After years in private equity—sourcing, structuring deals, and watching middle-market businesses grow and exit—I kept hitting the same wall: talented owners running proven companies with steady double-digit growth and real compounding potential were stuck. They couldn't access equity markets built for high-velocity companies promising quick billions, fast public exits, or massive checks from strategics looking to eliminate competition.

Private equity's roots in the 1970s favor leveraged buyouts and big exits: IPOs, huge institutions, or full sales. For everyone else? Scarce, expensive, or misaligned options—leaving solid companies scrambling.

I thought: What if there was a better way—a flexible model giving these businesses time to scale with organized liquidity, no forced exits?

That's why I founded Clewed: a hybrid platform delivering smarts and capital access once reserved for bigger players—while opening quality deals to individual investors previously locked out.