We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Edward Crawford. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Edward below.

Edward, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

Coming up with the name for our business. Coltala – (Colt= Young Horse) and (Ala= Wing in Latin and Spanish)

My partner Ralph Manning and I wanted to start a business where we could invest with founders of existing companies and impact peoples lives through job creation, personal growth and increased profit.

We both have a deep faith and have a spiritual approach in what we do. Our purpose was to unlock the power of human potential. We call this our Mission and Margin approach.

Edward, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am passionate about unlocking the power of human potential in others and making an impact through service.

My first job was as a Peace Corps Volunteer where I started a coffee business in Dominican Republic that grew to over 300 members. I then worked in Post Katrina New Orleans as a Jones Scholar for Public Service at Tulane. I joined the Navy and served in Latin America and Afghanistan.After spending years at Goldman Sachs and in Private Equity Real estate I helped Co-Found Coltala Holdings with my Partner Ralph Manning.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

Ralph and I met through my sister-in-law. She thought we would be a good fit to work together. We had coffee together and started talking about dreams of starting a partnership together. He was attending HBS in Boston and I was attending MIT Sloan and we realized we both had a passion for continuous learning and improvement. This led us to found Coltala together and focus on our Coltala Enterprise System for Continuous Improvement. Ralph and I have very different backgrounds but we share the same values, passion and work ethic. Partnerships are never perfect or easy but we have a great partnership and enjoy working together.

Can you talk to us about your experience with buying businesses?

We acquired three companies at the same time from three different families in Texas to form the largest fitness equipment retailer in Texas. It was not easy to coordinate with three different sellers at the same time but due to the strong relationships we built we were able to overcome great odds and close all three transactions at the same time.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://coltala.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coltalaholdings/

Image Credits
1. Edward, Ralph Manning, Damon Baker, Jon Nauert 2. Coltala Team and Krista Manning and Mary Crawford