Ted Nark
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Hey Ted — similar-ish PE background (I came through IB at CS & Greenhill into growth equity). been thinking a lot about proprietary origination in lower middle market services lately. would be good to connect.
Hey Ted, looks like we share a similar PE background, though I was in London at Greenhill not scaling businesses like White Cap and Corporate Express. origination was always the same story for me — clear thesis, decent relationships, but no proprietary system of record. the people, tools and ideas were never really connected. every deal virtually sourced from scratch, nothing compounding over time. curious if that's still how most funds operate or if I'm behind the times? — Russ
Hey Ted, looks like we share a similar PE background, though I was in London doing growth equity deals not in Laguna Beach building buy-and-build platforms like you're doing at West Edge. the pattern I keep seeing with most funds is weirdly consistent — strong thesis, solid network, but no proprietary system of record. the people, tools and ideas are never really connected. every deal virtually sourced from scratch, nothing compounds on itself. curious if that resonates or if you've built something different at West Edge? — Russ
hey Ted — no worries if the timing's off. most funds I talk to have tried some version of building origination in-house — analyst pulling from Pitchbook or Grata, maybe using ChatGPT to help qualify, dumping it into a spreadsheet. each piece kind of works, but there's no system of record tying it together. the people, tools and ideas are all disconnected, so there's tonnes of wasted energy and everything ends up out of sync. been helping a few funds like Mentmore work through that. curious if you've run into the same thing at West Edge? — Russ
totally get it if origination infrastructure isn't top of mind right now — most funds have 10 things ahead of it on the priority list. the funds I've seen crack it early just tend to compound deal flow in a way that's hard to replicate later. if it ever moves up the list, I'm easy to find. — Russ
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Prospect Research
## PROSPECT INFORMATION: Name: Ted Nark Title: Chairman Fund: West Edge Partners Background: Name: Ted Nark Current Role: Chairman of West Edge Partners (Family Office) and Managing Director at KRG Capital Partners. Location: Laguna Beach, California. Current Focus: Ted is focused on West Edge Partners, a family office that acts as a majority investor in "buy and build" platform companies. Their current portfolio includes Citadel Access Solutions, Dakota Auto Glass, and Intact Property Restoration. He prioritizes partnering with leaders to build customer-centric businesses that aim to be employers of choice. At KRG Capital Partners, he helps oversee a firm with $3 billion in committed equity capital and serves on several boards, including Convergint, Amneal (AMRX), and Inventus. Professional Background: He has a significant track record in high-growth executive leadership and private equity. Notable past roles include: - CEO and Chairman of White Cap: He increased equity value 5x before selling the company to Home Depot. - CEO of Corporate Express Australia: Under his leadership, the market cap grew from $60 million to $1.1 billion, making it one of the top five best-performing stocks on the ASX. - Group President at Corporate Express Inc: Helped scale the company from $50 million to over $3 billion in annual sales. - Partner at Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. Key Skills and Expertise: - Private Equity and Investment Strategy - "Buy and Build" Platform Development - Scaling companies from mid-market to multi-billion dollar enterprises - Board Governance (experienced director for over 20 companies across diverse sectors) - Operational Excellence and Value Creation Education: - Bachelor of Science (BS) in Business/Commerce from Washington State University - College of Business and Economics. Posts: No post data provided in the input. Fund details: - Description: West Edge Partners is a private equity firm focused on investing in business and consumer services, distribution and light manufacturing businesses in the lower middle market. The firm supports its partners through a value added approach and looks to invest in both organic and inorganic growth initiatives. - Website: https://www.westedgepartners.com - Location: Santa Monica, California, United States - Lead qualification: Research: - Query: =West Edge Partners Ted Nark recent investments fund thesis - Answer: Ted Nark is a private equity investor and Chairman of West Edge Partners, focusing on lower middle market business and consumer services. His recent investments include Citadel Access Solutions and Dakotaland Autoglass. West Edge Partners invests in organic and inorganic growth initiatives.