Regular readers know I’m fascinated by the history of the Blackstone Group, which is currently the world’s largest alternative asset manager.
I love the story. Steve Schwarzman and Pete Peterson took one look at what KKR was doing with earlier LBOs and immediate set out to build their own shop. But they didn’t stick to buyouts.
Instead, alongside the LBO business, they built a boutique investment banking platform and, eventually, a huge real estate private equity shop. They also incubated a number of other businesses, including, famously, Blackrock, which has, itself, grown into an enormous financial institution.
Why is this relevant to Adaptive?
Well, we have built a very successful business repositioning sub-institutional scale apartment buildings in LA. We’ve done 80 and we’re very happy to keep doing them for the next 30-40 years.
But we’re also hungry to grow. And what Blackstone demonstrates is the importance of bringing entrepreneurial people, the kind of people who can start and grow new businesses, onto the platform. Schwarzman and Petersen didn’t build Blackrock. Instead, they brought in Larry Fink as a partner, and Fink built (and, eventually, spun out) Blackrock.
That’s why we’re looking to meet some entrepreneurial people, ones who would like to build serious businesses on our platform, giving up some of the upside in exchange for the stability that comes with a salary and ready access to capital.
We’re kind of agnostic about what those businesses might be… maybe it’s rehabbing suburban garden-style complexes, maybe it’s building ground up, maybe it’s creative office, maybe it’s lending. We’re open to anything, so long as the person involved is honest, energetic, and bright.
So, if you’re a early-to-mid career dealmaker with a business plan, a track record, and interest in potentially working together, get in touch.