Meet Jon and Mariana.
A husband-and-wife team who believe good business starts with the right relationships. We bring fresh ideas and stay involved in the work.
The Right Relationships. The Right Opportunity.
We’re Jon and Mariana Bryan, and we built Escala Growth Partners on one belief: the right relationships can open new opportunities for growth.
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Every big break we’ve seen, in our own careers and for the businesses we’ve worked with, started with a conversation. Someone got introduced to the right person. Someone told their story in a way that landed. Someone kept showing up after the deal was signed. That’s the work we love, and it’s the work we do for our clients.
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Jon Bryan — The Head
Jon finds the right people, starts the right conversations, and helps you tell your story in a way that opens doors.
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He spent over a decade in advertising before becoming a Dallas Firefighter/Paramedic. When Jon lost his friend and mentor, Captain Crutcher, to suicide, he and his father organized a benefit concert for first responder mental health. His father is a film, television, and event producer. Jon quickly built the relationships that raised more than $160,000 in a few months. He later co-founded The Crutcher Foundation in Captain Crutcher’s honor.
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As Chief Growth Officer at Fire Department Coffee, Jon was part of the team that grew retail distribution from 1,000 to more than 11,000 stores and built sponsorship revenue from $40,000 to roughly $1 million in six months. Most of that came from relationships he built and kept. He’s since brought the same approach to custom homebuilding and to the other owner-led businesses Escala serves.
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Mariana Bryan — The Heart
Mariana gets to know our clients, builds real relationships, and keeps things moving.
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Her background in teaching and international customer service, including United Airlines and Lufthansa, taught her how to help people understand each other and work well together across cultures. Originally from Rio de Janeiro, she speaks English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French, and she’s the inspiration behind the Escala name.
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Why It Works
Jon opens the door. Mariana makes sure people want to stay. Together, we help owner-led businesses build the relationships that turn opportunity into growth.
Case Study: Custom Home Builder
When Jon joined Elijah Anthony, the company had one home finished and one about to start. Elijah had the craftsmanship. What the business needed was a steady way to reach the right homebuyers and turn conversations into signed contracts.
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Jon led sales, marketing, and growth alongside Elijah and the EAH team. Together they sharpened how the company told its story, built a consistent social presence, put a real sales pipeline and follow-up system in place, and built personal relationships with buyers from the first conversation through a signed agreement.
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Within 18 months, Elijah Anthony Homes was building 30 new homes.
A first responder mental health benefit Jon helped organize with his father.
Helping grow Fire Department Coffee through relationships and events.
Guest speaking on a panel about business, growth and emerging brands.