Southview Timberland: Scaling a Fund from Dirt, Trees, and Vision: Ep 60

Southview Timberland: Scaling a Fund from Dirt, Trees, and Vision: Ep 60

From Funds that Won by Fund Launch

August 20, 2025 · 22 min · Episode 60

About this episode

John Bernard discusses his journey in building a timberland fund and the unique aspects of timber investing.

In this episode of  Funds That Won , we sit down with John Bernard of Southview Timberland Investments to uncover how a fund manager turned entrepreneur built a timberland fund in one of the most overlooked asset classes. John shares his journey from Wall Street to launching Southview, the unique economics of timber investing, and how biological growth provides consistent returns regardless of market conditions. We explore land appreciation, harvesting strategies, and the challenges of scaling a fund in such a relationship-driven industry. John also opens up about fundraising lessons, managing risk, and what it really takes to grow a billion-dollar fund in a niche market.

People in this episode

Guest: John Bernard

Topics covered

  • timberland investing
  • fund management
  • entrepreneurship
  • risk management
  • fundraising
  • asset classes

Keywords

  • timberland
  • fund management
  • investment strategies
  • biological growth
  • land appreciation
  • harvesting strategies
  • scaling a fund

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Southview Timberland Investments

Places: Wall Street

More episodes of Funds that Won

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Funds that Won podcast page.