Mergers & Acquisitions names the 2024 Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A, including Mizzen Capital’s Marilyn Adler.
How are you advancing the state of women?
Mizzen is one of only a handful of woman-owned small business investment company (SBIC) funds out of 300 SBIC funds nationally. I hope to be an inspiration for other women investment professionals who are thinking about starting their own firms. Mizzen has three woman-owned companies in our portfolio and is always looking to increase that number. We funded a woman-owned aerospace and defense company, a woman-owned government services contractor and a woman-owned hotel chain. Mizzen has also brought in other woman-owned funds and senior women at other credit funds to participate in deals that we were syndicating. We try to use female partners or senior associates at law firms for our deals.
Describe a recent dealmaking accomplishment.
Mizzen closed 10 new deals and three add-ons totaling $73 million in the 10 months ending October 2023. Since being licensed by the SBA in December 2020, Mizzen has closed 34 deals and nine follow-on financings totaling approximately $293 million.
How are you a champion of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)?
Mizzen Capital is a 100 percent woman-owned fund and has a very diverse team. We believe as a firm we make better investment decisions when we have a diversity of backgrounds, opinions and experiences. Even though we do not screen investment opportunities based on DEI, approximately 26 percent of our portfolio is comprised of women and minority-owned companies.
For the full list of 2024 Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A, see here.
