Search Fund Accelerator
At a Glance
Publishes the number that matters most to a searcher, and stays silent on the one right behind it.
- Pricing
- Custom Pricing, The equity is published: 'Single traditional searchers earn up to 25% equity, whereas partners split 30%.' It also names a term it refuses: 'No step-up on search costs (typically 50%).' Nothing is published about pay during the search, about fund size, or about the deal size it targets.
- Best For
- A US-authorized solo searcher who wants a cohort, an office and committed equity behind the close
- Track Record
- Founded 2015; its tenth cohort was the 2024 intake, and it states having worked with forty-six searchers.
- Lane
- Traditional
- Funds
- The deal only
- Based
- New Orleans and Denver, backing nationwide searches inside the United States and requiring permanent US work authorization.
- Invests
- Solo traditional searchers. No deal size, earnings band or fund size is published.
- Published Terms
- A searcher earns up to 25% of the equity, and it takes no step-up on search costs, naming 50% as the figure it is refusing. Nothing is published about pay during the search.
- Roadmap Stages
- 3. Set Up & Fund the Search
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Publishes the searcher's equity in plain numbers, which puts it ahead of most of this shelf
- Publishes a founding year, a cohort count and its own acquisition rate
- States the geography and the work-authorization rule twice, unambiguously
- Discloses that it takes no step-up on search costs, and names the figure it is refusing
Cons
- Says nothing about pay during the search, which is the fact its own applicants most need
- Its FAQ describes partnered searches while its application page refuses them
- The cohort figures carry no as-of date and the newest cohort named on the site is two intakes old
What Searchers Say
The equity split, the work-authorization rule and the step-up refusal all read from its own pages. Two of its programs are on this site's job board; this is the first verified read of the firm behind them.
How to Approach
Firms do not publish a term sheet you can prepare against, so this is how traditional (investor-backed) search capital comes in, what it weighs, and how to arrive ready.
The Typical Arc
- A first conversation on your background and why search, before any deal.
- A deep dive on your plan: industries, criteria, and how you will source.
- Backing for the search itself, then a fresh underwrite when you bring a live deal.
- A board seat and governance once you close.
What It Weighs
- Whether you will finish a two-year search, not only start one.
- The quality of your thesis and target criteria.
- How you will behave on a cap table over a long hold.
How to Prepare
- Bring a sourcing thesis, not a blank slate. Buyer Profile Builder
- Know which firms lead versus follow, and on what terms. Investors
- Make your operator case on one page. Buyer Profile Builder