While many investment firms are struggling to raise capital, La Jolla-based Blueprint Equity pulled in $333 million in just 12 days by betting where others wouldn’t.
Blueprint Equity — founded in 2018 by Bobby Ocampo and Sheldon Lewis — deploys a “Goldilocks strategy” between high-risk venture capital and established growth equity.
“We try to have a strong pack of horses,” Ocampo said after announcing the $333 million raise in January.
Blueprint looks to invest in early-stage companies that have a proven track record and plenty of room to grow.
“We like where we play,” Ocampo said. “We can generate venture-like returns with private equity downside.”
Blueprint has invested in 24 companies and has reported only one loss. Most of the companies return four to five times on the investment, some up to 10 times.
There is no “special sauce,” Ocampo said. “We just want to be the best at what we’re doing, quietly do our job and raise funds in 12 days.”
Blueprint has garnered a global following for beating the market and paying off investors. It has performed so well that it had to turn investors away, a rarity these days.
Venture capitalists raised half what they did last year because, on aggregate, investors haven’t turned a profit since 2022, according to PitchBook.
“The joke from investors is like ‘Don’t take more money, but take more of mine,’” Ocampo said with a laugh.
Institutions and individuals alike are vying for room in Blueprint’s fund. Today, Blueprint has more than $600 million under management.
Sheldon Lewis and Bobby Ocampo’s office is at 1025 Prospect St. in La Jolla. (Blueprint Equity)
In his office at 1025 Prospect St. in La Jolla, Ocampo acknowledged that his investments — in business-to-business software — aren’t sexy. But they’re “very lucrative,” he said.
There’s nothing special about software specifically, but after years of developing contacts in that silo, it’s become Blueprint’s specialty, Ocampo said. “I’m not smart enough to start investing in biotechs,” he added.
Though the firm is based in San Diego, it doesn’t have any of its investments here, though Blueprint is looking locally for its next round.
Blueprint has just under two dozen employees, including eight new hires last year. “They make a lot of calls” as they hunt for companies to invest in, Ocampo said.
When investing in a company, Blueprint looks for $1 million to $7 million in annual revenue, over 75% growth year over year, and a founder with “celebrity status” in the particular industry.
“All of our founders look the same,” Ocampo said. “He or she has been in the industry for five to 20 years. They are solving a problem that they witnessed firsthand in their industry. They tend to be very product-led and they have this unique insight about the category that no one else has.”
Oh, and the company has to be monogamous. Blueprint doesn’t want its companies to have any other investors to answer to.
Blueprint generates most of its returns through secondary sales — buying early-stage companies, growing their revenue to $10 million to $15 million, then selling them to larger investment firms.
“The later stage of growth equity is very well-traveled,” Ocampo said, making it almost a guaranteed sale once a company hits that revenue range. “It’s why we exist.”
Blueprint’s first fund raised $75 million and has deployed a majority of its capital, producing returns on the north side of 400%. The second fund has yet to deploy much of its capital, and the latest fund just closed $333 million.
For more information, visit onblueprint.com. ♦