Outstanding people lead to outstanding businesses.
We make long term investments in teams that have the right values and an entrepreneurial spirit.
Our Investment Criteria:
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Owners exploring a full or majority sale, typically for retirement.
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EBITDA/Take Home between $1mm and $3mm annually.
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Gross Profit margins of at least 30%.
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Based in Canada with at least 5 years in operations.
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Operate in manufacturing, construction, or industrials.
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No retail, tech/SaaS, consumer goods, nor franchises.
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If you’re not sure if you're a good fit, gives us a shout anyways. We love talking with business owners and may be able to help in other ways.
ABOUT US
We’ve built businesses from scratch to $100mm. We are entrepreneurs and operators first.
Lighthouse was born from the need for experienced entrepreneurs who are passionate about building and operating small businesses. Our goal is to keep Canadian businesses Canadian and grow them over the long run. We operate every business we own with the goal of turning it into the best place to work and the first place customers go in their respective industries.
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Lighthouse brings together entrepreneurial passion, operating experience, and technology to keep Canadian businesses local. We believe that small businesses are the cornerstone of every community so we've made it our mission to ensure that beloved brands and teams continue thriving into the future.
Unlike others in our space, we genuinely understand retiring business owners because we are business owners. Our small team that works across sales, operations/logistics, and finance embodies the boldness, resilience, and ambition that every successful business owner needs. Today, we use our combined experiences to protect and nurture the most important parts of a company - the people, the values, and the relationships.
Our approach can be summarized in two ways:
For Business Owners: We buy your business and operate it ourselves for the long run - we don’t flip it and we don’t mash it up with another business. We make ongoing investments into your brand, your team, and your product with the same energy you had when you first started out.
For Finance People: We make long term lower market control investments up to $10mm in EV with a target ownership period of 7 to 10 years and a returns distribution horizon of 5 years for equity partners. We are active managers in every engagement and focus on sales support, product development, value chain improvements, and financial reporting as part of a platform mission.​
OUR VALUES
URGENCY
We know time is valuable so we make sure that we communicate quickly and clearly. You’ll never have to wait for a reply from us so you can get back to your other priorities as quickly as possible.
CONSISTENCY
We use a tested approach that keeps things linear and straight forward without unnecessary transaction risk. You’ll feel organized, confident, and informed every step of the way when you choose to work with us.
TRANSPARENCY
We answer questions honestly and concisely to remove any mysteries or anxiety during our engagement. You’ll feel comfortable with every interaction and never have to worry about missing pieces.
OUR STORY
Chris Leung
​​Our small team is led by our Founder and CEO, Christopher Leung - or as most call him, Chris.
Chris leads our investment decisions as well as our operating team within businesses we own, serving as President and/or CEO. Chris is a 5x business founder based in Toronto, Canada with a specialty in sales and product which has allowed him to take companies from inception to $100mm in revenue.
Prior to starting Lighthouse, Chris graduated with a Business and Aviation degree from the University of Western Ontario (yes, that's a real program) and had a stint in the Canadian Forces. Chris' career started as a natural gas sales trader working with manufacturing, agriculture, and logistics businesses before leaving for the startup world.​​
​At one of Canada’s fastest-growing startups, Chris led market expansion across North America to fuel the company's growth from 60 people in 3 cities to over 400 employees in 9 countries in just 2.5 years. Chris followed this experience with a digital commerce company where he successfully launched multiple new products and built strategic partnerships with the world's largest tech giants.
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Chris' founder journey spans logistics, finance, and construction, where his ability to build high-performing teams, introduce in-demand products and services, and create effective sales and growth strategies have set him apart from the competition.
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When Chris isn't meeting new business owners or iterating on operational strategies, you can find him exploring hidden gems like Albania and Morocco, working on his volleyball swing, or trying to keep his Pilot's License current.
OUR TEAM
Chyanne Dover
Chief of Staff
​Small business owner and fractional operations leader overseeing sales ops, people ops, and customer ops.
Leon Chiu
Operations Lead
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​Multi-location small business owner with a background in M&A, logistics, growth, and software integrations.
Megan Ellis
Finance Lead
Finance leader across multiple family owned and private equity backed businesses from acquisition to exit.
Henry Chen
Advisor
​Career investor turned fintech founder with LMM private equity and search fund deal experience.
Finn Grace
Investment Associate
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Finance major supporting our deal origination and valuation efforts across new and existing opportunities.
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