Principal of the Gries Investment Funds

Robert Gries, Managing Member

In 2005, Mr. Gries formed Gries Investment Fund I, LLC. The Fund has an opportunistic approach but is focused on being a collateralized lender seeking to target strong borrowers who may be experiencing temporary liquidity needs. Investments, however, vary significantly from real estate to corporate opportunities as the Fund remains highly opportunistic.

Prior to forming Fund I, Mr. Gries originated transactions of a similar nature through a corporate entity, Sports Funding, Inc., and its related affiliates. Loans to various companies included professional sports franchises, such as the Tampa Bay Lightning and Orlando Predators, as well as numerous real estate transactions. Mr. Gries, is a Board Member and the second largest shareholder of the Orlando Predators and also serves on the Board of Directors of the Arena Football League.

Prior to forming Sports Funding, Mr. Gries was the managing partner of an entity which developed the 43,000 square foot WWE-New York entertainment facility in Times Square, New York. Mr. Gries oversaw the construction of the facility and negotiated the sale to the WWE in 2000.

Mr. Gries had previously been a General Partner with Beacon Sports Capital, an investment banking firm. Mr. Gries, formerly a director of the Cleveland Browns, assisted in the negotiation of the sale of his family’s 43% interest in the franchise in 1996. The Gries family was involved in professional football since the founding of the Cleveland franchise in 1936. He was the former owner, President and CEO of the Tampa Bay Storm, an Arena Football franchise, which he owned from 1991-1994.

Mr. Gries resides in Tampa, Florida with his eleven year old daughter, Zoe, who was adopted from Wuhan, China in 1999.