Investment Team

The Cambria Group is an unusual firm in that each of its principals brings a blend of operating and financial experience. This combination of line management experience and finance expertise, developed in both transaction-oriented and corporate environments, positions Cambria well to evaluate business opportunities, to negotiate and close investment transactions, and to be value-added partners for management in the on-going development of those enterprises.


Cambria's principals also distinguish themselves as investors by providing the majority of the equity for each transaction themselves, rather than relying primarily on outside capital as is typical in the industry.

Natalie D. Cryer

  • Principal

Ms. Cryer is a Principal working in the firm’s Dallas, Texas office. She works on all aspects of the firm’s activities and currently sits on the board of two of the firm's portfolio companies. She also currently serves on the board of Spirit of America and as the Vice Chair of Hoover's NextGen Board.

Prior to joining Cambria, Ms. Cryer worked for Accenture as a Senior Analyst involved with Business & Systems Integration. At Accenture, she managed the finances for a $24M software- as-a- service project, developed sales forecasts and managed a $50M sales pipeline for the firm, and advised clients on Big Data product growth opportunities. While getting her MBA, Ms. Cryer also worked for Salt Creek Capital, a private equity firm focused on acquiring smaller operating businesses.

Earlier Ms. Cryer worked for three years as a Research Assistant for former Secretary of State, Dr. Condoleezza Rice. She focused her research on the potential for further democratic development in countries in Africa for Dr. Rice’s book Democracy: Stories from the Long Road to Freedom and assisted Dr. Rice with her two other books, Extraordinary, Ordinary People and No Higher Honor: A Memoir of My Years in Washington.

Ms. Cryer holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management Science & Engineering from Stanford University as well as an MBA with a Certificate in Public Management and Social Innovation from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.

Contact Natalie Cryer as follows:

Natalie D. Cryer
Principal
The Cambria Group 
3899 Maple Avenue Suite 150
Dallas, TX 75219
Tel: (469) 513-2200, ext. 861
Fax: (469) 513-2201
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Paul L. (Lew) Davies III

  • Managing Principal

Mr. Davies founded The Cambria Group in 1996 and is its Managing Principal. He is an experienced private equity investor, having previously been a Principal in the leveraged buyout groups of both Brentwood Associates and The Fremont Group. Mr. Davies brings experience in all stages of the private equity process — identifying and sourcing opportunities, arranging financing for transactions, building management teams at both the functional and executive levels, assisting with portfolio company acquisition and divestiture programs, and exiting investments. He currently serves on multiple corporate boards, as well as serving on the Board of Overseers of the Hoover Institution, where he was Vice Chair from 2016 through 2019, and on the Executive Advisory Council of the George W. Bush Presidential Center, which he currently chairs.  Previously, he served on the Advisory Council of the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, as a National Trustee of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, as a Trustee of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and as a Trustee for Menlo School, where he served as Vice Chair of the Board.

Previously, Mr. Davies worked for Bechtel Group, Inc., a leading international engineering-construction firm, in both operating and financial roles. Mr. Davies’ positions in project management, as well as field roles in procurement, construction and start-up capacities, provided broad line management experience. In addition, Mr. Davies had leadership roles in Bechtel Enterprises, the company’s project financing and investment arm, having opened its office in Saudi Arabia, with responsibility for all Middle Eastern activity, and having worked in numerous capacities in its merchant banking activities. He also served on the team established to secure the release of company personnel trapped during Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait.

Earlier, Mr. Davies worked in Chevron Corporation’s foreign operation staff and was the primary real estate analyst for the company’s U.S. and Canadian pension plans.

Mr. Davies holds a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, with distinction, from Stanford University. He also received an MBA from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar.

Contact Lew Davies as follows:

Paul L. Davies III
Managing Principal
The Cambria Group 
3899 Maple Avenue Suite 150
Dallas, TX 75219
Tel: (469) 513-2200, ext. 870
Fax: (469) 513-2201
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René Lajous

  • Principal

Mr. Lajous is a Principal with The Cambria Group, working in the firm’s Dallas office. He participates in all aspects of Cambria’s activities, focusing equally on originating and evaluating investment opportunities, negotiating and arranging financing for transactions, and providing oversight for the firm’s portfolio companies. He has experience both as a member of and observer to the boards of directors of several private companies.

Prior to joining Cambria, Mr. Lajous was a consultant at The Boston Consulting Group, a boutique management consulting firm, working in Dallas, Texas and Buenos Aires, Argentina. At BCG, he advised clients in the transportation, energy and telecommunications industries on a variety of issues ranging from strategy and operations to merger and acquisition activity and due diligence.

Earlier, Mr. Lajous focused on logistics and operations in the consumer packaged goods industries, working for Procter & Gamble in Canada and Mexico, as well as Pillsbury in Canada. He also draws on broad experience developed leading projects in inventory control and supply chain management for these companies.

Mr. Lajous earned a Bachelor of Applied Science in Industrial Engineering from the University of Toronto, earning the W.S. Wilson Medal for academic excellence. He subsequently received an MBA from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.

Contact René Lajous as follows:

René Lajous
Principal
The Cambria Group 
3899 Maple Avenue Suite 150
Dallas, TX 75219
Tel: (469) 513-2200, ext. 878
Fax: (469) 513-2201
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