Meet Our Team
Our team brings together complementary experience across investment banking, finance, and the food, beverage, and agricultural industries.
Erik Einwalter
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Erik Einwalter is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Westerra Capital, where he advises leading companies and investors across the Food, Beverage & Agribusiness sector on mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, and strategic initiatives.
Erik has spent his investment banking career focused on the food and beverage supply chain, advising founder- and family-owned businesses, private equity firms, and strategic companies on complex transactions. His experience spans the sector, with particular emphasis in segments of ingredients, manufacturing and branded food and beverage.
Prior to founding Westerra, Erik was a senior member of Cascadia Capital’s Food, Beverage & Agribusiness practice, where he helped build one of the most active middle-market advisory practices in the sector. Throughout his career, Erik has developed a reputation for combining deep industry knowledge with a practical, highly engaged approach to advising business owners and management teams through transformational transactions.
At Westerra, Erik is focused on building a differentiated investment banking platform dedicated to the companies that feed the world, bringing senior-level attention, sector expertise, and institutional-quality execution to every engagement.
Scott Porter
Co-Founder & Managing Partner
Scott Porter is Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Westerra Capital, where he advises leading companies and investors across the Food, Beverage & Agribusiness sector on mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, and strategic initiatives.
Scott has spent his entire career focused on the food and beverage supply chain, advising founder- and family-owned businesses, private equity firms, and strategic companies on complex transactions. His experience spans the sector, with particular emphasis in segments of agriculture inputs, animal health & wellness, agtech, production ag, primary process, ingredients,
among others.
Prior to founding Westerra, Scott was a senior member of Cascadia Capital’s Food, Beverage & Agribusiness practice, where he helped build one of the most active middle-market advisory practices in the sector and also served on the firm’s Operating Committee. Scott previously worked in banking serving food, beverage & agribusiness companies at Moss Adams Capital (now Baker Tilly Capital) and Wells Fargo. Scott began his career in the Philadelphia Phillies finance department.
Scott takes a highly involved, relationship-driven approach to investment banking, working closely with clients to understand their businesses, objectives, and long-term priorities. He founded Westerra with the belief that clients should not have to choose between the senior-level attention of a boutique and the capabilities, resources, industry focus and execution standards of a larger investment bank. In his free time, Scott enjoys spending time with his wife and four children, as well as playing basketball, golfing and travelling.
Owen Baldrica
Managing Director
Owen Baldrica is a Managing Director at Westerra Capital, where he works with companies and investors across food, beverage, and agribusiness on M&A, capital raises, and broader strategic decisions.
Owen brings over a decade of investment banking experience concentrated in the food and agriculture value chain. He has worked across a range of sub-sectors, with the deepest experience in ingredients, distribution, branded food, and ag inputs. He has advised owners, sponsors, and strategics through transactions that often carry as much personal weight as
financial complexity.
Owen joined Westerra from Cascadia Capital, where he was a member of the firm’s Food, Beverage & Agribusiness team. Before that, he spent several years at Lazard, where he built the transaction experience and technical grounding that now shape how he approaches client work.
At Westerra, Owen is focused on applying that cross-sector depth, from inputs through finished, branded products, to help clients across the food and agriculture ecosystem navigate pivotal transactions.
Ryder Thomas
Director
Ryder Thomas is a Director at Westerra Capital, where he advises companies and investors across the Food, Beverage, and Agribusiness sector on mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, and strategic initiatives.
Ryder has spent the last decade of his career focused exclusively on advising clients and executing transactions across the Food, Beverage, and Agribusiness value chain. His experience includes a particular emphasis on companies in the ingredients, manufacturing, distribution, and branded
CPG segments across a broad range of verticals.
Prior to joining Westerra, Ryder was a senior member of the Food, Beverage, and Agribusiness team at Cascadia Capital.
