Meet the Team

Jeff is Founder and Managing Partner of Hargett Hunter…and has done an awful lot of eating and drinking in his twenty-five-plus-years of experience as an investor and banking professional serving the middle market.

Before launching Hargett Hunter in 2015, Jeff helped drive the investment strategy of Morehead Capital, a single-LP private investment company whose restaurant holdings included Chop’t Creative Salad (New York) and Hash House A Go Go, (Las Vegas).  Prior to Morehead, Jeff played roles in executing. managing, and monitoring more than $2 billion of debt financings across multinational, beverage, franchised, and restaurant platforms at JPMorgan Securities, First Union Corporation, Bank of America, and GE Capital Franchise Finance.

Jeff was awarded an MBA from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill (’01) and a BA from NC State University’s Poole College of Management (’93).  He currently serves on the Board of Directors for NC State’s $2.0+ billion endowment, a role that followed a twelve year stint on the Poole College of Management’s Board of Advisors.

When Jeff isn’t working, he’s probably watching his Wolfpack or spending time relaxing with his family at home or the beach – or maybe both!  In whatever spare time remains, Jeff is repeatedly attempting (and failing) to recreate his Grandma Tiny’s Crab Stew. One of these days, it will happen!

Brian has spent his career investing in and operating food and beverage companies.  While serving as President and Chief Financial Officer of Southern Season, Brian helped the specialty food market, restaurant and cooking school operation grow from a one-store retailer to a multi-state brand opening over 110,000 square feet of retail space and growing to over 800 employees.   As a partner with private equity firm Carrboro Capital, Brian led the group’s strategy of owning and operating companies in the food and beverage and consumer retail space.

Prior to Carrboro Capital, Brian was with Falfurrias Capital Partners, a middle market private equity firm founded by Hugh McColl and Marc Oken, former CEO and CFO of Bank of America.  There he managed investments in companies totaling over $275M in enterprise value including Bojangles’, an operator and franchisor of quick service restaurants currently generating over $1 billion in annual system-wide sales.

Mr. Fauver co-founded the Share the Food Foundation in 2012, a non-profit with a mission to fight hunger and hunger related issues.  He’s spoken at food industry conferences such as the Specialty Food Association’s Fancy Food Show.  Brian began his career in investment banking with SunTrust Robinson Humphrey and received both his Bachelor’s and MBA degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Brian is extremely proud of his family, including his wife and two daughters.  While an active athlete in his youth, the only trophy he still displays for all to see is the one he received in 2013 as champion of his neighborhood’s chili cook-off.

George joined Hargett Hunter in 2021 from Wells Fargo Securities, where he spent six years in the Consumer & Retail investment banking group advising clients on M&A and capital raising transactions. While at Wells Fargo, George executed numerous equity and debt transactions in the restaurant industry helping to raise over $20 billion for both public and private companies. He previously worked at a regional investment bank in debt capital markets and at a hedge fund specializing in fixed income securities and credit derivatives.

George holds an MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia and a B.A. in Economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

George grew up in the restaurant industry and serves as a Special Advisor to the Board for Village Tavern, Inc. When he isn’t working, he enjoys spending time with his wife, daughter and goldendoodle, playing golf and grilling steaks.

Paul brings extensive experience in the restaurant industry, combining his professional expertise with a personal passion for cooking. He has staged with award-winnings chefs across the South, including Adam Evans (Automatic Seafood), Cheetie Kumar (Ajja), Jeremiah Langhorne (The Dabney), and Rob McDaniel (Helen). At Hargett Hunter, he applies his hands-on experience to guide strategic investments in restaurant brands.

Before joining Hargett Hunter, Paul worked as an Investment Banking Associate at Bank of America on the New York Consumer & Retail team, working with restaurants, franchisees, CPG, and apparel companies. His deal experience includes facilitating acquisitions of large U.S. restaurant franchisees, IPOs, and private capital raises for prominent restaurant chains, including True Food Kitchen. Prior to that, Paul held roles at NCR Corporation, where he managed the company’s free cash flow, and The Coca Cola Company, where he focused on financial analytics for supplier negotiations.

Paul holds an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, where he was Co-President of the Finance Club and a two-time Iron Chef Champion, and a dual degree in Industrial Engineering and Finance from Georgia Tech. Outside of work, Paul enjoys spending time with his wife, Ellie, and dog, George. He works in restaurant kitchens as often as possible, cooks for increasingly large dinner parties, and loves fly fishing and snow skiing. His passion for the restaurant industry and financial expertise uniquely position him within the private equity space, where he is dedicated to helping restaurant businesses grow.

