PE Impact Report
83 brands. 49 firms. Here’s what the data looks like.
By Ownership Status
Active PE ownership with documented consumer impact
PE-owned but no visible consumer harm yet
PE firm has exited; effects linger
Acquired by a non-PE corporation
By Sector
Which sectors we’ve covered most in our database.
Biggest Portfolios
The PE firms with the most consumer brands in our database. Major firms own far more than what we’ve documented.
Controls 90,000+ locations across Subway, Dunkin', Arby's, and a dozen more brands — the restaurant empire you didn't know existed.
Over $1 trillion under their control. Hotels, hospitals, housing — if it's essential, Blackstone has probably bought it and found a way to charge you more for it.
The firm that saddled Toys R Us with $5 billion in debt — and wrote the playbook every other PE firm copied.
From steakhouses to radio empires, Bain's “turnarounds” occasionally turn around — and occasionally turn into $20 billion bankruptcies.
Your dental chain, your gym, your craft store, and your car wash — all connected by one firm you've never heard of.
Terminix, Safelite, David's Bridal — one of the oldest PE firms in the game, with decades of practice buying the services you depend on.
Staples, Walgreens, Hot Topic — collecting struggling retailers like they're going out of style. Because they are.
Named after the three-headed dog guarding hell — which tracks, given what they did to your grocery prices at Safeway.
Small firm, big appetite for restaurant chains that end up in bankruptcy court.
Saddled PetSmart with billions in debt, spun off Chewy to pay for it, and spent a decade looking for the exit.
About This Data
This is an editorially curated database. Companies were selected based on documented consumer impact, not random sampling — sector and year distributions reflect our coverage choices, not the full PE universe.
Journalists, researchers, and advocates are welcome to reference this data. Please use the following citation:
This data is updated regularly as new companies are added and existing entries are verified. For questions or corrections, contact us.