The Table

What we do, and do not, do.

The Table is not a firm. It is a standing arrangement with a short list of founders whose work we respect. We take on two or three companies a year as an informal advisor or small investor, most often in sustainable goods, independent media, and small-scale manufacturing. We do not take board seats. We do not send memos. We do not publish a thesis.

Conversations happen in person. There is no office. Meetings are held at a long table in the barn, or at a restaurant that keeps a decent bottle of something open, or on the boat when weather permits. We meet three or four times a year, and the rest is by letter.

We are interested in companies that can become good over a decade. We are unhelpful to companies that need to become valuable in eighteen months. We are useful mostly as a steady hand on the wheel and, occasionally, as the person who says the thing the founder already knows but has been avoiding.

Our fees are small, our checks are small, and our patience is the thing we mean to be known for.