Want to build a media asset your competitors can’t copy? Spacebar Studios turns B2B newsletters into profit centers — driving pipeline, authority, and long-term enterprise value. - 115k+ subscribers in compliance - 7-figure ARR driven by email - Built for SaaS, services, and niche B2B markets First 6 founders this month get their newsletters launched for free. Reserve your slot here: https://www.spacebarstudios.co/inquire Running a business can feel like you're doing it all alone—but you don’t have to. Scalepath connects you with a private network of over 2,000 experienced operators, and CEO Rand Larsen will personally intro you to 3 like-minded business owners in your area. It’s part mastermind, part growth engine, part therapy. Book your free intro call at: https://www.joinscalepath.com/ Today’s guests are Lizzie Ryan and Darrel Connell, Managing Partners at IMBIBA, one of the UK’s leading specialist investors in leisure, education, and health. We cover IMBIBA’s operator-heavy model, why they back four-walls brands with proven unit economics, and how they sourced, structured, and exited deals through the toughest market in a decade. We dig into Fund I’s brutal raise, doing 7 deals in 14 months during COVID, building resilience in portfolio construction (childcare, wellness, and real estate-backed concepts), and the mechanics of operational gearing and like-for-like performance that drive exit timing. They share hard-won lessons on off-market origination (1,000+ outreaches → 600 meetings → 3–4 investments), upgrading teams post-investment, the “professional MD” hire, picking sites, saying no to bad leases, and aligning founder incentives with liquidity—without losing momentum. Timestamps: 00:00:00 Intro 00:00:07 Who are IMBIBA’s managing partners? 00:02:36 IMBIBA origin story & “two lives” of the firm 00:03:46 Fund I thesis: proven unit economics, operator help, rollout 00:04:22 Sponsor break - Scalepath 00:05:22 Building an operator-heavy PE team 00:06:11 Fundraising war stories (2018): the brutal last £10m 00:09:13 Post-raise: first 18–24 months 00:09:52 COVID hits: portfolio shut, scenario planning, survival 00:10:22 Doing 7 deals in 14 months: why founders chose them 00:11:35 What great PE–founder support looked like in crisis 00:14:19 Managing LP expectations during uncertainty 00:15:07 Rebuilding the portfolio: childcare, wellness, four-walls brands 00:16:14 Sponsor break - Spacebar Studios 00:17:35 Designing for resilience: margins, labor mix, exits 00:18:16 Portfolio & exits: NQ64, Little Houses Group 00:20:05 Who buys these assets now? (trade, PE, US interest) 00:21:49 When to sell vs. hold: operational gearing & like-for-like trends 00:25:18 Typical deal structure: significant minority, founder-led 00:26:14 Sourcing: mapping subsectors, off-market outreach 00:27:20 Upgrading teams post-investment; the “professional MD” hire 00:30:09 Funnel math: 1,000+ outreaches → 600 meetings → 3–4 deals 00:30:41 Red flags & when to walk at the 11th hour 00:31:43 Spotting real operators (site visits, staff, standards) 00:33:07 How their team works: operating partners on boards 00:34:57 Personal strengths & weaknesses (deal smell, negotiation) 00:37:23 Where founders need the most help: people & property 00:39:13 Coaching without micromanaging; the chair that moves the needle 00:41:28 Incentives & aligning around liquidity events 00:42:38 Navigating misalignment on timing and partial liquidity 00:45:06 Where they’ll invest next; where they won’t (exitability lens) 00:47:57 Supply of opportunities vs. capital in today’s UK market 00:48:44 Advice for emerging managers: resilience & learning from failure 00:50:01 What’s next
