Slack Water Capital

Ben Bortner is the Founder and Managing Partner and appears to be the sole decision-maker. The firm's website lists no other investment professionals. Bortner brings 16 years of investing and operational experience, including prior roles at Southeastern Asset Management and Saturna Capital, and personally serves as CEO of GreenWorks Landscape Partners, the firm's largest platform.

The firm primarily sources through the search-fund ecosystem, building relationships with acquisition entrepreneurs early in their search process. It also engages business owners, intermediaries, and operators directly. The website explicitly states a preference for partnering with searchers before they have a deal under LOI, suggesting a pipeline built on long-term operator relationships rather than competitive auctions.

Slack Water Capital does not disclose a formal blind-pool fund. The firm's deal-by-deal board composition, the lack of a disclosed fund size or vintage, and Bortner's active CEO role at platform companies suggest it operates closer to a holding company or SPV-based model than a traditional drawdown fund. Each investment appears to have a dedicated co-investor and operator group.

The firm targets buyout and growth investments in small and medium-sized service businesses in stable, simple industries. Target companies are often founder-owned and undergoing a succession or growth-transition moment. Sectors include landscaping, pool services, industrial cleaning, roofing, and specialty trade services, with a geographic bent toward the Southeast US.

GreenWorks Landscape Partners is a multi-branch landscaping platform in Southern Florida where Ben Bortner serves as Founder and CEO. It appears to be Slack Water Capital's anchor platform investment, built through multiple acquisitions. The two share the same Key West base and operational leadership, with Bortner running both simultaneously.

Yes. The firm's model explicitly relies on partnering with entrepreneurs and operators. Deal sourcing language targets searchers seeking capital partners, and Bortner's board roles across multiple companies indicate a co-investor structure with separate operating leads for each subsidiary, rather than a centralized management team.

Based on all public disclosures, Slack Water Capital only does direct acquisitions. There is no mention of LP-style fund commitments. The firm's entire observable activity — board seats, CEO roles, and platform-building — is consistent with holding equity directly in operating companies.