Sunstone Partners

Sunstone Partners operates as a growth-oriented private equity firm, strategically focused on investing in technology-enabled services and software companies. The firm was established in 2015, emerging from the spin-out of the growth equity team from Trident Capital. The founding team includes Gustavo Alberelli, John Moragne, Mike Biggee, and Arneek Multani, who all previously served as Managing Directors at Trident Capital. This team brought with them a history of collaboration and a well-established investment strategy centered on founder-owned, bootstrapped, or lightly capitalized businesses.

The firm primarily targets lower middle-market companies, a segment it believes is underserved by the investment community. Sunstone Partners executes a disciplined investment approach, seeking out businesses with proven business models and a clear path to expansion. Its capital deployment is directed towards companies within sectors such as cloud and enterprise IT, cybersecurity, healthcare IT, and marketing technology. The firm's business model revolves around acquiring majority or significant minority stakes in these companies and then actively partnering with the management teams to accelerate growth. This active partnership often involves providing operational expertise, strategic guidance, and access to a broad network of industry contacts to help portfolio companies scale operations, enter new markets, and enhance their product offerings.

Sunstone Partners' service is its investment capital coupled with hands-on operational support. For the companies it invests in, the primary benefit is receiving not just funding, but also strategic mentorship from a team with deep sector-specific experience. A key aspect of their strategy is the implementation of their "Sunstone Playbook," a proprietary set of best practices for value creation. The firm manages several funds, having successfully raised capital for vehicles like Sunstone Partners I, II, III, and IV, indicating consistent investor confidence in its approach and performance. Notable investments in their portfolio have included companies like UserZoom, Knowbe4, and Outmatch, showcasing their focus on high-growth technology sectors.

Keywords: private equity, growth equity, technology investment, lower middle-market, software investing, tech-enabled services, cybersecurity, healthcare IT, enterprise software, value creation