At Westerra, Ryder is focused on providing clients with senior-level attention, thoughtful guidance informed by deep industry expertise, and best-in-class transaction execution.
In his free time, Ryder enjoys spending time with his wife and one-year-old daughter, as well as fly-fishing, surfing, cycling, running, and skiing.
Ed Aintablian
Vice President Business Development
Ed Aintablian is a Vice President of Business Development at Westerra Capital, where he leads the firm’s Buy-Side Search practice. In this role, Ed oversees the execution of buy-side search mandates for leading private equity firms and strategic acquirers, helping develop acquisition strategies, evaluate proprietary platform and add-on opportunities, and drive origination efforts across the food, beverage, and agribusiness sectors.
Beyond leading the Buy-Side Search practice, Ed is actively involved in driving Westerra’s broader growth initiatives, developing new client relationships and originating opportunities for the firm’s sell-side advisory
practice.
Prior to joining Westerra, Ed was a Senior Associate at CriticalPoint, where he supported private equity clients, independent sponsors and strategic acquirers on targeted acquisition searches and proprietary sourcing
initiatives.
Ed holds a bachelor’s degree from Southern Methodist University.
Outside of work, Ed enjoys traveling, watersports, staying active, and spending time outdoors.
Michael Colangelo
Associate
Michael Colangelo is an Associate at Westerra Capital, responsible for transaction execution across M&A and capital advisory transactions. Prior to joining Westerra, Michael was an Associate at Cascadia Capital in the Food, Beverage, and Agribusiness group.
Michael earned a B.A. in Economics and an M.A. in Finance from Claremont McKenna College’s Robert Day School of Economics and Finance.
In his free time, Michael enjoys cooking, golfing, and spending time with family and friends.
Adain Madoff
Analyst
Aidan Madoff is a Senior Analyst at Westerra Capital, responsible for transaction execution across M&A and capital advisory transactions. Prior to joining Westerra, Aidan was an Analyst at Cascadia Capital in the Debt Capital Markets group.
Aidan earned a B.B.A. in Finance from the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business.
In his free time, Aidan enjoys spending time with family and friends, watching college football, trying new restaurants, and golfing
Ava Turner
Analyst
Ava Turner is an Analyst at Westerra Capital, supporting the firm’s M&A advisory activities across the food, beverage, and agriculture sectors. Prior to joining Westerra, Ava gained sector investment experience at AGR Partners, a private equity firm investing across the food and agriculture value chain. Ava holds an M.S. in Finance from the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School and a B.S. in Economics and Environmental Science from Franklin & Marshall College.
In her free time, Ava enjoys staying active, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.
Abai Houser
Analyst
Abai Houser is an Analyst at Westerra Capital, an investment banking firm focused exclusively on the food, beverage, and agribusiness sectors. Abai is responsible for conducting due diligence on prospective transactions and supporting deal execution for the firm’s M&A advisory and capital raising engagements.
Prior to joining Westerra as an Analyst, Abai gained experience in corporate development at Amazon, as well as a role as an Alternative Investment Analyst at Russell Investments.
Abai received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics with a minor in Leadership Studies from Claremont McKenna College.
Cheska Lao
Research Analyst
Cheska Lao is a Research Analyst at Westerra Capital, where she leads the research execution for the firm’s business development and buy-side search functions. She works closely with the team to translate client investment theses into focused origination strategies, leading the research process from kick-off through market mapping, target identification, qualification, and outreach preparation.
Beyond individual mandates, Cheska helps shape Westerra’s broader research function by refining search strategies, developing research frameworks, and delivering research-driven recommendations that help guide the team’s approach across searches.
Prior to joining Westerra, Cheska was an M&A Analyst at Oasis Partners, where she supported sell-side mandates through transaction research, buyer identification, outreach preparation, and the development of customized pitch materials for prospective clients.
Cheska holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Santo Tomas.
Outside of work, Cheska enjoys staying active, swimming, and spending time by the ocean.