Greenleaf Unveils Integrated Advisory Platform for Middle-Market Clients

Greenleaf Capital Partners has launched Centered Partners, a new integrated advisory firm designed to deliver coordinated solutions across insurance, commercial real estate, capital markets and M&A for middle-market companies.

The St. Louis–based firm said the platform was created to address a longstanding gap in the advisory landscape, where business owners often rely on fragmented providers for risk management, financing and transaction execution.

“We built Centered Partners to be the firm we always wished existed as operators—one that understands how insurance, real estate, capital, and strategic transactions all connect inside a real business,” said Chip Smith, CEO of Centered Partners and Co-Founder of Greenleaf Capital Partners. “We’re also planning to build this for decades, not a quick flip.”

Centered Partners will initially focus on specialty industries including HVAC and residential services, manufacturing and distribution, portable sanitation and environmental services, construction and specialty trades, elevator and commercial field services, as well as private equity and financial services. Additional verticals are expected as the platform scales.

A defining feature of the firm is its commitment to broad-based employee ownership, aligning incentives across its advisory teams and clients.

The platform is backed by Greenleaf Capital Partners alongside a group of St. Louis-based entrepreneurs and operators, including Wayne Smith, David LaGrand and Dino Vainalis, bringing decades of middle-market experience.

Centered Partners has completed its initial capital raise and is actively pursuing growth through acquisitions, mergers and team expansion, as it looks to build a national advisory platform spanning multiple disciplines and geographies.