This fall’s AGM season provided Epic Funds’ a detailed view into how our managers are positioning portfolios for the next phase of the cycle. Across managers and industry partners spanning niche private equity and private credit, a consistent message emerged: long-term value creation is being driven by scarcity, governance discipline, and proactive platform building rather than financial engineering alone.
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Niche Private Equity – Scarcity, Platforms, and Cultural Assets
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Insights from McGuireWoods’ AGM reinforced the growing consensus that professional sports and adjacent ecosystems are evolving into a distinct institutional asset class. Team valuations remain fundamentally tied to media rights economics, with the NBA and NFL continuing to outpace other leagues due to stronger broadcast and global distribution dynamics. However, managers emphasized that future upside may increasingly come from infrastructure, real estate, experiential revenue, and data monetization as traditional media growth matures.

Two themes stood out: First, the importance of scarcity and long-term ownership, with low liquidity viewed as a structural feature rather than a drawback. Second, the expansion of opportunity beyond direct team ownership is important. Emerging areas such as youth sports, athlete-led ownership models, and platform-based strategies were highlighted as attractive extensions of the sports ecosystem, requiring a differentiated underwriting lens that accounts for culture, governance, and fan engagement.
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Private Credit – Discipline, Yield, and Structural Advantage
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Turning Rock’s AGM highlighted a disciplined private credit platform operating in a competitive environment. With approximately $1.6 billion in AUM, the firm  fully deployed Fund II and completed its fundraise of Fund III. Despite declining spreads and rising covenant defaults across the market, Turning Rock emphasized diversified realizations beyond simple refinancing activity and a continued focus on asset-backed and infrastructure-adjacent lending.

Key portfolio themes included logistics and supply-chain realignment, as well as technology and AI enablement supporting core corporate infrastructure.  Looking ahead, Turning Rock is focused on a strategic shift back toward fixed-rate structures, reflecting preparation for a changing rate environment., Turning Rock remains excited by the opportunity across private credit.  
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Global Consumer & Hybrid PE / Credit – Structural Growth Markets
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L Catterton’s AGM focused on long-term consumer-driven growth across global markets, with particular emphasis on India and Japan. India’s rapid emergence as the world’s third-largest economy, supported by roughly 250 million new middle-class consumers, is driving increased deal volume and M&A activity, while brand identity remains a critical differentiator. In Japan, family succession dynamics and inbound tourism continue to create proprietary deal flow, with relationship-based transactions often outweighing valuation sensitivity.

Within private credit, L Catterton reported approximately $450 million raised to date with 35% deployed, generating an estimated 300 basis point return premium over traditional middle-market lenders. The firm highlighted its active use of co-investments (often structured on a no-fee, no-carry basis) and noted continued resilience in consumer spending through 2025, with experiential and hospitality-oriented brands among top performers.
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Team Takeaways

This AGM season reinforced our conviction that the most compelling private market opportunities are being built — not traded. Whether through scarce cultural assets, disciplined private credit underwriting, or exposure to structurally advantaged consumer markets, managers are prioritizing durability, governance, and long-term alignment. These insights continue to inform our portfolio construction as we allocate to specialized managers with the ability to compound value across cycles.