Salame (formerly Partner at CVC Capital Partners) since January 2024, with Vincent Mai continuing as Founder and Chairman. The senior team has been further strengthened by the March 2024 appointment of Bernardo Hees (former CEO of Kraft Heinz and Burger King) as Operating Partner and the February 2025 appointment of Jeff Case (formerly Managing Director at Advent International) as Managing Director and Head of Services. Revenue is generated through long-term equity ownership and capital appreciation rather than management fees, and the firm does not publicly disclose financial results. The portfolio's economic exposure is diversified across services, industrial, and consumer sectors in North America, Europe, and Australia, though recent stress signals include a Moody's downgrade of portfolio company Velocity Vehicles to B3.
Cranemere firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cranemere
- Legal name
- The Cranemere Group Limited
- Website
- https://cranemere.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Cranemere is a London-based private holding company founded in 2014 that uses permanent capital to acquire and indefinitely hold majority stakes in operating companies across services, industrial, and consumer sectors, partnering with founders, family-owned businesses, and management teams who retain material equity.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cranemere industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Private Capital Holding Company
- NAICS
- Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)
- SIC
- Non-Operating Establishments (9995)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Corporate Strategic Real Assets & Infrastructure Venture Investing (FSANAHAN)
Keywords
Where Cranemere is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
Cranemere business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Investment returns and capital appreciation: Cranemere generates returns through long-term ownership stakes in operating companies across services, industrial, and consumer sectors. The company's perpetual capital structure allows it to build enduring companies without forced exits, creating value over decades rather than quarters through business growth and operational improvement.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Cranemere product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cranemere is a long-term private holding company that provides permanent capital to founders, family-owned companies, and management teams across services, industrial, and consumer sectors. Unlike traditional private equity, it invests with a perpetual capital structure that allows portfolio companies to grow over decades without forced exits, while offering business-building expertise, global relationships, and management economics equivalent to other alternatives. Its portfolio includes majority or significant ownership stakes in operating companies such as NorthStar Anesthesia, Velocity Vehicle Group, ES Group, Exemplis, Outpatient Imaging Affiliates, Extant Healthcare, System Pavers, and Crossroads Equipment Lease & Finance.
Product overview
Cranemere is a long-term private capital holding company that partners with founders, family-owned businesses, and management teams through permanent capital investments. Unlike traditional private equity with 3-5 year exit cycles, Cranemere provides perpetual capital allowing companies to grow over decades. The portfolio includes: NorthStar Anesthesia (healthcare/anesthesia services), Velocity Vehicle Group (truck dealerships and leasing), Exemplis (furniture manufacturing), Engineered Stone Group (bathroom products), Outpatient Imaging Affiliates (radiology services), Extant Healthcare (surgical services), System Pavers (outdoor living services), and Crossroads Equipment Lease & Finance (equipment financing).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Cranemere Private Capital Partnership Long-term partnership model providing permanent capital to founders, family-owned companies, and management teams in services, industrial, and consumer sectors without forced exit timelines. Includes business-building expertise, global relationships, and management economics equivalent or superior to other capital alternatives.
Quantifiable outcome
- Named to Inc. 2025 Founder-Friendly List
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Cranemere
Customer profileNamed customers14 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Cranemere technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Cranemere partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- BJC HealthCarecoreOutpatient Imaging Affiliates formed a joint venture partnership with 24-hospital BJC HealthCare in Missouri, creating BJC Outpatient Imaging Affiliates LLC for greater St. Louis and southern Illinois. OIA typically takes a minority position in imaging centers while hospital partners maintain operational and strategic control. The partnership has certificate of need approval for its first center in West County, St. Louis.
- Piedmont (Georgia)coreOutpatient Imaging Affiliates expanded into Georgia through a hospital joint venture partnership with Piedmont health system. This represents one of two new market expansions through hospital JV partnerships mentioned in November 2025.
- Advent International (for Jeff Case background)minorJeff Case, newly appointed Managing Director and Head of Services at Cranemere, previously worked at Advent International for over 20 years before joining Cranemere. This represents a professional background relationship rather than an active business partnership.
- Velocity Vehicle Group (as exclusive Rizon distributor)coreDaimler Truck launched Rizon, a medium-duty electric truck brand, with exclusive distribution agreement through Velocity Vehicle Group for the US market. Velocity Vehicle Group, a Cranemere portfolio company, serves as the exclusive dealer network for Rizon Class 4 and 5 trucks.
