Clarity in
Strategy

Strength in Results

Clearspring Capital Partners’ investment approach is guided by a singular belief: Our success—and that of our investors—depends entirely on the performance and growth of our portfolio companies.

We don’t just provide capital; we become active collaborators, supporting management in strategic planning and operations with creativity, clarity, and flexibility. This partnership-driven approach drives sustainable success for all stakeholders.

Disciplined, Data-Driven Investment Criteria

CEO Perspectives

We are disciplined investors and committed partners focused exclusively on the Canadian mid-market—companies with at least $5 million in EBITDA and management teams eager to take their business to the next level of performance and sustainability.

We seek to partner with businesses that demonstrate:

Strong Competitive Position

Clearly defined market leadership
Limited exposure to macro risks like outsourcing, technology shifts, or commodity pricing

Solid Financial Track Record

Resilience across economic cycles
A stable platform for growth

Potential for Dramatic Performance Improvement

Opportunities through acquisitions, geographic or product expansion

Exceptional Teams

Proven success in their sector or comparable situations
Aligned incentives through shared risks and rewards

The Right Blend of Skills and Experience

Private Equity Expertise

With over 70 years of combined private equity experience, our principals have served on more than 22 public and private company boards. We bring deep expertise across all facets of negotiated transactions, enabling us to navigate complex deals effectively. Our North American transaction experience spans the spectrum of size from $10 million to over $1 billion.

Operating Insight

We understand the real-world levers that drive business performance and the day-to-day challenges our portfolio company executives are faced with. Our operational depth was developed over 30 years through C-Level roles within fast growing mid-market and multi-billion dollar corporations.

Consulting Acumen

Our team brings the strategic discipline of over 30 years of top-tier consulting experience at Bain & Company, to every investment. We combine rigorous analysis with deep market, customer, and competitor insights to uncover untapped growth, guide complex transformations, and position businesses for lasting market leadership.

Long-term Approach Based on Alignment of Interests

Our blend of operating experience, private equity and top tier consulting enables Clearspring to build partnerships with management teams that extend well beyond a single transaction. We engage deeply — on business priorities, industry dynamics, and long-term strategy — not just financial outcomes.

This relationship-driven approach allows us to often invest on a proprietary basis, without intermediaries. We dedicate significant time to understanding target sectors and collaborating with teams we believe can become long-term leaders. Many of our investments are the result of years of dialogue and alignment on structure and strategy.

By the time we invest, we and our partners share a clear value creation plan and mutual accountability — ensuring every effort is focused on realizing the company’s full potential. A significant portion of our capital has been deployed through these proprietary partnerships.

Ability to Drive Improved Performance

We have spent our careers helping businesses grow, transform, and reach their full potential. Drawing on experience at Bain, in public company leadership, and as active investors, we build true partnerships with management teams—sharing risks, rewards, and a commitment to full-potential performance.

We focus on the few key levers that drive lasting value, helping management identify and maximize them through data-driven insight into customers, competitors, and markets. This clarity enables stronger strategies, sharper execution, and durable competitive advantage.

We are not day-to-day operators but active partners—serving as sounding boards and board members, working closely on strategy, capital allocation, structure, and exit planning to help each company achieve its full potential.

Our proprietary model for identifying, building, and sustaining market leaders. It guides every investment we make — fuelling maximum growth and wealth creation.

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Our proprietary model for identifying, building, and sustaining market leaders. It guides every investment we make — fuelling maximum growth and wealth creation.

MARKET LEADERSHIP

Bain & Company data on thousands of clients indicate the top 1 or 2 players capture ~80% of the economic profit in a correctly defined industry.

Market leadership brings pricing power, lower relative cost, talent attraction, capacity to fund innovation/growth and resilience to external shocks and economic downturns.

FOCUS

Concentrating leadership attention and capital on a few high-impact priorities – whether acquisitions or product line or geographic expansion – drives sharper execution and stronger results.

Focus aligns teams, clarifies trade-offs, and heightens accountability via clear metrics.

Ownership Alignment

When founders and management commit meaningful capital alongside their investment partner, alignment is dramatically strengthened.

Risks and rewards are shared, and a true partnership culture takes hold.

Competitive Moat

A moat is a hard-to-replicate advantage – assets, capabilities, brand equity, structural position – that protects a company`s profits/share position from competitors.

Companies with a moat operating in a stable/growing industry in a non "me-too" segment can aggressively defend themselves and thrive long-term.

Customer Loyalty

Net Promoter Score, a measure of customer loyalty, is one of the most powerful drivers of long-term value.

Companies delivering a high relative NPS in their industries increase retention, lower customer acquisition costs, accelerate referral growth and rally employees.