Richard Fitzgerald, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at CapitalSpring, joins Sean Mooney to share the story behind one of the most enduring sector-focused firms in private equity. In a conversation that moves well beyond deal mechanics, Richard reflects on the early days of CapitalSpring, the value of sticking with a niche, and what it takes to build trust and alignment — across teams, LPs, and portfolio partners — over the long haul.
Episode Highlights:
- 1:07 – Richard's path to private equity
- 7:53 – Building a sector-specialist investment firm with true competitive advantage
- 11:06 – We'd know Richard better if we knew this about him
- 18:27 – Working through hard things – navigating the pandemic
- 26:45 – The art of private equity in the franchise/multi-location sector – best practices
- 35:48 – Benefits of having a sector specialist franchisee investors for sponsors investing in franchisors
- 40:42 – Flexibility to provide both debt and equity solutions for growing businesses is a competitive advantage
- 43:05 – Richard's advice for his 22 year-old-self
For more on CapitalSpring: https://www.capitalspring.com
To connect with Richard Fitzgerald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fitzgeraldrichard
For more on Challenge Aspen: https://challengeaspen.org/
For more on the Michael J. Fox Foundation: https://www.michaeljfox.org/
Explore more episodes of Karma School of Business: https://www.bluwave.net/podcasts