- ICV Partners, LLCminorOutpatient Imaging Affiliates was previously a portfolio company of ICV Partners, LLC before Cranemere acquired majority ownership. ICV is a leading investment firm focused on lower middle market companies in business services, consumer goods & services, food & beverage, and healthcare.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Cranemere competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Blackstone: Blackstone is a global alternative asset manager with a permanent-capital arm (Blackstone Permanent Capital) and broad exposure across private equity, real assets, and credit. Comparable to Cranemere in its pursuit of long-duration capital structures and operating-company ownership, though at much greater scale.
- Bain Capital: Bain Capital operates a global private investment platform spanning private equity, credit, and venture, with long-term ownership of operating companies in services and consumer sectors. Comparable to Cranemere in sector focus and management partnership model, but typically uses fund-based structures.
- Carlyle Group: Carlyle is a global investment firm with significant permanent-capital capacity across corporate private equity and credit. It competes with Cranemere for long-term ownership of operating companies in services, industrial, and consumer sectors, with deeper resources but a more fund-driven structure.
- KKR & Co. KKR is a large alternative asset manager that increasingly emphasizes permanent-capital vehicles alongside traditional buyout funds, with comparable reach across services, industrial, and consumer sectors. Both firms seek long-duration ownership of operating companies, though KKR operates at materially larger AUM and scale.
- Berkshire Hathaway: Berkshire Hathaway is the archetype permanent-capital holding company with a long-term ownership philosophy, buying and holding operating businesses indefinitely. Cranemere explicitly mirrors this model at smaller scale; both rely on permanent capital, decentralized operating management, and a long-duration thesis rather than fund-based PE.
Direct peers
- Loews Corporation: Loews is a diversified holding company that owns and operates businesses across consumer, industrial, and services sectors with permanent capital and a long-term ownership horizon. Its holding-company structure and decentralized operating model closely parallel Cranemere's approach to building enduring businesses.
- Markel Corporation: Markel is a financial holding company combining specialty insurance with long-term operating-company investments through Markel Ventures. It mirrors Cranemere's permanent-capital, long-duration model and decentralized operating culture, albeit with insurance as the funding engine.
Others
- Advent International: Advent International is a global private equity firm where Cranemere's new Managing Director Jeff Case spent over 20 years managing 18 investments. While not a direct peer, Advent competes for the same types of services and consumer deals and shares a partnership-style culture with Cranemere.
- CVC Capital Partners: CVC Capital Partners is a global private equity firm where Cranemere CEO Kamil Salame was previously a Partner and Global Co-Head of Financial Services. Comparable in mid-to-large cap services and consumer investing, but CVC operates a fund-based structure rather than permanent capital.
Emerging players
- 3G Capital: 3G Capital is a consumer-focused private investment firm and Cranemere Operating Partner Bernardo Hees's former partnership (he led Kraft Heinz and Burger King as CEO). Comparable in consumer-sector thesis and operator-led model, though 3G historically pursues large-scale take-private transactions rather than long-term permanent holdings.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Cranemere social profiles
Digital presenceCranemere financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cranemere leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Cranemere subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries9 records
Cranemere funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cranemere M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cranemere
What does Cranemere do?
Cranemere is a long-term private holding company that provides permanent capital to founders, family-owned companies, and management teams across services, industrial, and consumer sectors. Unlike traditional private equity, it invests with a perpetual capital structure that allows portfolio companies to grow over decades without forced exits, while offering business-building expertise, global relationships, and management economics equivalent to other alternatives. Its portfolio includes majority or significant ownership stakes in operating companies such as NorthStar Anesthesia, Velocity Vehicle Group, ES Group, Exemplis, Outpatient Imaging Affiliates, Extant Healthcare, System Pavers, and Crossroads Equipment Lease & Finance.
Is Cranemere a public or private company?
Cranemere is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Cranemere founded?
Cranemere was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Cranemere based?
Cranemere is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Cranemere make money?
One revenue line is on record: investment returns and capital appreciation.
Who are Cranemere's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Blackstone, Bain Capital, Carlyle Group, KKR & Co. and Berkshire Hathaway. Direct peers are Loews Corporation and Markel Corporation. Others are Advent International and CVC Capital Partners. 3G Capital is listed as an emerging player.
Does Cranemere have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cranemere.
What industry is Cranemere in?
Cranemere's product category is Private Capital Holding Company. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAHAN, Corporate Strategic Real Assets & Infrastructure Venture Investing. Its NAICS code is 52394 and its SIC code is 9995.