James A.
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Hey James — similar-ish path (IB → PE). been thinking a lot about proprietary origination in permanent capital lately. would be good to connect.
Hey James, see we share a similar PE background, though I was in London focused on european growth equity not building a permanent capital vehicle in LA. origination was always the same story for me — clear thesis, decent relationships, but no proprietary system of record tying anything together. 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 James, looks like we share a similar PE background, though I was in London doing growth equity deals not in LA running a permanent capital vehicle like you. 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, so every deal is virtually sourced from scratch. nothing compounds on itself. curious if that resonates or if you've built something different at Carbon Capital? — Russ
hey James — 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, 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 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 Carbon Capital? — 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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James — hope you're having a good Wednesday. wanted to reach out — jealous of what you've built at Carbon Capital. though we share a PE background, I hope to one day launch my own fund and acquire a high-performance business. in the meantime I've been working on the origination side with funds like Backer Group and Mentmore — curious how you're thinking about origination at Carbon Capital. mostly proprietary or still seeing a lot through brokers? very best, Russell linkedin.com/in/russellt23
Prospect Research
## PROSPECT INFORMATION: Name: James A. Title: Founder Fund: Carbon Capital Background: James A. is currently the Chief Executive Officer at Avon Rent a Car Truck Van in the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area, a role he has held since May 2022. He is also the Founder of Carbon Capital, a financial services firm he started in 2019. His current focus appears to be a dual-track of executive leadership in the automotive rental sector and investment/financial management through his own firm. His professional background is diverse, spanning transportation, aviation, and hospitality. Prior to his current roles, he served as an MBA Business Development & Strategy Intern for Flytrex Aviation in Israel. He spent several years at Inspirato, focusing on real estate development and hotel/resort partnerships, and earlier in his career, he worked in business development for JB Hunt Transport Services. James holds an MBA from the Pepperdine Graziadio School of Business and Management (2019). He earned a B.S. in Psychology with a Business minor from Texas Christian University and began his undergraduate studies in Philosophy at Baylor University, where he served as Freshman Class President. He is linguistically proficient in both English (Native) and Spanish (Professional Working), having also studied at the Interspanish Language School in Buenos Aires. Key skills include Strategic Planning, Business Development, Strategic Partnerships, and Leadership. He also possesses technical certification in Python (XML, JSON, and the Web) from Lynda.com. His volunteer experience includes serving on the Young Professional Board for Special Olympics Colorado. Posts: No post data was provided in the source file. Fund details: - Description: We believe the best companies take a lifetime to build, so we invest on the same horizon. As a permanent capital vehicle, we partner with businesses that have a demonstrated track record of high performance (even if that’s not what’s happening today), untapped growth they don’t want to take on alone, and teams that want to stick around for the long haul. We work with one business at a time, stay until the job is done, and then hold for 30+ years (vs. 3-5). Hope you’ll reach out if you’d like to learn more. - Website: https://carbon.capital - Location: Santa Monica, California, United States - Lead qualification: Research: - Query: =Carbon Capital James A. recent investments fund thesis - Answer: Carbon Capital James A. focuses on reducing emissions and investing in carbon removal technologies. Recent investments include Avalanche and Fuse Energy. The firm emphasizes sustainability and climate tech.