Dave Smith founded Marathon Partners LLC in 2002, formalizing an entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial career.

“I’m blessed to have had an interesting career with some success, plus one or two failures. It was capped in 2017 with the sale of Buddy’s Kitchen to Premium Brands Holdings. For the next 18 months, I continued to lead Buddy’s for the buyer. In June of 2019 I started a “sabbatical” to step back and evaluate new opportunities. At 60, I have no interest in retiring, and no interest in working just to get paid. I’m fortunate to be able to be very selective about looking at new deals and new roles that look both fun and profitable.”

 

Contact:
– Email: dave@mp-mn.com
– Phone: 612-327-6414

Experience/Expertise

• Areas of Expertise
  • Entrepreneurial Leadership
  • Mergers & Acquisitions
  • Commercial Real Estate
  • EOS Enthusiast and Informal Facilitator
  • Board-Level Oversight
  • B to B Marketing
• Past Roles & Experiences
  • CEO, Buddy’s Kitchen, Inc.
  • CEO Mark VII Equipment, Inc.
  • SVP Corporate Development, Nationwide Electric/ Bracknell
  • CFO, Great Plains Supply
  • President, Great Plains Properties
  • President, Griffin Real Estate
  • Leasing Agent, Trammell Crow Company
  • Analyst, CENEX

• Board Activity
  • SR Realty Trust (private REIT)
  • Dr. in the Kitchen LLC (natural food)
  • Schafer Richardson Development Co.- Advisory (real estate developer)
  • Past: Mark VII Equipment, Inc (Private Equity-backed manufacturer of automatic car wash equipment
  • Past: Jonaco Machine, Inc. (PE-backed manufacturer of precision parts for the aerospace and medical industries)
  • Past: Buddy’s Kitchen, Inc. (private brand manufacturer of frozen food for specialty foodservice customers)

• Current Investments
  • SR Realty Trust
  • Schafer Richardson Development
  • Dr. In the Kitchen, LLC
  • Solbe Learning
  • Various Real Estate Holdings

• Past Investments
  • Buddy’s Kitchen, Inc.
  • Mark VII Equipment, Inc.
  • Jonaco Machine, Inc.
  • Plum Building Systems
  • Nationwide Electric, Inc.

Education

• MBA- Harvard Business School, 1986
• BA- Macalester College, 1981

Special Interests: Social Entrepreneurism

• The Open Door, Mobile Food Shelf, Eagan, MN www.theopendoorpantry.org
• Semilla Nueva (Guatemala-based seed corn company combating nutrition issues) www.semillanueva.org
• Miracles in Action, www.miraclesinaction.org, helping Guatemalans living in extreme poverty through education, nutrition and vocational skills
• Habitat for Humanity- participated in multiple week-long construction projects in Dominican Republic; training to be trip leader.
• Affordable Housing- active investor/developer in projects that are affordable to lower income Minnesotans

Evaluating Opportunities

• Opportunistic Investing Interests
  • Acquisition of Companies with $.5 to 5.0 million EBITDA
  • Special situation real estate, distressed or REO real estate
  • Purchase of Contracts for Deed or 2nd Mortgages
• Leadership Roles & Consulting
  • Interim or other leadership roles in interesting situations with upside potential
  • Consulting: Fee or Participation
• Board Leadership & Oversight
  • I’ve enjoyed my Board roles and would consider additional for profit and non-profit opportunities. While I understand the oversight and governance functions, I especially enjoy situations where my involvement can help the growth and overall success of the company
• Social Entrepreneurship
  • Micro-lending
  • Affordable housing
  • Nutrition & education