From a self-funded one-person operation in 1993 to a 70-member team managing $4.6 billion in assets, Reeve Waud has demonstrated a systematic approach to building healthcare platforms that consistently delivers outsized returns. The recent announcement of Waud Capital Partners’ partnership with veteran healthcare executive Bill Mixon exemplifies the investment methodology that has made Reeve Waud one of the most successful healthcare-focused private equity leaders.
The partnership, backed by over $100 million in equity capital, demonstrates Waud Capital Partners’ executive-first approach to platform development. Rather than acquiring companies and then seeking management talent, Reeve Waud’s firm identifies proven executives first, then provides the resources necessary to build industry-leading businesses around their expertise.
Investment Philosophy and Systematic Value Creation
Since founding Waud Capital Partners in Lake Forest, Illinois, Reeve Waud has refined an investment approach that prioritizes long-term value creation over quick returns. The firm’s healthcare platform investments undertake an average of 10+ add-on acquisitions during the hold period, a buy-and-build methodology that has generated average revenue growth of 400% for realized investments.
“I am very humbled to be celebrating this major milestone,” Reeve Waud reflected on the firm’s 30th anniversary. “The beginning days were far from glamorous, and the future was entirely uncertain, but I had confidence in the opportunity to partner with exceptional executives and build exciting and profitable companies.”
Bill Mixon’s partnership exemplifies this philosophy. With more than 30 years of operating experience across the medical device and supply chain services continuum, Mixon brings proven leadership credentials that align perfectly with Waud Capital Partners’ investment thesis in healthcare supply chain consolidation.
Executive Partnership as Value Creation Catalyst
Mixon’s track record of building and scaling healthcare services businesses made him an ideal partner for Reeve Waud’s latest platform initiative. At Advanced Diabetes Supply, Mixon drove transformational growth through operational excellence, growing the company to $1 billion in revenue serving nearly 500,000 patients annually before its $1.1 billion acquisition by Cardinal Health.
“We are thrilled to partner with Bill,” said Mike Lehman, Principal at Waud Capital. “He is an exceptional executive who has created value and driven multiple successful outcomes throughout his career in a sector we find highly attractive.”
Mixon’s earlier success at National Seating & Mobility, where he scaled the organization to over 200 locations across the United States and Canada through both organic growth and acquisitions, demonstrates the collaborative approach that Reeve Waud values in executive relationships.
Portfolio Pattern Recognition and Platform Building
Bill Mixon’s partnership follows a well-established pattern of successful executive collaborations throughout Waud Capital Partners’ history. Reeve Waud founded Acadia Healthcare in 2005 as a behavioral health startup, providing growth capital and guidance that enabled the company’s transformation into one of the nation’s largest behavioral hospital systems before its 2011 IPO.
Similarly, GI Alliance demonstrates another successful executive partnership, where Waud Capital Partners worked with physician leadership to build the largest gastroenterology practice management platform in the United States. The company’s 2022 recapitalization at a $2.2 billion valuation marked a highly successful outcome after just four years of Waud ownership (https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/gi-alliance-agrees-22-bln-buyout-offer-majority-owners-2022-08-19/).
Center for Vein Restoration provides another example of Reeve Waud’s approach to supporting executive-led growth. Under Waud Capital Partners’ ownership, the company expanded from 11 clinics to 44 centers across eight states, with the CEO noting that the firm “shared my vision of building a first-class vein treatment business.”
Campaign Development and Resource Allocation
Healthcare supply chain platform with Mixon represents Waud Capital Partners’ second dedicated campaign in the medical device and supply chain services market within two years, demonstrating accelerated focus on this sector. “The partnership with Bill is another example of Waud Capital’s executive-first campaign approach and commitment to support accomplished executive leaders with the full ecosystem of resources to execute transformative growth strategies,” said Kyle Lattner, Partner at Waud Capital.
Reeve Waud’s systematic approach to executive recruitment and platform building has positioned Waud Capital Partners as a preferred partner for healthcare leaders seeking to build scaled, market-leading businesses. The firm’s comprehensive support infrastructure, combined with patient capital and guidance, creates an environment where exceptional executives can focus on operational excellence while accessing resources necessary for transformational growth.
The Mixon partnership reinforces Reeve Waud’s core investment philosophy: exceptional people drive exceptional value creation in healthcare services markets.
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