The blue economy, spanning marinas, shipyards, and marine services, anchors thousands of small, family-run businesses that sustain coastal communities. Yet many are reaching a crossroads as long-time owners near retirement and younger generations seek ways to modernize operations, attract investment, and better stick to new environmental requirements and expectations.
At that intersection stands Yuval Kadmon, founder of Blue Haven Equity, a search fund dedicated to acquiring and leading a single established company within the marine and maritime sector. His goal is to combine disciplined leadership with long-term ownership, an approach he's rooted in an investment model known as entrepreneurship through acquisition.
Tackling The Blue Economy
Blue Haven Equity aims to tackle the marine and maritime industries, particularly recreational boating, port services, and shipyards — sectors that form the foundation of the "blue economy." These businesses are essential to both commercial and recreational activity on U.S. waterways and remain a critical part of the nation's economic and environmental landscape.
The blue economy spans shipyards, marinas, boatbuilding, marine services, and the operators who support them, forming a broad ecosystem that stretches from small coastal communities to national supply chains. One of the country's most far-reaching economic engines, the U.S. marine economy contributed more than $476 billion to GDP and supported over 21.8 million jobs in 2022, according to NOAA.
Despite its scale, the industry is currently entering a pivotal transition. Many businesses are family-run and led by long-time owners approaching retirement, often after decades of prioritizing steadiness and predictable operations. As these owners begin considering succession, their companies face a choice between maintaining the status quo or finding new leadership equipped to guide them into their next phase of growth.
For Yuval Kadmon, that inflection point intersects with a deeply personal connection to the sector. After serving eight years as a naval officer, he saw firsthand the complexity and importance of the maritime world. "My entire professional foundation was built at sea," he explains, "leading crews, running operations, and working with complex maritime systems. That experience created a natural appreciation for how essential this industry is and how many businesses quietly keep the broader economy moving."
ETA: A People-Led Investment Model
Now, as founder of Blue Haven Equity, Kadmon is pursuing his search through a model known as ETA, or "entrepreneurship through acquisition," which gives an operator the chance to buy a healthy, existing business and step in as its next leader. Unlike traditional investing, the model centers on one person taking long-term responsibility for the company's day-to-day direction, focusing on steady growth rather than quick financial plays.
For investors, the model offers a way to generate more stable, operationally driven returns. A 2024 Stanford study found that 57% of search funds result in an acquisition, and nearly seven in 10 acquired companies generated positive returns. This model, if done well, can prove to be mutually beneficial, as searchers take personal responsibility for the companies they acquire, while investors back a long-term steward instead of a short-term trader.
The ETA model is also, Kadmon argues, particularly well-suited to the marine and maritime sector. Many businesses generate recurring revenue through maintenance cycles, service contracts, and subscription-based tools, while also benefiting from high customer retention and a fragmented market that rewards strategic consolidation, essentially offering the kind of financial profile that search funds are designed to support.
Operationally, the fit is just as strong. Many owners have built their companies over decades and rely on practical experience rather than formal systems, creating clear opportunities for modernization through software, analytics, and process improvements. Add in a regulatory landscape that creates high barriers to entry and strong customer stickiness, and the sector becomes a natural home for an operator committed to long-term stewardship.
Kadmon's Leadership Model
The kind of company Yuval Kadmon hopes to acquire through Blue Haven Equity is one that should reflect a clear set of fundamentals. He's looking for a business with recurring or repeat revenue, a loyal and pre-existing customer base, and a culture built around consistent quality. Just as important, he seeks a motivated seller who values continuity and wants the company's next chapter to be led with care rather than driven purely by price.
While his search centers on the marine and maritime sector, he remains open to different models within it. Ideal targets include boat or ship maintenance, marina or vessel management services, specialized marine operators, or software companies built around workflow and operations — but the core principles matter far more than the category.
Kadmon's leadership approach aims to be like that of an operator's mindset, focused on steady execution and clear, practical direction. He looks for opportunities where better financial controls, clearer pricing structures, or improved systems could support growth. He also expects to introduce modern scheduling tools, customer-management processes, or software solutions that would update how the business operates while giving employees better platforms to work from.
His maritime background would also inform how he evaluates safety, maintenance planning, and quality assurance, along with strengthening leadership teams so the business isn't overly dependent on one or two individuals.
"My goal isn't to push change for the sake of change. It's to bring modern tools, data, and operational discipline into companies that are already great at what they do," Kadmon explains. "I want Blue Haven Equity to be the type of steward that raises the bar for what well-run marine businesses can look like while preserving the things that make this industry special."
A New Investing Framework
Looking ahead, Kadmon sees entrepreneurship through acquisition as part of a larger shift in how capital interacts with legacy industries. The blue economy, he notes, is reaching a pivotal moment: demand for marine services, sustainability solutions, and vessel upkeep continues to rise, even as a generation of long-time owners prepares to retire.
Against that backdrop, he believes ETA's emphasis on steady stewardship is particularly well-suited to help strengthen established businesses and guide them through this transition toward more thoughtful, responsible growth — a direction he hopes to help advance.
"The blue economy is only getting bigger, and the ETA model gives entrepreneurs like me a chance to shape where it goes next," he says. "If I do this well, the impact won't be just financial. It will be measured in stronger companies, better jobs, and a healthier, more resilient maritime ecosystem."
For Yuval Kadmon, Blue Haven Equity is more than a search fund; it acts as a potential example of sustainable ownership in action. By linking operational leadership with long-term purpose, he hopes to show how investors and operators can support companies not just through capital, but through commitment. And in an expanding blue economy searching for its next generation of leaders, he sees that vision being tested and proven in the very companies he aims to guide into their next chapter.
