Principal Thornton Capital

Matthew Thornton

Matt served as President and CEO of Thorntons, a 200-unit convenience store chain in the Midwest and Southeast from 2001-2019. The company had revenues of $3B and was twice named Convenience Chain of the Year by industry trade publications.

In 2019, Matt and his team negotiated the sale of the business to a newly formed joint venture between BP and ArcLight Capital partners. The new venture retained the entire team and the Thorntons’ brand. It continues be headquartered in Louisville, KY.

Separately in 2009, Matt seeded L3 Capital. Based in Chicago, L3 Capital is a prime urban retail and mixed-use real estate investment firm that targets institutional quality, core plus and value-add, urban retail, office and residential investments within first tier US markets.

In 2019 Matt established a family office, Thornton Capital. The firm has a broad investment mandate with concentrations in real estate, public securities, private equity and venture capital.

Matt is a proud recipient of Ernst and Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award and a Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame laureate.

Matt currently serves as the Chairman of the Greater Louisville Inc. Foundation, the Chairman of Endeavor Midwest, and as a trustee of Bellarmine University.

Matt attended the University of Alabama where he was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity and graduated with a B.S. in Finance.

Matt is married to Fran Thornton and the couple has three children Henry, Grace and James. In his free time, Matt is an avid skier, fisherman and hunter.