The Best Media Content I Consumed This Month (January 2023 Edition)
Here's a glimpse into the best media content (articles/books/podcasts/videos) I consumed in January 2023.
Articles
The Renaissance Man of Venture Capital. A well-researched and insightful profile on Josh Wolfe (Co-Founder of Lux Capital), who I regard as one of the smartest and most independent thinkers in VC. Lux Capital invests primarily in “deep-tech” companies and seems (from my perspective) to be much more principled/disciplined in their investment approach than other well-known US VC firms which got swept up in the “mania” of 2020/2021.
Trian Partners - Disney Board Letter. A fascinating letter from Nelson Peltz (Founding Partner of Trian Partners), an activist investor who is launching a proxy fight against Disney. This letter was a masterpiece. Direct, succinct, logical, well-written, and also surprisingly polite. It will be fascinating to see whether Disney ends up giving him a board seat (which I think they should given his excellent track record as an operator/investor in consumer brands).
What Will Happen in 2023? A brief article from Fred Wilson (Co-Founder of Union Square Ventures) discussing his market predictions for 2023. He believes there is a good chance of a “soft landing” and that private market valuations will return to more normalised levels. This seems to be the consensus position amongst most capital allocators for 2023.
How wealthy you are compared to everyone else (in eight charts). This article (apologies if it is behind a paywall) provides some interesting statistics about household income and household wealth in Australia. I was particularly interested in the median figures, as well as the 90th and 99th percentile cut-offs. Might be quite confronting (but also motivating) for some!
L1 Long Short Fund Limited Quarterly Report (December 2022). A great 2022 review from arguably Australia’s best performing long-short hedge fund. L1 expects US inflation to trend down in the first half of 2023, which should enable the Federal Reserve to pause rate hikes. Interestingly, L1 is short large-cap US tech stocks (e.g., Apple), despite the recent sharp sell-off.
Podcasts
2023 Bestie Predictions! (All-In Podcast). An insightful/humorous discussion amongst four renowned US VCs exploring their 2023 predictions for capital markets, inflation, tech, politics, and geopolitical conflict.
Gregg Lemkau - The Evolution of MSD (Capital Allocators Podcast). A fascinating interview with a seasoned professional in the investment business who spent 28 years at Goldman Sachs and was involved in M&A deals with Elon Musk and Michael Dell (amongst others). He is now the CEO of MSD Partners, an investment firm with roots as Michael Dell’s family office that manages over $20b across a range of public/private strategies.
Hermes: The Luxury Icon (Business Breakdowns). A super interesting and detailed business breakdown of Hermes, a luxury consumer goods business most known for their exorbitantly priced “Birkin” leather handbags. With 70% gross margins and 40% operating margins, Hermes looks more like a software business than a manufacturer of physical goods. They’ve also largely resisted the shift to e-commerce, instead working to preserve their in-store experience. I learned a ton about the power of branding, how difficult it is to disrupt luxury consumer goods businesses, and the factors that drive premium pricing.
WTF is Going on In VC? Are VCs Still Investing? How Has What VCs Want in Investments Changed? Are LPs Investing in Few Funds? Why VCs That Invest in Public Markets are Losers (20VC Podcast). A brutally honest and timely discussion with Jason Lemkin (Founder of SaaStr) about the current state of private markets, realistic SaaS multiples and exits for founders, changes in enterprise sales cycles, and where he sees opportunities in 2023.
Books
More Money than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite. This book consumed most of my reading time over the Christmas break. A well-researched book dissecting the most prominent hedge funds from inception of the industry (e.g., Alfred Jones in 1949) to the modern era (e.g., Jim Simons at Renaissance Technologies). The book was published in 2010, so it would be fascinating to see it updated to include discussions of some more famous recent funds (e.g., Bill Ackman at Pershing Square Holdings).
The Power Law: Venture Capital and the Art of Disruption. Coincidently, this book was written by the same author as above. Instead of focusing on the history of hedge funds, this book instead explores the birth of the VC industry (with a strong bias towards US funds) from the 1960s to the 2020s. This book was published in 2022, so it includes some fascinating stories on well-known modern funds (e.g., a16z, Benchmark, Tiger Global Management, SoftBank, etc). It would be great to see a similar (but likely much shorter!) book focusing on the Australian VC landscape.
YouTube
Mr Tom Ford’s Six Rules of Style. This is one of the most aesthetic videos I’ve ever watched. Bit random, but I’ve been on a Tom Ford binge over the past month. Gearing up for my wedding in February 2024 and thinking about what suit combination I should wear, it’s been helpful to learn more about Tom’s timeless insights on male fashion.
Bloomberg Wealth: Nelson Peltz. Following his activist campaign against Disney, I’ve been consuming a lot of past interviews with Nelson Peltz. This was a short interview (around 25 minutes) but a classic. Peltz managed a number of businesses in the consumer goods space (including his father’s) before founding Trian Partners in 2005. It was interesting to hear about his approach to dealing with boards of public companies - bit of a “make an offer they can’t refuse” situation. Provide Trian Partners and Peltz with a board seat, implement their changes, or suffer the consequences of a costly and resource-sucking proxy fight. Very Godfather-esque.
How to Fix Patellar Tendonitis (No More KNEE PAIN!). This was a great video by Dr. Aaron Horschig (Physical Therapist) explaining two exercises that he uses to help clients overcome patellar tendonitis. I’ve been dealing with knee pain on/off since mid-2020 and these exercises have been a staple of my latest training program.
Simpson’s Paradox & Its Exploitation by COVID Sociopaths. A short but informative video from Nassim Taleb (Academic, Writer, Former Trader) on how to dismantle claims from COVID sceptics about the effectiveness of vaccines. Good ammunition for when the time comes!
A candid Twitter thread from Andrew Wilkinson (Co-Founder of Tiny) who owns/operates a number of internet businesses. This thread explains his decision to hire a Psychologist to conduct a thorough examination of his life, strengths, weaknesses, and areas for growth. It led to some fascinating insights and also major life changes (e.g., divorce). It must’ve taken Andrew a lot of courage to share these findings for others to see/learn from. Well worth a read!
Companies I’m Researching
Duolingo (NASDAQ:DUOL). A recent redesign of the home page has been met with significant backlash from users, culminating in a petition (signed by 15,000+ people) for Duolingo to revert to their old home screen. Could this incident lead to a permanent impairment in Duolingo’s brand or will it be a blip on the radar, similar to the “boycott Facebook” movement in 2017/2018. You can read my full article here - Duolingo: Be Cautious Ahead of Q4 Results.
Please let me know if you found any of the above recommendations helpful! I’m also keen to hear what your favourite books/articles/podcasts/videos were from January.
Cheers,
Jordan