Private equity firm earns prestigious recognition three years in a row

West Palm Beach, FL – Blue Sea Capital, a leading private equity firm focused on partnering with and investing alongside talented founders, announced today that it has been named a 2025 Founder Friendly Investor™ by Inc.  In naming Blue Sea Capital to its prestigious list for a third straight year, the Founder Friendly Investor™ recognizes the firm as a private equity investment partner with a track record of success backing entrepreneurs and earning their trust to drive growth.

“Raising capital is no small feat for today’s entrepreneurs.  That’s why discovering investors who offer more than just financial backing — those who bring mentorship, resources, and a true spirit of partnership to your growth journey — is both rare and invaluable,” says Bonny Ghosh, editorial director at Inc.  “The 2025 Founder-Friendly Investors are collaborators and dedicated to helping their portfolio companies succeed.”

J.R. Davis and Rick Wandoff, Managing Partners of Blue Sea Capital, commented, “We’re passionate about empowering talented entrepreneurs and turning their vision into thriving businesses.  Being named a Founder Friendly Investor™ for another year is a testament to our commitment to partnering with founder-owned businesses and fostering their growth and success.”

Since its founding in 2013, Blue Sea has invested in 158 businesses, comprising 21 platforms and 137 add-ons — 95% of them founder-owned — and has built a strong track record of growth and performance. So far in 2025, the firm has closed 19 transactions, including two platforms and 17 add-ons.  Blue Sea is currently investing out of Blue Sea Capital Fund III LP, which closed on $618 million in June 2023, exceeding its target.

In total, Blue Sea Capital has over $1.5 billion in assets under management to partner with founders and leaders of special, growth-oriented middle-market companies in industries where it has deep experience: healthcare, industrial growth and aerospace & defense.  Focused, committed and impactful, the firm delivers strategic and operational value-add that seeks to drive growth acceleration, industry outperformance and business transformation.

About Founder-Friendly Investors™

Introduced in 2019, the Founder-Friendly Investors™ list quickly established itself as one of Inc.’s most resourceful franchises.  It has become a go-to guide for entrepreneurs who want to grow their companies while retaining an ownership stake.  To compile the list, Inc. went straight to the source: entrepreneurs who have sold to private equity and venture capital firms.  Founders filled out a questionnaire about their experiences partnering with private equity, venture capital, and debt firms and shared data on how their portfolio companies have grown during these partnerships.  Blue Sea Capital paid a fee to be eligible and use the associated trademarks for this award.

About Inc.

The world’s most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community they need to build great companies.  Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print.  Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States.  The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent.  The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com.