Why this boutique advisory firm prefers Fort Collins over the coasts

FORT COLLINS — A Northern Colorado firm is bringing the expertise of Wall Street to Main Street.

Fidelity Equity Partners LLC is a Fort Collins-based boutique advisory firm from Izzy Lozada and Chad Davidson. Fidelity’s services include helping companies prepare for their future and make the best decisions for their business going forward. The company is currently working with Ascent Solar Technologies Inc. (OTC: ASTI), Thornton, to help Ascent in its plans and efforts to drive shareholder value. Fidelity also works with companies like Black Hound Design Co. and Rare Channels Solutions LLC.

The company started with a fence: Lozada and Davidson were neighbors, and as their families became friends the two realized there was potential to work together. Davidson moved from Las Vegas to Fort Collins in 2012. Prior to moving here, he was working in public accounting. Lozada moved to Northern Colorado after working in New York. His background was in consulting and capital markets, but he grew tired of Wall Street institutions stacking terms in favor of their investors rather than the companies they were working with.

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“You look at the graveyard of startups,” he said, “the firms are like oyster suckers looking for a pearl. If they don’t find that pearl, they scoop out the meat — everything good about that business — and eat anyway.”

The two decided they could bring their business and financial backgrounds together to give high-quality advisory services but with a personal touch.

“I look back on my own parents running their own company,” Davidson said. “They didn’t get great advice because they didn’t have that jazzy appeal. If they had gotten better guidance along the way, they could have been three-, four-, 10-times better and adequately managed their business. They did a great job with what they had. But now I’m trying to find companies that are like my parents out in the world and give them the advice mine never got.”

Fidelity, formed in 2017, can help companies with their legacy planning, such as transitioning a family-owned business into who will take it over next. Fidelity also works with pre-revenue companies and startups; they run an incubator and accelerator program for startups all across the country.  Fidelity can help companies retool their message for investors, especially as markets can change and evolved.

“We love to Cinderella our opportunities,” Lozada said. “People might poo-poo an idea, but we can see there’s a lot there. A lot of times, companies don’t know how to deliver their message.”

While some might say living on the coasts is a better location to do this type of advisory work, Fidelity said they’re able to help businesses all over the country from Fort Collins. Lozada said being in Northern Colorado helps them.

“The West Coast Bay Area or East Coast Manhattan, Wall Street community: I think people can be very intimidated by those types of cultures,” he said. “We speak to clients all around the country and the world. A lot of folks don’t trust Wall Street people for some reason. We can still access that upper echelon but people working with us don’t feel condescended to.”

In fact, Davidson said without being in a city like Fort Collins, Fidelity Equity’s mission wouldn’t be possible.

“We can’t claim to bring Wall Street to Main Street and still live on Wall Street,” he said.