About

WHO WE ARE —

THE MISSING LINK

Legacy Group is a leading investment firm in Latin America with a strict focus on high-quality LATAM businesses for international high-net-worth & accredited investors that can produce outsized returns.

With over $65 million of investment under management, our mission is to continue to build and source a concentrated portfolio of disruptive businesses for our clients through our on-the-ground experience that can quickly become market leaders in underinvested yet macroeconomically significant industries in Latin America.

OUR VALUES —

INVESTMENT RETURNS & meaningful IMPACT

We believe that we can, and must, generate both compelling investment returns for our investors as well as positive social and environmental impact for all stakeholders in the business. At Legacy Group, we leverage the power of capitalism and business creation to serve others as a force for greater good.

Cole and Adam with the GCC management team testing the company's coffee vs. other top brands
Cole and Adam with the GCC management team testing the company's coffee vs. other top brands
A PolygonUs artist works on a new video game character for one of their clients
A PolygonUs artist works on a new video game character for one of their clients
The women from GCC's wet mill team stop for a photo on picture day
The women from GCC's wet mill team stop for a photo on picture day
Alejandro, one of the teachers for the Academy, explains a component of 3-D art design in a video to students
Alejandro, one of the teachers for the Academy, explains a component of 3-D art design in a video to students

OUR VALUES —

INVESTMENT RETURNS & meaningful IMPACT

We believe that we can, and must, generate both compelling investment returns for our investors as well as positive social and environmental impact for all stakeholders in the business. At Legacy Group, we leverage the power of capitalism and business creation to serve others as a force for greater good.

Interior design work of PolygonUs, a Legacy Group portfolio company
Interior design work of PolygonUs, a Legacy Group portfolio company
An investor expedition to coffee farms of The Green Coffee Company, a Legacy portfolio company
An investor expedition to coffee farms of The Green Coffee Company, a Legacy portfolio company
The Academy, a Legacy Group portfolio company, creating new e-learning content
The Academy, a Legacy Group portfolio company, creating new e-learning content

OUR IMPACT STRATEGY

1

PLANET

Transform and redevelop business processes in agriculture, technology and our industries to drive a more efficient, circular, and low-waste economy.

2

PEOPLE

Empower all people who help bring our products to market to thrive at work, at home, and in their communities. Embed education and employee well-being in everything that we do.

3

COMMUNITY

Improve our local communities by providing families with educational support and economic opportunities. Enhance the vitality and resilience of these communities.

OUR TEAM —

FINANCIAL PROFESSIONALS IN DEVELOPING MARKETS

Our team is made up of professionals with strong backgrounds in private equity, investment banking, asset management, real estate, agriculture and international law. Everybody shares in our vision that capitalism can be a force for lifting up communities, preserving our environment, and creating long-term value for all investors and stakeholders.

1

COLE SHEPHARD

Partner

2

ADAM JASON

Partner

7

ROBBY KUSTER

Vice President

chris-kelly

CHRIS KELLY

Senior Advisor

INVESTMENT CRITERIA —

MEASURABLE IMPACT

It isn’t good enough to simply say that our businesses and investments have an impact. We use the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals as the framework for our investments and directly measure our impact using IRIS metrics in order to provide clearly-defined goals.

ADDED VALUE

Our team identifies previously overlooked opportunities for targeted investments that show the greatest growth potential in which our experience most effectively suits the work needed.

COLLABORATION

We look for companies that present fantastic opportunities to synergize with existing businesses. By creating an ecosystem of smart, motivated business leaders, our portfolio companies have been able to efficiently confront each other’s challenges, from software development to capital-raising.

HOW WE CHOOSE OUR INVESTMENTS —

INDUSTRIES THAT VALUE IMPACT

IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES

BUSINESS MODEL CREATION

IMPACT ASSESSMENT

THE
BUSINESS
MODEL

Choose an industry where key stakeholders are already
environmentally and socially-responsible. These stakeholders
can be our suppliers, client and investors.

Using traditional capitalistic theory; pinpointing opportunities that our
management team is uniquely positioned to tackle.