Matt joined Hargett Hunter post MBA where he focused on finance, strategy, and entrepreneurship. He began his career as a strategy & operations consultant at Deloitte and has most recently spent time as a fractional CFO advising small and medium businesses. He began his journey into food and beverage as part of the FP&A team at P.F. Chang’s where he focused on driving restaurant optimization with focus on labor, pricing, and delivery. Matt holds an MBA from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University and received his BS in both Finance and Physics from Elon University. He is a published scientific author as a result of his nanoparticle research done while at Elon. In his free time, Matt enjoys a variety of outdoor activities – particularly golf and anything on the water. He has an adventurous palate having spent time in Shanghai growing up, and although he loves trying new foods, he returns often to his favorites of BBQ and breakfast (which you will find him often eating for dinner)!

Tiffany joined Hargett Hunter in March 2024 from Atlantic Investment Management where she spent three years focusing on investor relations, office management as well as being an executive assistant to the CEO. While she was in New York City her love for food and restaurants grew immensely and has a keen interest in finding cuisines that tingle your taste buds.

Prior to 2021, Tiffany held roles at Dore Partnership as a search coordinator and assisted with human resources responsibilities, and Greycroft Venture Capital, where she worked as an office coordinator and executive assistant. Tiffany holds a BS from Sacred Heart University in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Outside of work, Tiffany and her fiancé, Alex are planning a 2025 wedding in NC. She enjoys exploring new cities and restaurants to find the best of the best!

Mr. Imamoto is a high energy, values-based leader that has transformed companies and cultures in the Food Service, Consumer Products, Manufacturing, Entertainment, Healthcare, Technology, Aerospace, Not For Profit and Financial Services industries. Over the past 30+ years, he has successfully turned around businesses from distressed to start-up and growth phase companies while securing ample funding to build globally recognized brands. Mr. Imamoto is a C-Suite, hands-on global operator, experienced in leading and developing teams in multiple countries while executing strategic plans with operating budgets exceeding $100 million.

Currently, Mr. Imamoto is the CEO and Founder of ONO Solutions, a business consulting firm specializing in advisory consultation primarily related to increasing enterprise value through strategy development and financial turnarounds. Outside of helping with Hargett Hunter portfolio companies, Won’t Stop Hospitality and Bacari, Mr. Imamoto is a board advisor for Sun Noodle (Retail/Manufacturer), Urban-Genesis (Real Estate Development & Construction), Vector Accelerator (NFP/Military) and a founder of YouSchool (Education).

Prior to ONO Solutions, he was the CEO for Marugame Udon creating enterprise value that generated a 50% IRR. He also led the successful turnaround for Pieology Pizzeria prior to Marugame Udon, returning the company to profitability within one year.

Prior experience in other industries included; COO for PatientSafe Solutions, a near bankrupt healthcare IT re-start that within one year sold $22 million in hospital contracts, closed $30 million in fresh capital, and launched the world’s first smart device designed for direct patient care where the company was named one of the Wall Street Journal’s Top 50 Venture-Backed Companies and Highland Capital Management, L.P., a $14 billion AUM industry leading alternative debt financial services firm, where he was responsible for leading the Private Equity strategy initiatives within the healthcare and consumer products platforms.

Mr. Imamoto received a Bachelor’s degree in Economics/Business from the University of California at Los Angeles and is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of California.

Gregg is the father of sixteen year old twins…a boy and a girl. His family also rescues senior Jack Russell Terriers. If he’s not helping advise businesses, he’s usually at the repair shop or visiting the veterinarian with a cup of coffee. If there’s free time, he enjoys surfing, because neither his kids nor the dogs like to wake up early!

Mike O’Malley serves as Executive Director and Interim Faculty Director of the Notre Dame Fitzgerald Institute for Real Estate. In addition, Mike is an Associate Professor of the Practice at Notre Dame, teaching courses focused on real estate private equity and investment.

Prior to Notre Dame, Mike was a Senior Principal at Pennybacker Capital, a real estate private equity firm headquartered in Austin, Texas. Mike served as the firm’s COO, CFO, and CCO and led the Capital Formation team’s efforts to develop and foster relationships with the firm’s existing and prospective limited partners, and was a member of the firm’s Investment Committee for 15 years. Mike was instrumental in designing and directing the firm’s operational, commercial, and financial strategies as the firm grew from start-up to a multi-strategy investment manager with over $4 billion in assets under management.

Prior to Pennybacker, Mike served as COO and CFO of VisionWeb, also leading its business development initiatives. Under his leadership, the firm closed six private equity placements and grew from fledgling status to a global services provider with over 400 partner affiliations. Early in his career, Mike was an auditor with Price Waterhouse and later a financial restructuring consultant with Ernst & Young Capital Advisors, now Macquarie Capital USA.

Mike graduated cum laude with degrees in Accountancy and Computer Applications from the University of Notre Dame, received an MBA with highest honors from McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas, and is a Certified Public Accountant. He is a member of the Pension Real Estate Association and serves on investment committees and boards for several not-for-profit and philanthropic organizations.