Who We Are
Sterling Lane Partners is a growth-oriented investment firm built on a single conviction. Enduring businesses are built by exceptional people, backed by patient capital, and genuine partnership. We invest behind strong leadership and durable companies, and we partner closely with the teams building them.
Our Approach
We provide flexible capital and value-added support to mature, private companies with established revenue, proven product-market fit, and high growth potential. At Sterling Lane, we aim to be the best investment partner of choice.
Identify
We look for exceptional operators and businesses with real staying power. Our strategy is built around later stage companies with strong momentum and management expertise.
Align
We invest as partners, not passengers. We take a collaborative approach in our investment philosophy, and have built our foundation around supporting the next generation of market leaders.
Build
We provide transformational capital, talent, and support to sustain growth over the long horizon. What sets Sterling Lane apart is not just our capital, but our hands-on partnership and trustworthy guidance.
Stay
We stay for the long haul, and let value build over time. We focus on profitable growth, and help power the companies we back and the leaders who lead them.
Network
Capital and partnership are just part of the equation. Our team members have built deep sector knowledge, vast networks, and trusted relationships throughout our industries of focus.
We drive decades of experience to help support the growth of great people and the exceptional companies they lead.
Growth Equity
We invest directly in category-leading companies with proven leadership and high growth potential. Our focus remains on profitable, later stage companies across a few areas we know deeply. Industries of focus include Technology, Applied AI, Consumer, Industrials, Logistics, and Financial Services.
Fund of Funds
Our access to exclusive funds and investments gives us the advantage to maximize returns for our investors. With advanced portfolio diversification and favorable economics, we sit in the driver's seat alongside world-class operators and investment professionals.
Real Estate
We partner with top tier private equity real estate managers and sponsors with stellar track records and exceptional investment success. Our diversified strategy allows us to carefully select investments while mitigating risk exposure for our investors.
We Bring Several Decades of Growth Investing.
As your investment partner, we take a collaborative approach, and strive to provide the necessary resources to help drive profitable growth and build lasting value.
Michael Marsh
Mr. Marsh is the Founder of Sterling Lane Partners and brings over 20 years of growth investing, capital raising, and portfolio management experience to the firm.
Read more
Throughout his professional career, he's raised several hundred million dollars for various funds and direct deals, spanning real estate private equity, technology, and early-to-late stage companies. Before Sterling Lane, he was the Senior Vice President of Capital Markets at Global Storage Partners, where he led fundraising efforts for three investment funds and numerous single purpose transactions, securing and managing over 100 investor relationships for the firm.
An entrepreneur at heart, Mr. Marsh notably co-founded Bagels & Co., a fast growing quick service bagel chain, which has rapidly expanded across the United States. As the former CEO, he led the company's expansion efforts, spearheading all fundraising, operations, marketing, and most recently building the company's C-Suite. Bagels & Co. is on a fast growth trajectory with plans to surpass over 100 locations by 2030.
Mr. Marsh is a former Managing Director at Composite Ventures, a retail technology focused venture capital firm, where he led fundraising and investor relations efforts. Before that, he began his professional career as an investment banker at Guggenheim Partners, where he worked on over $10 billion in transaction volume across technology, consumer, and industrial verticals. At Guggenheim, he was ranked as the top relationship banker in his Associate class.
With a Bachelor of Arts in Finance from the University of Central Florida and an MBA from the Johnson School of Management at Cornell University, Mr. Marsh was also selected in the top 40 globally for the reputable VC Unlocked program at Stanford University, which represents the next generation of leaders in the venture capital investing industry.