Investment Strategy

Bauer Investments deploys long-term family capital with institutional underwriting discipline.

We focus on opportunities where:

• Cash flow visibility supports downside protection
• Operational improvements can enhance margins and scalability
• Capital structure can be optimized
• Leadership is aligned with long-term value creation
• Market positioning is defensible across economic cycles

We are flexible in structure — pursuing majority, significant minority, and strategic growth investments — with a preference for control or meaningful influence positions.

Our capital is patient. Our underwriting is disciplined. Our standard is performance.

Work With Us

  • Long-Term Capital
    We invest with a multi-cycle perspective, prioritizing durability over volatility.

    Operational Discipline
    Our leadership has built, scaled, and exited companies. We understand execution.

    Institutional Underwriting
    Rigorous analysis, structured risk management, and performance accountability guide every investment.

    Alignment
    We partner with founders and operators who think like owners.

  • We believe:

    • Capital must be paired with execution.

    • Underwriting discipline protects long-term outcomes.

    • Alignment drives performance.

    • Durable businesses outperform cyclical speculation.

    • Stewardship is a fiduciary obligation, not a marketing statement.

  • We evaluate opportunities through the lens of:

    • Structural demand

    • Competitive durability

    • Scalable operating models

    • Financial resilience

    • Leadership alignment

    We commit capital selectively and actively.

Our Team

Mario Bauer

Mario Bauer is the Founder, Managing Director, and Chief Executive Officer of Bauer Investments, LLC, an institutional family office focused on long-term investments across real estate, industrials, services, and technology.

Mario brings more than three decades of executive leadership experience spanning enterprise strategy, operational transformation, and capital-intensive programs across North America. Over the course of his career, he has advised and operated alongside large-scale organizations, leading complex modernization initiatives, strategic restructurings, and multi-year capital programs at the executive and board level. 

Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer

  • In addition to his advisory leadership, Mario has built, scaled, and successfully exited corporations, demonstrating a disciplined owner-operator approach to value creation and liquidity execution. His experience includes guiding organizations through growth acceleration, strategic positioning, and sale transactions, aligning operational performance with long-term capital outcomes.

    Prior to founding Bauer Investments, Mario served as CEO, President, and senior executive across national advisory firms, where he specialized in enterprise strategy, risk management, mergers and acquisitions, and performance optimization. His leadership reflects a capital allocator’s discipline — focused on scalable platforms, strategic clarity, and durable enterprise value.

    Mario holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Colorado.

Christopher Garcia

Christopher Garcia serves as Chief Investments Officer of Bauer Investments, LLC, where he leads investment strategy, underwriting, and capital deployment across the firm’s investment platforms.

Chris brings more than 20 years of institutional finance and investment leadership experience, beginning his career in public accounting — widely regarded as the benchmark training ground for investment professionals — before advancing into executive finance and investment leadership roles. 

Chief Investments Officer

  • He has served as Chief Financial and Investment Officer and senior advisor across U.S. and international companies, leading transaction advisory engagements, capital structuring, M&A execution, and post-merger integration initiatives. His experience includes turnaround and restructuring environments where operational discipline and strategic capital allocation were critical to enterprise performance. 

    At Bauer Investments, Chris applies institutional-level financial discipline and an operator’s mindset to identify scalable opportunities and create long-term enterprise value.

    Chris holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance from Texas Tech University and both a Master of Accountancy & Information Management and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Brian Steeg

Brian Steeg serves as Director of Corporate Finance at Bauer Investments, LLC, where he oversees corporate financial strategy, performance analysis, and financial discipline across the firm’s investment platforms.

Brian brings extensive experience spanning corporate finance, accounting, and operational leadership, with a career that includes finance roles at Fortune 500 organizations such as Bank of America and The Coca-Cola Company. His background combines large-scale enterprise finance with hands-on leadership supporting growth-oriented businesses and investment-backed platforms.

Director of Corporate Finance

  • He began his career in public accounting with Arthur Andersen, one of the leading international accounting firms of its time, developing a strong foundation in audit, financial controls, and analytical rigor. Over the past decade, Brian has served as a management consultant and senior finance advisor to early-stage and emerging companies, guiding leadership teams on capital structure, strategy, finance, and operational performance.

    At Bauer Investments, Brian provides institutional-level financial oversight, supporting underwriting, portfolio performance measurement, and strategic decision-making through disciplined financial analysis and corporate finance execution.

    Brian holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Texas Tech University and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant (CPA).

Jake Sussman

Jake Sussman serves as Vice President of Customer Acquisition at Bauer Investments, where he leads customer acquisition strategy, marketing, lead generation, revenue growth initiatives, and strategic partnerships across the firm’s portfolio companies.

With more than 15 years of experience across venture-backed technology, consumer brands, construction, and service-based businesses, Jake specializes in building scalable customer acquisition and success platforms that drive measurable growth. He combines data-driven strategy with hands-on operational execution, helping companies improve market penetration, customer retention, and overall revenue performance.

Vice President of Customer Acquisition

  • At Bauer Investments, Jake works closely with leadership teams across all portfolio companies to develop repeatable growth systems, optimize sales and marketing operations, strengthen brand positioning, and accelerate long-term value creation.

    Jake is known for his entrepreneurial mindset, operational discipline, and ability to align customer acquisition strategies directly with business performance and growth objectives.

    He is a graduate of University of Denver.