Team Bios

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Barrett Willich has extensive experience working with companies on strategic initiatives, capital raising, implementing day-to-day processes, and overseeing general operations. He has a unique mix of investing in companies and running companies, allowing him to navigate investors' needs with management's needs.  

Prior to co-founding Bear & Kenmore, Barrett was Vice President of Investments at a family office where he focused on investing in lower middle market businesses as well as sourcing alternative investments. His responsibilities included deal origination and execution, as well as assisting operating companies with strategic direction, operational improvements, and financing decisions.  In addition to the family office responsibilities, Barrett was the president of a debt collections agency, inside a portfolio company. 

Prior to the family office role, Barrett worked at a growth-equity focused private equity fund where he assisted with deal execution and operational improvements at portfolio companies. Earlier in his career, Barrett was an analyst in Robert W. Baird & Co.’s Healthcare & Business Services Investment Banking Group, where he worked with and advised middle-market corporate and private equity clients on M&A, debt, and equity transactions.

Barrett holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BS in Finance cum laude from Marquette University.

Barrett enjoys skiing, sailing, and sporting clay. 

Caitlin Tracey "CT" Willich has 12+ years of professional data analytics experience with an emphasis on serving Media and Entertainment companies. She focuses on providing strategic advisory, subject matter expertise, and coaching around full-lifecycle data and analytics methods and processes. She also advises on process improvements including change management, information delivery, augmented insights, organization, and helps drive alignment across key stakeholder groups and constituents. 

In addition to her client work, CT has led industry and technology practices at both boutique and large consultancies. She has presented at conferences, led numerous workshops, and published several articles on self-service adoption and balancing the art & science of hybrid teams.

CT has a passion for data visualization and UIUX design which stemmed from her first consulting project in Dubai, UAE where CT designed graphical cross-cultural training materials for one of the largest malls in the world. That passion has translated into the retail and fashion industry where CT advises small businesses in the US and abroad from customer experience to supply chain.

As a licensed real estate broker in Illinois, CT sits on an advisory board for a real estate analytics start-up and is well versed in both commercial and residential real estate analytics. 

She graduated from Michigan State University (Go Green!) and enjoys cycling, traveling, wine tasting, and sailing.