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After more than six years at Bain & Company, where he advised private equity clients across various sectors and geographies in Latin America, Juan Felipe Gomez considered launching a SF in Colombia. However, he ultimately decided against it after discovering that many target companies in the region commanded EBITDA multiples higher than their U.S. counterparts, complicating the acquisition process. Despite this, his enthusiasm for the SF model remained strong. Recognizing that this attractive and growing asset class was underrepresented in most accredited investors’ portfolios, Gomez decided to establish 70 West Capital instead.
70 West Capital takes a conservative approach compared to traditional SF investors. The firm focuses exclusively on the acquisition phase, bypassing the search phase to avoid the inherent risk of search failure—a challenge that affects roughly one-third of searchers who never find a viable target. To date, the firm has participated in equity gaps on a deal-by-deal basis through SPVs, with funding sourced primarily from Latin American private investors and family offices. The majority of their backers hail from Colombia and Chile, seeking diversification into stable, hard-currency economies.
In terms of geographic focus, 70 West Capital allocates 80% of its investments to opportunities in the U.S. and Canada, with the remaining 20% reserved for Europe and Australia. The firm targets mid-career searchers with substantial operating experience, including P&L management and expertise in scaling businesses within their target industries. Gomez tries to avoid backing younger professionals whose experience is limited to consulting or banking.
“Our goal is to build a portfolio of a dozen growing SMEs, primarily in B2B businesses or niche industries with blue-chip customers,” Gomez explains. To date, the firm’s target average investment check is approximately $250,000 per deal. Their first investment was the acquisition of Stewards of Recovery, a behavioral healthcare platform experiencing rapid growth in the Mountain West region. Their second investment is expected to close in the coming weeks.
Looking ahead, 70 West Capital aims to establish a dedicated Fund of SFs and is exploring opportunities in the secondaries market to provide liquidity for private investors seeking to exit their SF acquisitions.
