Fountain Square Industries

Fountain Square Industries, LLC is a private investment firm providing transformational capital to mid-market companies.

Founder Biography

Joseph D. Thomas is the Founder of Fountain Square Industries, LLC ("Fountain Square"). Prior to founding Fountain Square, Joe was a Principal and part of the General Partnership Group with Svoboda Capital Partners, a leading, Chicago-based private equity firm with more than $400 million of capital under management. While at Svoboda, Joe was active within the firm’s value-added distribution and industrial services practice, responsible for sourcing and evaluating potential investments, leading due diligence, structuring and negotiating transactions, and managing portfolio companies. In addition to direct investment underwriting and management, Joe has unique experience structuring funds and professionally advising family offices on their private equity investments.

During his time at Svoboda Capital Partners, Joe closed over 20 transactions across two private equity funds representing equity investments of over $200 million that included investing on behalf of – and alongside – some of America’s wealthiest families. At the time Joe left Svoboda Capital, he managed an active portfolio of four companies with a combined employee count of over 1,500 and EBITDA of over $50 million. Prior to joining Svoboda Capital Partners, Joe was an investment banker in Chicago, where he specialized in mergers and acquisitions.

Joe earned a B.S. degree in finance from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. In July 2013, Joe was appointed to the business school’s Investment Banking Network Advisory Council (“IBNAC”), a faculty and alumni selected board that provides governance and strategic direction to the investment banking and private equity programs at the Kelley School.

Active & Past Boards

  • Border Construction Specialties – Phoenix, AZ

  • Databank IMX – Philadelphia, PA

  • GPA Substrates – Chicago, IL

  • Hermosa Capital Management – Cincinnati, OH

  • Infinite Packaging Group – Dallas, TX

  • IU’s Kelley School of Business (IBNAC) – Bloomington, IN

  • Reliable Parts – Dallas, TX

  • Whiskey Riff - Nashville, TN

  • Sticker Ranch - San Antonio, TX