A long-term home for the business you built.
Plainbell exists to acquire a small number of owner-operator businesses in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, no more than one per year, and hold them indefinitely. We also manage a long-horizon portfolio of public market investments.
Plainbell acquires businesses from owners who want them to grow under stable ownership that respects the employees, customers, and the community. We hold indefinitely, with no agenda to restructure or resell.
There is no fund close date or exit timeline. When we acquire a business, we intend to support its growth, culture, people, and relationships for the long-term.
We look for consistently profitable, recurring revenue service businesses with defensible niches, stable teams, and clean financials that are operator-runnable and priced reasonably. Typical targets include regulated environmental services (grease trap, hood & exhaust cleaning, waste hauling), professional and maintenance services, and athletic or enrichment programs.
There are no outside investors or limited partner commitments, and no mandate to sell. We hold capital on our own balance sheet with no deadline to return it.
We prefer when management stays and continues to run the business. We are committed to stewardship and are not interested in financial engineering or plans that require restructuring from the outset.
We respond to every inquiry. If there is a fit, we say so quickly. If there isn't, we say that too. If a deal fits our criteria, we give a clear indication of interest within days. We share our thinking openly: on valuation, on process, and on what we need to get comfortable.
We are pre-qualified by Live Oak Bank, a lender that specializes in small business acquisitions in the $1M to $15M revenue range. We are prepared to move quickly on businesses that are a good fit.
We have no standard playbook to impose. How involved the existing owner stays after close is something we work out together based on what makes sense for the business.
Alongside private acquisitions, Plainbell manages a long-horizon public market portfolio. Equities are the bulk of the portfolio and are chosen based on long-term value principles: pricing power, ethical management, durable competitive advantages, low debt, and room to grow. Other positions like inflation-linked securities and real assets should provide stability in times when equity valuations compress. A small allocation captures longer-term structural themes with defined exit points. Cash and bonds are always reserved for our main business: private acquisition opportunities.
Plainbell Holdings LLC is a private holding company focused on acquiring owner-operated businesses in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic and managing a long-horizon portfolio of public market investments. The firm is principal-led with no outside investors and operates on an indefinite time horizon.
The principal has 15+ years of experience in leadership and executive roles within professional services, including helping to scale a firm from 6 employees to 45 and through an acquisition. As a partner at a global consulting firm with over 5,000 employees operating in over 40 countries, he has managed Fortune 100 client relationships, developed training and development programs, and overseen digital and automation transformations. He got his start doing sewage pump outs, coaching youth sports, and in other hands-on roles that taught him the grit and attitude it takes to succeed in a service business.
We believe a business's obligations include its owner but extend beyond: to the employees, customers, and community.
If you represent a business that fits our acquisition criteria, or if you are an intermediary with a relevant listing, we welcome your outreach. We respond to every inquiry and move quickly when there is a fit.
info@plainbell.comPlainbell Holdings LLC · New York