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Eighth Summit Capital acquires
great founder-owned businesses.

New York-based independent sponsor  ·  $3M–$10M EBITDA  ·  Overlooked niches  ·  Founder-friendly deals

Why We Buy
  • Fragmented niches with no clear PE buyer
  • Sticky, recurring cash flows
  • Operators the market overlooks
What We Target
  • Specialty hospitality services
  • Niche technology networks
  • Hospitality back-office services
  • Light manufacturing & business services
Deal Parameters
  • $3M–$10M EBITDA
  • $5M–$30M+ revenue
  • Family or founder-owned
  • Existing management stays
  • USA nationwide
$1B+
Transactions Reviewed
100+
Years Combined Experience
$3–10M
Target EBITDA
LMM
Lower Middle Market
Summit
For Business Owners

We buy good businesses. We don't fix broken ones.

You built something real. The decision to sell doesn't need to be complicated, and it doesn't need to take a year.

Ridge is the decision-maker at every step. No fund committee. No junior associates running the process. He's there to help you figure out the right next move — and to close when the fit is right.

  • Your management team stays in place
  • Confidential from first call to close
  • No re-trades at the finish line
  • Deal structure built around your timeline
  • Competitive referral fees paid at close to intermediaries
Start a Conversation
Our Process

How We Work.

First Call
30 Minutes

No NDA required to start. We learn about your business, share how we think, and both decide whether it's worth going further. Plain conversation.

Letter of Intent
Within 2 Weeks

If there's a fit, we move to a non-binding LOI fast. Ridge makes the call directly. No waiting on a committee.

Diligence & Financing
60–90 Days

We run a focused process and arrange financing in parallel. No moving goalposts. No surprises at the end.

Close & Partner
Day One

We close and get to work. Finance, margin improvement, and BD relationships go active from day one.

Investment Criteria

What We Look For.

We run a focused mandate. If your company fits, we want to hear from you directly and confidentially.

EBITDA
$3M – $10M
Profitable and cash-generative
Revenue
$5M – $30M+
Established market presence
Ownership
Family or Founder
No institutional sellers
Revenue Type
Recurring Preferred
Contracted or repeat-customer
Geography
USA Nationwide
No geographic restrictions
Enterprise Value
$10M – $75M
Lower middle market
Target Sectors
Specialty F&B Wholesale & Distribution
Niche Consumables & Co-Packing
Hospitality Back-Office & Compliance
Information & Business Services
Light Manufacturing & MRO
Transportation & Logistics Services
The Team

People Who Have Done This Before.

Ridge Choi
Managing Partner
  • Invest Hospitality
    Head of Development, PE-backed hotel group
  • Luxor Capital Group
    $5.5B AUM hedge fund, New York
  • Ernst & Young
    Big 4 Accounting
  • NYU Stern MBA  ·  Binghamton University B.S.

Ridge started his career at Ernst & Young and Luxor Capital, a $5.5 billion hedge fund, before moving into operating businesses. At Invest Hospitality, he ran business development for a PE-backed hotel group, which meant spending years alongside founders, investors, and management teams at companies including Giift, Cachet Hotel Group, and Xoxoday.

That combination is the foundation of Eighth Summit. He knows how to underwrite a deal. He also knows what the first 90 days of ownership actually look like, and what typically goes wrong when a buyer doesn't.

His underwriting approach is rigorous by habit. Every acquisition Eighth Summit evaluates gets the same treatment he applied across hundreds of structured credit situations over the course of his career.

Senior Advisors
John Illuzzi
Capital Markets

Portfolio Manager, Equity Derivatives at BlueCrest Capital ($35B AUM). Previously co-founded Laurel Ridge Asset Management, a $400M fund in New York.

Laurent Xatart
Global Business Development

Co-founder of Giift, the world's largest loyalty program and gift card network. The platform serves thousands of merchants and corporations across global markets.

Lakshman Kannan
Financial Advisory

Partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Twelve years advising financial institutions and government agencies on structured products and commercial debt.

Kelly Skura
Fund Operations

CFO and Partner at a multi-billion dollar hedge fund, overseeing more than $2 billion in assets under management in New York.

Track Record

Select Transactions.

Transaction history is available to qualified capital partners, lenders, and M&A advisors under NDA. References available on request.

Request Track Record

Currently in Market

Active pipeline across specialty distribution, hospitality services, and niche manufacturing. Evaluating proprietary and intermediary-sourced opportunities in the $3M–$10M EBITDA range.

Submit an Opportunity
  • Sector Focus F&B / Hospitality / Manufacturing
  • EBITDA Range $3M – $10M
  • Deal Type Control Buyout, Majority Recap
  • Capital Senior Debt + Equity Co-investors
  • Geography USA Nationwide
Contact

Let's Talk.

Whether you're a business owner, M&A advisor, lender, or co-investor, all inquiries are treated confidentially.

Managing Partner
Ridge Choi
Email
ridge@eighthsummitcap.com
Phone
(646) 852-1054
Location
New York / Long Island, NY

M&A Advisors: We pay competitive success fees at close and protect your client relationships throughout.

Lenders & Co-Investors: Deal-by-deal structure. Full track record and deal summaries available under NDA.

Thank you. We will be in touch within one business day.