Business Notes INVESTMENT

Among corporate raiders, Coniston Partners was the ultimate upstart. Some of its targets had barely even heard of Coniston until it was too late. The firm's runs against such companies as Gillette and the Allegis travel conglomerate brought returns of more than 40% to the small pool of investors who put a minimum of $5 million apiece into Coniston's funds. But as raiding went out of fashion, the firm's success began to wane. Last week Coniston said it would disband the $700 million pool that funded its takeover bids and proxy fights. But partners Keith Gollust, Paul Tierney and Augustus Oliver are not retiring. They plan to put their bankroll into real estate, venture capital and possibly an occasional takeover deal for old times' sake.