Brown Capital Management

Set in July 2021, this case looks at several growth strategies under consideration at Brown Capital, the second-oldest Black-owned asset management firm in the U.S. Since its 1983 founding, Baltimore-based Brown Capital has specialized in small company growth equity—investing in small, publicly traded companies with outsized growth potential. But with its successful, domestic small company fund closed to new investors since 2013, and its international small company fund on a similar trajectory, Brown Capital’s pathway to sustained growth is unclear. Should it (1) reconsider closing its Morningstar 5-star rated international small company fund; (2) focus on its newer mid company fund, which has more capacity for growth and a recent uptick in performance; or (3) introduce new strategies and asset classes?