Hauser Private Equity is a Cincinnati-based hybrid private equity manager founded in 2008 by Mark Hauser. It invests capital for high-net-worth families and institutions two ways at once: as a limited partner in control buyout funds, and as a direct co-investor alongside those same fund managers in individual middle-market companies.
Key takeaways
- Hauser Private Equity (HPE) runs a hybrid model: it commits to outside buyout funds as an LP and co-invests directly in portfolio companies alongside those managers.
- The firm was founded in 2008 by Mark Hauser and is headquartered in Cincinnati, with additional offices in Los Angeles and Chicago per company materials.
- HPE reports investing over $650 million across five funds, partnering with 50-plus private equity fund managers in the lower-middle and middle market.
- The firm does not publish assets under management or individual fund sizes, so treat any specific AUM figure you see elsewhere with caution.
- Access is built for high-net-worth individuals and families, not retail investors. This is a private, relationship-driven vehicle with real minimums and accreditation requirements.
What Hauser Private Equity actually is
Hauser Private Equity is a fund manager and co-investor, not an operating buyout shop that controls companies on its own. Based in Cincinnati, the firm was founded in 2008 by Mark Hauser, who serves as Managing Partner and reports more than 35 years of investing and operating experience. Before founding HPE, Hauser was a vice president at Reynolds, DeWitt and Co. in Cincinnati, where his merchant banking work included public offerings for companies such as Mid-American Waste Systems and Health Images.
According to the firm, HPE continues the strategy of its predecessor, Hauser Capital Partners, co-investing throughout the lower-middle and middle market through partnerships with control buyout funds, and selectively with growth equity and special-situation managers. The firm invests on behalf of high-net-worth individuals and families rather than raising from a broad public base.
For a primer on the broader asset class and how firms like this fit in, see our private equity hub.
The hybrid model: fund-of-funds plus co-investment
Most private equity access vehicles pick a lane. A traditional fund of funds spreads your capital across many underlying buyout funds for diversification, but stacks a second layer of fees on top. A direct fund concentrates in deals it leads itself. Hauser Private Equity blends the two.
| Component | What HPE does | Why it matters to an LP |
|---|---|---|
| Fund investments | Commits as a limited partner into third-party control buyout funds | Diversification across managers, sectors, and vintages |
| Direct co-investments | Invests alongside those managers into specific portfolio companies | Concentrated exposure to chosen deals, typically at reduced or no additional fee |
| Manager selection | Reports partnering with 50-plus fund managers | Access to established GPs a single family usually cannot reach alone |
| Alignment | Favors deals where founders and management roll over equity | Operators keep skin in the game beside the investors |
The co-investment layer is the point. Co-investments generally carry lower fees than primary fund commitments, so blending them in can improve the net cost of the overall program while still keeping the diversification of a fund-of-funds structure. HPE has publicly emphasized that its co-investments include founder or management equity rollover, which is a common alignment signal in middle-market deals.
Track record and scale, stated plainly
Here is what the firm publishes, and what it does not. Attributing figures to the source matters here, because Hauser does not disclose fund-by-fund sizes or an audited AUM number.
| Metric | What the firm states | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2008 | Founded by Mark Hauser |
| Funds raised | Five funds | Fund-level sizes not publicly disclosed |
| Capital invested | Over $650 million | Firm's own figure, across all five funds |
| Fund manager partners | 50-plus | Includes named GPs such as Clearlake, Shore Capital, Revelstoke, and North Castle |
| Target partner fund size | Roughly $200 million to $2.5 billion | Per the firm's stated investment criteria |
| Sectors | Healthcare, business services, tech-enabled services, industrials, consumer goods | Middle-market focus |
| AUM | Not disclosed | Do not trust unsourced AUM numbers for this firm |
In 2023, HPE noted that 13 of its fund investments were named to Inc. Magazine's Founder-Friendly Investors list, including managers like Clearlake, Kinderhook, North Castle, Revelstoke, Spanos Barber Jesse, Shore Capital, and Vesey Street. That is a signal about the company it keeps, not a return figure. HPE does not publish net IRR or multiple data publicly, so anyone evaluating the firm should ask for that directly.
The LP-access reality
This is not a fund you buy in a brokerage account. Hauser Private Equity raises from high-net-worth individuals, families, and institutions, which means the practical barriers are the usual ones for private equity:
- You almost certainly need to be an accredited investor or qualified purchaser.
- Minimum commitments are set by the firm privately and are not published, so expect a real six-figure-plus number rather than a token amount.
- Capital is locked for years. Middle-market buyout programs typically run on multi-year hold periods with capital called over time, not deployed all at once.
- Access is relationship-driven. There is no public subscription page, so entry usually comes through an existing investor relationship or an introduction.
If those minimums are out of reach, the more realistic entry points to this asset class are structured differently. Our guide to private equity funds with low minimums covers vehicles built for smaller checks. And if you are weighing buyout exposure against earlier-stage strategies, the venture capital path sits at the opposite end of the risk and hold-period spectrum.
How it compares
Hauser sits in a specific niche: a middle-market co-investment and fund program run for private families out of the Midwest. That is a different animal from a large single-strategy buyout firm or a pan-European operator like Waterland Private Equity, which raises institutional megafunds and controls its own deals. HPE's edge, by its own framing, is manager access plus lower-fee co-investment for investors who want diversified middle-market exposure without picking individual funds themselves.
Bottom line
Hauser Private Equity is a legitimate, long-running hybrid manager with a clear and sensible structure: fund commitments for diversification, co-investments for concentrated, lower-fee exposure, and a middle-market focus. The firm is transparent about its model and its manager network, but deliberately quiet on fund sizes, AUM, and returns. For an accredited investor with the minimums and the patience for a multi-year lockup, it is worth a direct conversation. For everyone else, it is a useful template for what a well-built middle-market co-investment program looks like, even if the door is not open to retail capital.
Frequently asked questions
What is Hauser Private Equity's hybrid investment model?
Hauser Private Equity invests capital two ways at once: as a limited partner committing to third-party control buyout funds for diversification, and as a direct co-investor alongside those same managers in individual middle-market companies. The co-investments generally carry lower fees than primary fund commitments, so blending them improves the net cost while keeping fund-of-funds diversification.
How much has Hauser Private Equity invested and with how many managers?
Hauser Private Equity reports investing over $650 million across five funds, partnering with 50-plus private equity fund managers in the lower-middle and middle market. Named partners include Clearlake, Shore Capital, Revelstoke, and North Castle. The firm does not publish fund-by-fund sizes or an audited AUM figure, so treat any specific AUM number you see elsewhere with caution.
Can retail investors buy into Hauser Private Equity?
No, this is not a fund you buy in a brokerage account. Hauser raises from high-net-worth individuals, families, and institutions, so you almost certainly need to be an accredited investor or qualified purchaser. Minimum commitments are set privately and unpublished, expect a real six-figure-plus number, capital is locked for years, and access is relationship-driven.
Who founded Hauser Private Equity and where is it based?
Hauser Private Equity was founded in 2008 by Mark Hauser, who serves as Managing Partner and reports more than 35 years of investing and operating experience. It is headquartered in Cincinnati, with additional offices in Los Angeles and Chicago per company materials. Before founding the firm, Hauser was a vice president at Reynolds, DeWitt and Co.
Why does Hauser Private Equity favor deals with founder equity rollover?
Hauser favors deals where founders and management roll over equity because it keeps operators with skin in the game beside the investors, a common alignment signal in middle-market deals. The firm has publicly emphasized that its co-investments include founder or management equity rollover.