GRIDIRON CAPITAL, LLC

Thesis

Gridiron Capital, LLC is a private equity firm founded in 2005 and headquartered in New Canaan, Connecticut. The firm specializes in partnering with founders, entrepreneurs, and management teams to build middle-market companies into industry leaders through control-oriented, equity investments in North America. Their strategy centers on leveraging deep industry knowledge and repeatable processes to accelerate growth. Gridiron Capital employs a thematic, sector-focused approach, identifying sub-sectors and business models where it possesses expertise. Primary sectors of focus include Business Services (legal and insurance services, training and education, outsourced pharma services, human capital management, IT services, and specialty consulting), Consumer Products and Services (vehicle aftermarket, residential products and services, and outdoor enthusiast and active lifestyle brands), and Industrial Growth (facility services, testing, inspection, certification, and compliance, security and safety solutions, specialty distribution, industrial technology, commercial vehicle aftermarket, and engineering and infrastructure). The firm prefers control positions in its investments and targets companies with enterprise values between $150 million and $600+ million, and EBITDA between $10 million and $75+ million. For platform investments, the geographic scope is North America, while add-on acquisitions can be global. The firm's strategy emphasizes partnering with motivated management teams and leveraging its "Centers of Excellence" and "Thematic Areas of Expertise" to drive value creation. As of October 2023, Gridiron Capital closed its fifth flagship fund, Gridiron Capital Fund V, at $2.1 billion. The firm's total regulatory Assets Under Management (AUM) were approximately $9.52 billion as of March 2026. Gridiron Capital targets equity investments of $100+ million for platform companies. For add-on acquisitions, there is no minimum for equity investment.