Mr. Freeman is a General Partner of Freeman Spogli & Co., a private equity firm formed in 1983 with offices in Los Angeles and New York devoted exclusively to investing together with management in growing companies. Since its founding, Freeman Spogli & Co. has organized the acquisition of 42 companies with aggregate transaction values in excess of $16 billion.
Mr. Freeman received his AB degree, with distinction, in economics from Stanford University in 1964 and his MBA from Harvard Business School in 1966. Upon graduation, he began his investment banking career with Dean Witter Reynolds Inc. in Los Angeles. From 1975 to 1976, he ran the firm’s international operations in London. In 1976, he returned to Los Angeles and became managing director of the firm’s southern division corporate department and a member of the board of directors of the firm.
Born and raised in Fargo, North Dakota, Mr. Freeman attended Stanford on a football scholarship. He is currently a Board member of Edison International (Southern California Edison) and CB Richard Ellis. Besides his business activities, he serves on the Boards of Trustees of The Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, The Center for the Study of the Presidency in Washington, DC, USC Annenberg School for Communication in Los Angeles, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Foundation in Indianapolis and served as Trustee of Stanford University from 1995 - 2005.
His daughter, Lisa Baskin, graduated from Skidmore College in 1998 and is currently married and living in Los Angeles with her husband and four young children.
