Tyler F. Sutliff
Managing Member and Founder
Tyler F. Sutliff is a Managing Member and Founder of EQ Capital Strategies, LLC. Austin, Texas-based EQ Capital provides sell-side advisory services to privately-held business owners, buy-side target identification for private equity funds and high net worth individuals, and management and sales consulting for businesses focused on growth. In providing advice to his clients, Tyler leverages his first-hand experience as an entrepreneur who has led start-ups and turnarounds, as well as acquisitions and dispositions.
Prior to founding EQ Capital, Tyler purchased Whisenant & Lyle Water Services (W&L) in Dripping Springs in 2013. W&L, a water drilling and pump service company, was founded in 1962; though at the time of the purchase, W&L was in the workout group of a regional bank and on the verge of bankruptcy. By streamlining operations, investing in equipment and developing a professional sales and marketing strategy, W&L returned to profitability in 30 days and doubled revenue over the next two years. In February of 2016, Tyler sold W&L to Hydro Resources, a middle market water drilling company with locations in Texas, Kansas, Colorado, Nevada and California.
In 2008, following an unsatisfying personal experience finding homecare for his grandfather, Tyler founded The Home Option. The Home Option, based in Austin, Texas, provided in-home care to seniors as an alternative to assisted living or skilled nursing facilities. Over a three-year period, The Home Option grew to the largest provider of private duty care in Central Texas. In 2011, Tyler sold the company to Harden Healthcare, a post-acute care provider that served 35,000 patients a day in 15 states. Under the Harden Healthcare banner, Tyler led the growth of the private duty business by opening new branches in Temple and Houston, Texas and Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
Tyler spent the first half of his career at a Wall Street firm working as an advisor to privately held business owners. In 1999, Tyler joined the Merrill Lynch Private Client Group in Memphis, Tennessee. In 2002, Tyler moved his practice to Austin, Texas and grew his business to $200 million in assets under management. As a financial advisor, Tyler helped his clients make investment, commercial banking and estate planning decisions. He also helped them evaluate sale and recapitalization strategies for their businesses through Merrill’s Private Sale and Referral Division, a network of regional and sector specific investment banks for middle market transactions. At the age of 27, he was the youngest Merrill Lynch Sales Manager in the country.
Tyler grew up in San Angelo and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Mississippi with a degree in International Business on a full academic scholarship. Tyler and his wife, Mandi, live in Austin with their three children: Jackson, Campbell and Lincoln. Tyler serves a member of the Resource Development Council for the H.E. Butt Foundation.
