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Encore One
Encore One operates as a private holding company in Minnetonka, Minnesota, built on more than seven decades of family business history.
Encore One
Encore One operates as a private holding company in Minnetonka, Minnesota, built on more than seven decades of family business history. Craig Flom leads the firm as President and CEO, supported by Vice Presidents Kiel Luse and Paul Moffatt. For over 25 years, the firm deployed its own capital to acquire controlling stakes in lower-middle-market companies, growing them organically and through add-on acquisitions. The firm shifted its strategy in 2024 to focus exclusively on direct equity co-investments. It now writes checks between $2 million and $10 million per platform company, partnering with high-quality sponsors leading change-of-control transactions in the lower middle market. Encore One does not act as the sponsor or lead investor, instead positioning as a value-added co-investor. The firm seeks companies with strong management teams, competitive positions, growth opportunities, and a history of profitability and consistent cash flow. Its flexible family office capital eliminates the need to raise outside funds, allowing for a patient investment horizon. Encore One's three officers collectively have 45 years of private equity experience, having completed more than 100 platform and add-on deals and served on over 25 private company boards. The firm operates a single office in Minnetonka. In 2024, it formally pivoted from a control-buyout model to a co-investment-only approach to accelerate portfolio diversification and increase capital deployment velocity. Encore One's primary structural differentiator is its permanent capital base. Because the firm does not raise funds from external limited partners, it is unconstrained by fundraising cycles or fixed hold periods. This architecture lets it underwrite co-investments with a longer time horizon than most institutional equity providers, appealing to sponsors who value certainty of close and a patient partner at the table.
General information
Firm type
Private Equity
Year founded
—
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Minnetonka
Corporate office
10350 Bren Road West, Minnetonka, MN 55343, United States
Principals
Craig Flom
President & CEO and Board and Investment Committee Member
Kiel Luse
Vice President
Paul Moffatt
Vice President
Bruce Engler
Board & Investment Committee
Tim Johnson
Board & Investment Committee
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Encore One?
Craig Flom serves as President and CEO and sits on the Board and Investment Committee. Vice Presidents Kiel Luse and Paul Moffatt handle deal execution. Two additional board members, Bruce Engler and Tim Johnson, also serve on the Investment Committee, giving the firm a five-person oversight body for investment decisions.
How does Encore One source proprietary deal flow?
Encore One sources co-investment opportunities through relationships with high-quality sponsors leading lower-middle-market buyouts. Because the firm does not act as the lead or sponsor itself, its pipeline relies entirely on sponsor introductions. The firm's 25-year track record of direct investing supports its credibility with intermediaries and deal originators.
Is Encore One structured as a single family office or a traditional private equity firm?
Encore One is a private holding company rooted in a family business heritage spanning more than 70 years. It does not raise funds from external investors, giving it family-office-style permanent capital. However, it operates as an active direct equity co-investor rather than a diversified family office, and its team of career private equity professionals manages the portfolio.
Does Encore One lead transactions or only co-invest?
Since 2024, Encore One exclusively co-invests alongside sponsors leading change-of-control acquisitions. The firm explicitly states it is not the sponsor or lead investor. Prior to 2024, it historically acquired controlling stakes and led its own platform investments.
What check size does Encore One typically write?
Encore One targets direct equity co-investments of $2 million to $10 million per platform company. This range is calibrated to the lower middle market, where it partners with sponsors on buyouts of profitable, cash-flow-positive businesses with strong competitive positions and growth opportunities.
What is Encore One's posture toward co-investing alongside external GPs?
Co-investing alongside external GPs is Encore One's entire investment model as of 2024. The firm seeks to be a value-added partner to sponsors by providing flexible, non-control equity and leveraging its own operational and board experience to support portfolio company growth.
Where does Encore One's underlying wealth come from?
The firm states its capital is rooted in a family business heritage spanning more than 70 years, though the specific family and originating industry are not publicly disclosed. This private family backing provides the permanent, flexible capital that defines its co-investment strategy.
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