Centennial Peaks Capital Research
Advisory Approach
Centennial Peaks Capital is a Denver-based boutique investment banking firm founded in 2016 that operates with a distinctive thesis: the best M&A advisors for lower middle market businesses are those who have sat in the operator's seat. The firm's three partners—all co-founders and managing partners—bring considerable experience from senior leadership roles inside Fortune 500 companies and large private enterprises before founding Centennial. This operational perspective shapes their advisory philosophy: they understand not just how to structure and execute transactions, but how those decisions feel from the C-suite, having managed business segments with full P&L responsibility themselves.
The firm's positioning emphasizes three differentiators: "Strategic. Operational. Creative." This tagline reflects their belief that successful lower middle market transactions require strategic vision to identify the right path, operational credibility to understand the business deeply, and creative structuring to bridge gaps between buyers and sellers. The partners explicitly leverage their operating backgrounds across corporate development, strategy, investor relations, finance, and sales & marketing to provide comprehensive guidance beyond pure transactional execution.
Centennial takes a focused, collaborative approach. They deliberately limit the number of concurrent engagements to ensure each client receives full partner attention rather than delegation to junior staff. This "high-touch" model is particularly appealing to founder-owned businesses where the owner is selling a life's work and wants advisors who appreciate the operational and emotional complexity of the decision.
Sector Focus
Centennial Peaks Capital's industry expertise spans the lower middle market with particular strength in healthcare services, consumer services, and business services. Their website and transaction history demonstrate meaningful depth in:
Healthcare Services: The firm has completed multiple dental services transactions, including the sale of PG Dental Holdings (a dental support organization serving 70,000 patients across New England and Mid-Atlantic) to TriSpan Opportunities Fund. This deal demonstrates their capability in healthcare services roll-ups and DSO (dental support organization) transactions.
Consumer Services: The Sola Salon Studios recapitalization—majority stake sale to a consortium of MPK Equity Partners, AHR Growth Partners, and PNC Riverarch Capital—showcases their franchise and consumer services expertise. Sola operates 400+ salon suite locations across the U.S. and Canada, supporting 11,000+ beauty professionals. This transaction involved complex buyer coordination across three investment groups.
Construction & Industrial Services: The J&S Mechanical Contractors sale to Comfort Systems USA (NYSE: FIX) demonstrates their construction and engineering expertise. J&S was a nearly 50-year-old mechanical construction services firm serving commercial and industrial sectors throughout the Mountain West.
Additional Focus Areas: The partners' backgrounds and website indicate active engagement in technology/SaaS (particularly B2B and B2C), financial services and payments, manufacturing (both discrete and process), distribution and logistics, and media & telecommunications.
Deal Track Record
Centennial Peaks Capital has led or been deeply engaged in transactions representing more than $5 billion in cumulative transaction value throughout their careers, including deals at Centennial and prior roles at larger organizations. Notable closed transactions include:
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Sola Salon Studios Majority Recapitalization (November 2018): Advised the leading franchisor and operator of salon suites across 400+ U.S. and Canada locations in sale to consortium of MPK Equity Partners, AHR Growth Partners, and PNC Riverarch Capital.
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PG Dental Holdings Sale (June 2019): Advised Dental Health Associates, P.A. in sale of majority interest in PG Dental Holdings, LLC (dental support organization serving 70,000 patients) to TriSpan Opportunities Fund LP.
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CPI Card Group Canadian Subsidiary Acquisition (April 2019): Advised Canadian subsidiary of CPI Card Group Inc. (Nasdaq: PMTS; TSX: PMTS) in acquisition by Allcard Limited.
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J&S Mechanical Contractors Sale (February 2024): Advised West Jordan, Utah-based mechanical construction services firm (founded 1976) in strategic sale to Comfort Systems USA Inc. (NYSE: FIX).
The firm's Axial profile shows 3 closed deals on the platform, and they've been active members since 2019. The partners' collective experience includes transactions ranging from $1 million to $3 billion in value, giving them perspective across deal sizes while maintaining focus on their $10M-$300M lower middle market sweet spot.
Process & Fee Structure
Centennial runs institutional-quality sell-side and buy-side processes adapted for lower middle market complexity. Their services span the full transaction lifecycle:
Sell-Side: Business and market assessment, target identification and evaluation, financial and valuation modeling, management presentation preparation, information memorandum development, data room assembly, and term negotiation. The firm emphasizes "analytically rigorous and unbiased" advice on pricing and bids.
Buy-Side: Target identification and evaluation, valuation assistance, deal mediation, term sheet and LOI preparation, due diligence coordination, and financing sourcing (including debt and equity placement agent services).
The firm focuses on businesses with enterprise values from $10 million to $300 million and higher. They deliberately limit concurrent engagements to provide focused partner attention—each client works directly with the managing partners, not junior bankers.
