Sierra Madre, a private equity fund led by Filipino businessman and entrepreneur Martin Lorenzo, expects to generate USD150 million to USD200 million from divesting its investments in at least five profitable ventures.
Lorenzo told reporters on the sidelines of the 51st Philippine Business Conference at SMX Convention Center that some of the funds from the sale may be reinvested in other enterprises, usually startups, particularly medical technology, medical, and more education ventures, particularly, K-12.
“We get the money and we give it back to the limited partners and we raise fund too,” he said noting those investments were made 5 to 7 years ago and have grown bigger already. Lorenzo said the new round of investments will come in bigger size of USD25 to USD50 million.
They are looking at 30 to as much as 50 companies for their new investments. “It’s not easy. But we have to choose our partners very well,” he said.
During a panel discussion on Plenary 5: The Innovation Flywheel: Scaling Local Enterprises for Global Impact, Martin, who is also chairman and CEO of First Lucky Holdings Corp., cited their successful two food investments – Single Origin Coffee and Pick-UP Coffee.
His advice to entrepreneurs is to “keep things simple but act fast.” The company is also big on technology and digitalization. It uses drones to monitor and gather data of their 100-year old sugar plantation, some of which are processed into ethanol. He urged to use the gathered datA right away to make it relevant to a business operation.
They are also employing new technologies in their K-12 education ventures. “So, if I am an MSME today, you really have to embrace technology but embrace it the right way,” he said.