Formulate a specific business model and thesis based on the relevant factors
for the identified opportunity.

After identifying the economic opportunity, we do a full review of the tangible and
intangible impact the business model and assets have on relevant stakeholders.

Make strategic adjustments to the business model to target specific qualitative and
quantitative goals that have the clearest impact on stakeholders. These adjustments should
also add value by improving the overall economic, environmental and social sustainability of
the business.

INDUSTRIES THAT VALUE IMPACT

Choose an industry where key stakeholders already environmentally and socially responsible. These stakeholders can be our suppliers, investors etc.

IDENTIFY OPPORTUNITIES

Using traditional capitalistic theory; pinpointing opportunities that our management team is uniquely positioned to tackle.

BUSINESS MODEL CREATION

Formulate a specific business model and thesis based on the relevant factors for the identified opportunity.

IMPACT assessment

After identifying the economic opportunity, we do a full review of the tangible and intangible impact the business model and assets have on relevant stakeholders.

THE BUSINESS MODEL

Make strategic adjustments to the business model to target specific quantitative and quantitative goals tha have the clearest impact on stakeholders. These adjustments should also add value by improving the overall economic, environmental and social sustainability of the business.
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COLE SHEPHARD

Partner

Cole currently serves as a Partner of Legacy Group, an alternative asset manager that targets profitable investment opportunities with high social and environmental impact in the U.S. to LATAM. Legacy Group’s mission is to bridge the gap between financial capital and promising investment opportunities with a hope to build a new community of investors, market-leading companies and workers that will leave behind a legacy for generations to come. Since inception in 2015, Legacy Group has successfully placed capital and provided advisory services to companies operating within the following industries: real estate & hospitality, agriculture, arts & technology, and education.

 

Prior to forming Legacy Group in early 2015, Cole spent the previous eight years working for a global professional services firm (PricewaterhouseCoopers) specializing in accounting, advisory and consulting solutions. During Cole’s tenure with the firm, he was stationed in the United States, Bermuda, Hong Kong SAR and Beijing, China.

 

While working in the United States and Bermuda, Cole primarily focused on accounting and advisory services to clients in industries spanning oil extraction and distribution, healthcare, banking, private equity, hedge funds, offshore trusts, and biotechnology. For nearly four years, Cole was located in Asia providing advisory and consulting services to clients participating in global mergers and acquisition activities. Here, Cole concentrated on the financial services and real estate sectors and spent a majority of his time advising on cross-border deals in the areas of business strategy review, business valuation, buyer and seller due diligence, tax structuring and business carve-out analysis. Cole’s deal experience has included transactions around the globe with deal sizes into the billions of USD.

 

Cole graduated Valedictorian from North Carolina State University in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance, to which he earned his master’s in accounting from the same university the following year. Cole became a licensed United States Certified Public Accountant in 2008.

ADAM JASON

Partner

Adam Jason is a Partner of Legacy Group. Adam joined Legacy Group in 2017 after eight years practicing law in the United States. He specializes in corporate finance, corporate governance, securities regulation and international business transactions, having advised companies and investment banks on initial public offerings (IPOs) and offerings of debt and equity securities exceeding an aggregate of $10 billion. After graduating from law school, Adam worked for two international law firms, Jones Day and then Vinson & Elkins LLP. He has advised the world’s leading investment banks, including, among others, JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, Citibank and Goldman Sachs. Adam has also served as outside counsel for some of the world’s most recognizable brands, such as The Sherwin-Williams Company, R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, Procter & Gamble, Macy’s and Yeti Coolers.


Originally from Buffalo, New York, Adam has a Bachelor’s Degree from Ithaca College, and a Juris Doctorate from New York Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude, served as an editor for the New York Law School Law Review and, for two years, interned with The Honorable Paul A. Crotty, United States District Court Judge for the Southern District of New York.