Centennial Peaks Capital is a branch office of Crewe Capital, LLC (a registered broker-dealer, FINRA/SIPC member, CRD# 152527). Securities are offered through Crewe Capital, though Centennial Peaks Capital and Crewe Capital are not affiliated companies. This structure provides access to broker-dealer capabilities while maintaining boutique independence.
The firm does not publicly disclose specific fee structures. As a boutique operating in the $10M-$300M range, they likely use standard industry fee structures (modified Lehman or similar success fee models with monthly retainers), but prospective clients should discuss fees directly.
Buyer Network
Centennial maintains relationships with financial sponsors (private equity firms, family offices) and strategic acquirers based on their partners' transaction histories and industry involvement. Visible buyer relationships from announced deals include:
Private Equity: TriSpan Opportunities Fund LP (lower mid-market PE with offices in New York and London), MPK Equity Partners (Dallas-based consumer and tech-enabled services investor), AHR Growth Partners (emerging consumer brands), PNC Riverarch Capital (PNC's PE division investing $1.3B+ across 100+ companies since 1982).
Strategic Buyers: Comfort Systems USA (NYSE: FIX, national mechanical contractor), Allcard Limited (financial services cards and payments).
The firm draws on its broker-dealer network (Crewe Capital) for expanded buyer reach when needed. Their partners' backgrounds at Liberty Media, Western Union, First Data, IHS, and Ascent Capital Group provide additional strategic buyer relationship depth across media, telecommunications, payments, information services, and financial technology.
Competitive Positioning
Centennial Peaks Capital differentiates through three key attributes:
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Operating Credibility: All three partners have held senior operational roles (CFO, SVP, President) with full P&L responsibility before founding Centennial. They've been the seller, not just the advisor.
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Fortune 500 Deal Experience: Partners have executed transactions ranging from $1M to $3B at market-leading companies, bringing institutional-quality process discipline to lower middle market engagements.
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Boutique Attention: They limit concurrent engagements and guarantee direct partner involvement—no junior delegation. This appeals to founders selling life's work who want experienced hands throughout.
The firm explicitly positions as "Fortune 500 Experience | Lower Middle Market Focus"—capturing the value proposition of big-firm transaction expertise applied to lower middle market complexity.
Not a Fit If
Based on their positioning and deal focus, Centennial Peaks Capital is likely not a fit for:
- Businesses below $10M enterprise value (their stated minimum)
- Pure asset sales or liquidations (they focus on going-concern enterprises)
- Sellers seeking limited process or quick-close transactions (their value is in thorough, structured processes)
- Industries outside their demonstrated sectors (healthcare services, consumer services, construction, business services, technology)
Team
Centennial Peaks Capital was founded in 2016 by three co-founders who serve as managing partners:
John Orr, Managing Partner: Provides transactional advisory services across industries. Previously at Ascent Capital Group (private equity), Liberty Media Corporation (corporate development/M&A), and The Quaker Oats Company. Completed deals ranging from $5M to $3B across telecommunications, media, technology, connected home services, and consumer products. MBA in Finance from The Wharton School, BA in Economics from University of Colorado. Holds Series 79 and Series 63 securities licenses. Email: jorr@centennialpc.com, Phone: (303) 882-8677.
Ken Timbers, Managing Partner: Previously held senior roles at Western Union, First Data Corporation, and IHS (including CFO, SVP, and President positions). Deal experience spans $1M to $1B in transactions including buy-side, sell-side, tuck-ins, and strategic adjacencies. BA and MA in Economics from Stanford University, MBA from University of Michigan. Holds Series 79 and Series 63 securities licenses. Email: ktimbers@centennialpc.com, Phone: (303) 809-3218.
Dan Reeb, CPA, Managing Partner: Previously served in senior leadership roles at Fortune 100 private and public companies across sales, marketing, management consulting, strategy, M&A, and corporate finance. Experience spans series A startups, rapid-growth disruptors, and mature billion-dollar enterprises across healthcare, technology, food and beverage, building materials, and business/consumer services. Master of Science in Accounting (Finance secondary) from University of Colorado, licensed CPA in Colorado, holds Series 63 and 79 Investment Banking Representative licenses. Email: dreeb@centennialpc.com, Phone: (303) 641-8695.
The firm maintains a small, focused structure with approximately 3-5 total professionals. All securities activities are offered through Crewe Capital, LLC (FINRA/SIPC member).
Geographic Coverage
Centennial Peaks Capital is headquartered in Denver, Colorado at 4500 East Cherry Creek South Drive, Suite 1090, Denver, CO 80246. They serve clients nationally with demonstrated transaction presence across:
- Mountain West: Utah (J&S Mechanical sale), Colorado (headquarters and multiple engagements)
- Northeast: New England and Mid-Atlantic (PG Dental with practices across multiple states)
- National: Sola Salon Studios (400+ locations across U.S. and Canada)
The firm's Denver base provides access to the Mountain West's vibrant lower middle market, while their partners' backgrounds and broker-dealer network support national transaction capability.