About Forterra Investment Management
I started writing this commentary for a simple reason. Clear writing leads to clear thinking. Distilling ideas and articulating them for clients and friends of the firm sharpens my thinking. Having a long-term perspective, developing a contrarian view, gaining conviction, finding the signal in the noise, learning from mistakes: all of these are refined through writing.
My goal is to share my thinking so that you, the reader, get a better sense of our investment process in real time, not just the highlight reel of wins, but also the losses and the lessons. I hope that with full disclosure, readers will build trust in how we invest and have the confidence to stay with us through the ups and downs.
I am Robert Gignac, the founder of Forterra Investment Management and the person behind what you will read here. I am a CFA charterholder and a licensed portfolio manager, and for the past five years I have run Forterra as an independent boutique after a longer career inside a large financial institution. Leaving that world clarified something for me. I wanted to invest independently and work directly with clients without a product shelf to push or a corporate agenda to serve.
What Forterra does
Forterra is built around a specialist mandate: investing in smaller companies that are misunderstood or overlooked and that have the potential to compound wealth over many years. We do our own research, we hold concentrated positions, and we think in three- to five-year horizons rather than in quarters. For clients who want more than investment management, we also coordinate comprehensive financial, tax, and estate planning through an independent, fee-only partner, so the whole picture is looked after without diluting the focus that defines how we invest.
What you can expect here
This publication is where I share that thinking out loud. You will receive a quarterly letter covering markets and how the portfolio is positioned, occasional deep dives on individual companies, and the odd thematic piece when something is worth working through at length. I try to write the way I would talk to a thoughtful client across the table: clearly, honestly, and without industry jargon.
It is written for clients, for sophisticated investors and family offices, and for anyone who finds small-cap investing genuinely interesting. You can read each issue in your inbox, on the web, or in the Substack app. If you would like to learn more about working with Forterra, you will find me at forterrainvest.com.
Important information and disclosures
Forterra Investment Management Inc. is registered as a portfolio manager with the Ontario Securities Commission and the British Columbia Securities Commission.
The content of this publication is provided for information purposes only. It reflects the views and opinions of the author as of the date of publication, is general in nature, and may change without notice. Nothing in this publication is, or should be relied upon as, investment, financial, legal, or tax advice. It does not take into account the objectives, circumstances, or needs of any particular reader, and it is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. It is not an offer or solicitation in any jurisdiction in which such an offer or solicitation would be unlawful.
Any securities or companies mentioned are referenced to illustrate the author’s thinking and do not constitute a recommendation to take any action. Forterra Investment Management and the accounts it manages may hold positions in securities discussed in this publication, and those positions may change at any time without notice.
Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of capital invested. Past performance is not indicative of, and does not guarantee, future results. Any forward-looking statements reflect current expectations and are subject to change, and actual outcomes may differ materially from those expressed or implied.
Prospective clients should not make any investment decision on the basis of this publication. Advisory services are provided only under a written agreement with Forterra Investment Management and only to clients for whom such services are suitable.
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