Granite Equity Partners

This case follows Rick Bauerly, CEO of Minnesota-based Granite Equity Partners, a private equity firm that specialized in buying out retiring business owners in the Minnesota community. In 2007, Granite Equity was considering an investment in Tyrell Corp. (name disguised), a manufacturer and distributor of microorganisms used by labs in the healthcare, food and beverage, cosmetics, and water industries. Granite Equity had a unique value proposition aimed at maximizing the generational wealth of retiring business owners by offering tax-deferred “units” in its unique evergreen fund structure. This case demonstrates some of the benefits and drawbacks of evergreen funds as compared to traditional fund structures.