Our Approach
B2 partners with exceptional founders and business owners to accelerate growth and prepare for successful transitions. Whether you’re ready to scale, transition ownership, or explore strategic exits, we provide the capital and expertise to help you achieve your goals while preserving what you’ve built.
What Makes Us Different
Rather than employ a large team of generalists, we assemble networks of industry experts and functional specialists who’ve achieved exactly what you’re trying to accomplish. For every investment, we bring together the right combination of operational expertise, strategic guidance, and industry relationships to address your specific challenges and opportunities.
Our Philosophy
We believe the best opportunities come from building genuine relationships with exceptional business owners over time. We focus relentlessly on the few strategic initiatives that drive 80% of your value creation, helping you maintain disciplined execution while avoiding the distractions that derail growth.
Patient Capital
We provide flexible structures designed around your business needs and timeline, with no arbitrary exit deadlines or pressure to prioritize short-term metrics over sustainable value creation. Our success depends entirely on your success over the long term.
Focused
We pursue a narrow set of investment opportunities where we can actively support exceptional management teams; we say no to the rest. Likewise, we expect our partners to concentrate on a few high-impact priorities and defer distractions for another day.
Our Team
Matt Behrens, Managing Partner
Growth Strategist, Operational Partner
Matt specializes in helping founders identify and execute the strategic initiatives that drive exponential growth. With 8+ years as a partner at a large single-family office, he has led or been deeply involved in over a dozen acquisitions and growth investments representing $100mm+ of equity value and $1B+ in annual sales.
Matt’s experience spans consumer goods, distribution, manufacturing, business services, and healthcare. His approach is simple: focus relentlessly on the few things that matter most, then execute them flawlessly. You’ll hear Matt constantly ask: “Of all the opportunities in front of you, which three will create 80% of your value?”
Prior to investing, Matt was a management consultant at a top strategy firm and an engineer at a large defense contractor. He holds bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering, mathematics, and economics from the University of Arizona and an MBA from Thunderbird.
Ryan Freberg, Associate Partner
Business Development and Transition Specialist
Ryan is the connector who opens doors. His 12+ years working with small business owners means that when you partner with B2, you gain access to a network that would take decades to build on your own. Ryan leads investor relations for B2 and is an expert at navigating complex ownership transitions.
Ryan is particularly skilled at helping family business owners navigate succession planning and management buyouts. He understands the emotional and financial complexities of stepping back from the business you built while preserving your legacy.
Ryan earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance from Arizona State University. He is active throughout our community, including as an active member of the Tempe Diablos, ASU President’s Club and board member of non-profit organizations.
Strategic Advisors
Russell Lewis – Built and scaled Rhino Linings Corporation from startup to global brand with distribution in 80+ countries. Provides strategic guidance on market expansion, leadership development, and international growth.
Marc Wichansky – Founded and scaled two successful healthcare companies. Specializes in building and leading effective sales organizations, with particular expertise in regulated industries requiring exceptional execution.
Our Investment Focus
We focus on businesses where we can add meaningful value through our operational expertise, network relationships, and experience across industries and challenges. Representative industries we have invested in: consumer products, business services, healthcare, manufacturing, restaurant and hospitality, distribution, professional services.
Growth Partnerships: Companies with proven business models ready for scale or expansion with a focus on profitability. We provide growth capital, operational expertise, partnership access, strategic focus, and leadership coaching.
Founder Transitions: Founder or family-led companies ready for ownership succession or management buyouts. We provide stewardship, succession planning, leadership development, operational upgrades, and transition capital.
Turnarounds: Businesses with strong brands or customer bases that need operational improvement. We provide management talent and development, operational focus, capital, and strategic guidance.
Size and Approach
Investment Size
$2M – $15M is the sweet spot, but we can be flexible when the value creation opportunity is large enough
Geographic Focus
North America, with a preference for shorter flights from Phoenix, Arizona
Hold Period
We exit when management is ready or when a new partner can add more value than we can
Structure
We can be creative as long as incentives are aligned and the risk-reward profile is appropriate
What We Look For
Exceptional Management Teams
We partner with proven leaders who have demonstrated the ability to build successful businesses while treating customers and employees well. Character and operational capability matter more than perfect financial metrics.
Sustainable Business Models
We invest in companies with defensible competitive positions, predictable cash flows, and clear paths to continued growth. We’re looking for businesses built to last, not those dependent on market timing or financial engineering.
Growth Opportunities
We focus on situations where our capital and expertise can accelerate growth, improve operations, or facilitate successful transitions. The best partnerships are those where we can add meaningful value beyond just funding.
Cultural Fit
We work with business owners who share our commitment to building sustainable, valuable companies while treating all stakeholders with respect. Values alignment is as important as business fit.
Our Values
Relationship Driven: We believe the best opportunities come from building genuine relationships with exceptional founders and business owners over time. We invest in people first, businesses second.
Operator Focused: We back proven leaders with demonstrated track records of execution, customer satisfaction, and team building. We look for operators who consistently deliver results while treating people well.
Preserve What You’ve Built: We help you achieve your goals while maintaining the culture, values, and relationships that made your business successful. Growth and transition don’t require sacrificing what makes you special.
Strategic Discipline: We help identify and execute the strategic initiatives that drive 80% of your value creation while avoiding distractions that derail progress. Focus and execution discipline separate successful companies from the rest.
Long-Term Partnership: Our goal is sustainable value creation through operational excellence and strategic growth, not financial engineering. We’re committed partners focused on building enduring value over years, not quarters.
Recent Portfolio Success Stories
Kiki Milk (PlantBaby) – Enabled nationwide Sprouts launch by providing growth capital and strategic advice. Improved formulations and operational success have enabled a subsequent launch in 59 West Coast Target locations.
OMI Manufacturing – Partnered with co-founder to enable him to buy his partner out. Since investment: profit doubled, patented Li-Ion battery technology, unveiled world’s first hybrid offroad vehicle platform.
As One Insurance – Financed innovative product launch leveraging founders’ distribution relationships. Strategic focus has led to 10x revenue growth with continued expansion into individual and ICHRA products.
Lydia’s Kitchen – Supported successful restaurant opening through relationship-driven investment in proven operator with demonstrated track record of excellence. Lydia’s continues to grow as Phoenix’s best new restaurant.
Ready to Meet the Team?
The best way to evaluate whether we’re the right partners is through conversation. We’d welcome the opportunity to learn about your business and discuss how our experience might help you achieve your objectives.
Strategy, Operations & New Opportunities
Contact Matt at Matt@B2Partners.com
General Inquiries
Email us at Info@B2Partners.com
All initial conversations are confidential and without obligation.