Red Barn Investments simply seeks the best small and mid-sized business opportunities for its investment portfolio. Such opportunities are usually characterized by excellent management teams, evidence of recent success in attractive, growing markets, and multiple potential strategic acquirers. Our investment criteria are simple to understand and indicate that we are interested in transactions that larger firms often find too small. For example, our ideal investment size range is $1 million to $5 million, allowing for total transaction values up to approximately $30 million. We believe this is an often overlooked sector capable of generating attractive investment returns. In addition, we are interested in both buyout and growth equity transactions.
Our fund investors are a limited number of family entities and the General Partners. All decisions are made directly by the General Partners and are not subject to additional committees or partners that may have little involvement. We seek to build strong working relationships with management and our style and structure allow for closeness and accessibility. We differentiate ourselves by our desire to enter into a long-term and collegial relationship with management. This approach is similar to the successful family business situations we have experienced personally, including those that resulted in the sale of DeKalb Genetics to Monsanto in 1998 and the sale of Interface Software to LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier, in 2004.
Our professionals provide a unique blend of successful family enterprise, direct entrepreneurship, private equity and venture capital investing, investment banking, and consulting experience. Our entrepreneurial approach to our investments and significant strategic, advisory, and transactional expertise, along with our desire to frequently and openly communicate with management make us an important and value-adding partner in the business.