Charlotte, NC (October 5, 2022) – Inc. today announced its fourth annual Founder-Friendly Investors list, honoring the private equity and venture capital firms with the best track records of success backing entrepreneurs.

The final list recognizes firms that entrepreneurs collaborate with and trust as they receive the partnership and financial support they need to help drive growth. All have a successful track record of remaining actively involved with the businesses they invest in.

“Fully investing in an entrepreneur, and their innovative vision, involves far more than the financial investment. By developing relationships with and supporting entrepreneurs for the long-term, these private equity firms are more than investors, they’re partners,” says Scott Omelianuk, editor-in-chief of Inc. media.

“We are honored to be recognized as one of the most founder-friendly investors by Inc. Magazine.  Since our inception, we have focused on building strong partnerships and a patient investment approach that resonates with founder and family-owned companies,” said Bill Lunsford, Founder and President of The Zabel Companies. “We pride ourselves on being collaborative, value-added partners to our teams as they build their businesses.  It’s humbling when these leaders choose Zabel, and we are looking forward to continuing to form high functioning partnerships with niche manufacturing, business services, and distribution companies for decades to come.”

To compile the list, Inc. went straight to the source: entrepreneurs who have sold to private equity and venture capital firms. Founders filled out a questionnaire about their experiences partnering with private equity and venture capital firms and shared data on how their portfolio companies have grown during these partnerships.

To see the complete list, go to: https://www.inc.com/founder-friendly-investors/2022

About The Zabel Companies

Based in Charlotte, NC, The Zabel Companies is an investment firm dedicated to partnering with management teams to build privately held companies over the long term. Zabel brings a patient and flexible approach to investing in and growing high quality businesses. Whether through a buyout, recapitalization or injection of growth capital, Zabel’s strategy is to work closely with management teams to steadily grow businesses and build value for all parties involved. For more information, visit www.zabelcompanies.com or contact one of the Zabel professionals.

About Inc.

The world’s most trusted business-media brand, Inc. offers entrepreneurs the knowledge, tools, connections, and community they need to build great companies. Its award-winning multiplatform content reaches more than 50 million people each month across a variety of channels including websites, newsletters, social media, podcasts, and print. Its prestigious Inc. 5000 list, produced every year since 1982, analyzes company data to recognize the fastest-growing privately held businesses in the United States. The global recognition that comes with inclusion in the 5000 gives the founders of the best businesses an opportunity to engage with an exclusive community of their peers, and the credibility that helps them drive sales and recruit talent. The associated Inc. 5000 Conference is part of a highly acclaimed portfolio of bespoke events produced by Inc. For more information, visit www.inc.com.