ROBBY KUSTER

Vice President

Robby Kuster is a Vice President at Legacy Group, responsible for supporting portfolio companies with their corporate strategy, impact strategy, financial projections, and financial analysis. Robby received his MBA from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University. Prior to his MBA, Robby worked for Legacy Group as a senior investment associate supporting deals between 5-50 million in Colombia and Puerto Rico. Additionally, Robby has worked extensively in the region to support micro entrepreneurs as they develop and fund their businesses.

CHRIS KELLY

Senior Advisor

Chris Kelly serves as a Senior Advisor to Legacy Group and the Green Coffee Company. He is a Partner with Jones Day, one of the world’s largest and most recognized law firms. Chris has repeatedly been named one of “America’s Leading Lawyers for Business” by Chambers USA and has been consistently selected for inclusion in the annual Best Lawyers in America guide. Chris brings to Legacy Group and GCC over 30 years of experience, having represented The J.M. Smucker Company, Goldman Sachs, KeyCorp, Jefferies, National Fuel Gas, KeyBanc Capital Markets, Olympic Steel, Owens Corning, and TransDigm Group, among other Fortune 500 clients and large financial institutions, in corporate transactions throughout his career. Chris has a Bachelor´s Degree from Canisius College, where he graduated summa cum laude, and a Juris Doctorate from Duke University, where he graduated with honors. 


Chris’ background will make him an integral part of executing on the company’s ambitious plans in M&A, capital markets transactions and business strategy for the years to come.

Investment News & Opportunities
Stay up-to-date on investment news and opportunities in our portfolio companies.



Accredited investors are generally defined as individuals with annual income in excess of $200,000 ($300,000 with spouse) or over $1,000,000 (alone or with spouse) in net worth.

Jesus Reyes

Vice President, Capital Raising

Economist by trade, spent 15 years working for HSBC in a multitude of capacities in its Private Wealth, Credit Risk Management and Investment Banking divisions. Furthermore, Jesus worked for the bank in multiple countries. Prior to leaving HSBC, Jesus was the Global Account Owner of the bank’s relationship with the world’s largest accounting and consulting firms.


Upon leaving Wall Street, Jesus joined a boutique Medical Group in Beverly Hills, as CEO, with the primary goal of leading the team through a process of corporate transformation from a small enterprise to a corporation able to navigate the terrain of bringing in Private Investors and expand into new markets: New York, Orange County, Chicago and San Diego.


In addition to extensive professional experience, Jesus holds degrees in Economics (BA – St Mary’s University, and MA – Fordham University) and Finance (MS – University of Rochester).

DUSTIN BALDWIN

Vice President, Business Development

After multiple combat tours with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves and obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and Real Estate from the University of Florida, Dustin took a position in corporate finance with Lockheed Martin, followed shortly by obtaining his Series 7 and 66 certifications as a Financial Advisor at Edward Jones. Looking for an opportunity to implement his leadership earned in the Marine Corps and entrepreneurial desire, Dustin decided to leave the corporate environment and joined a family-owned private prisoner transportation start-up, while also investing in real estate. Over the next several years, Dustin became a partner in the company, moved into the role of Executive Director and helped grow the company through strategic relationships, winning large government contracts, and helping foster several mergers, ultimately getting the business to a successful sale. After obtaining his MBA in Real Estate from Florida State University in 2020, Dustin continued to invest in real estate, taking a specific interest in land acquisition and development to create equity and cash flow opportunities. Additionally, he was involved with several start-ups and became one of the largest investors in The Green Coffee Company, a Legacy Group portfolio company. After getting boots-on-the-ground with his Green Coffee Company investment in Colombia, Dustin saw an opportunity to become more than just a passive shareholder and joined Legacy Group as the VP of Business Development in June 2022.

 

Dustin has earned a reputation for his genuine leadership style, adaptive problem-solving skills, ability to forge authentic relationships, and being a fast-moving action-taker across multiple industries. His fluidity and adaptive results-oriented mindset makes Dustin an excellent addition to Legacy Group as our VP of Business Development.

 

Dustin lives in St. Petersburg, Florida with his wife Jenny and their German Shepherd, Kimber. Going on 18-years in the USMC, Dustin will retire after 20 years and continue to focus on adding value to Legacy Group Stakeholders.