Visa/Plaid: check mark
This article, from the FT, is a short but interesting overview of Visa's acquisition of Plaid. As background: Visa bought Plaid for $5.3B last week.
Visa/Plaid: check mark
This article, from the FT, is a short but interesting overview of Visa's acquisition of Plaid. As background: Visa bought Plaid for $5.3B last week.
In 2020, DTC brands will hit a revenue wall
This article from Modern Retail echoes some of the insights from the Shopify article above.
What Is the Future of Ecommerce? 10 Insights on the Evolution of an Industry
This blog post, from Shopify, highlights 10 trends that the author believes will define ecommerce in the coming years. I think his points on social, mobile, and content are particularly poignant.
Visa/Plaid: check mark
This article, from the FT, is a short but interesting overview of Visa's acquisition of Plaid. As background: Visa bought Plaid for $5.3B last week.
Artist Studio
The WCM Artist Studio is a collective of innovative thinkers dedicated to pushing the envelope of creativity in the investing world.
Paul Black - Gratitude, Fun, and Growth Stocks
In this podcast, WCM co-CEO Paul Black is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators .
Is (Systematic) Value Investing Dead?
I'm sure many of us have seen the persistent spread (across a number of metrics) between value and growth over the last decade or so.
Quantifying Quality
The headwinds experienced by value investors over the last 13 years or so are often chalked up to strength in another investment style: growth. However, often underlying growth is the all-important "quality" factor.
Keep Running
Collaborative Fund partner Morgan Housel has a knack for elucidating important truisms through stories. This time around, the former Wall Street Journal columnist uses evolution to highlight the need for continuous change in business and investing.
The Anatomy of Stocks That Go Up
In investing, as in many aspects of life, it is easy to over-complicate things. Enter the KISS principle - keep it simple, stupid. Sage advice.
Why the next Olympics should include Fortnite
Previous Beach Reads generally refer to video games and eSports in the context of the metaverse . A recent Economist article suggests an alternative use for video games as Olympic events. There is a serious case to be made here.
The great acceleration
One recurring theme in business analysis around COVID-19 impacts is that the big keep getting bigger.
The Power, Peril, and Plight of The Big Tech
This long form substack post reviews current legal thinking as it pertains to large tech companies in the US, specifically Amazon, Google, Facebook, Apple, and Microsoft.
Lindsell Train - Fund manager interview with Nick Train
Lindsell Train's occasional thought pieces are insightful (recent example here ) and I recently stumbled upon this video conference interview with the cofounder of the London-based asset manager, Nicholas Train, on long-term investing.
What Got You There: Podcast with Aravt Global's Yen Liow
This comprehensive interview with Aravt Globa founder and chief investment officer Yen Liow covers a wide variety of topics primarily related to investing, learning, and improving.
Michael Mauboussin: The Great Migration from Public to Private Equity (Podcast)
Another great podcast from Patrick O'Shaughnessy. This time around, he interviews Michael Mauboussin, adjunct professor of business at Columbia Business School.
Seeing Like An Algorithm
In this second installment of a three-part series about some of the features that make TikTok successful (the first article was highlighted in the Aug.
Intel's Success Came With Making Its Own Chips. Until Now
To fab or not to fab – that is the question Intel is currently grappling with, placing it at a business and philosophical crossroads.
Ben Thompson's Stratechery
The October 13 edition of Beach Reads featured the thoughts of Stratechery's Ben Thompson on the antitrust case against big tech currently ongoing in the United States and pondered what Colombia law professor Tim Wu, might think.
Intel's Disruption is Now Complete
With a striking headline, the author of this Medium post argues that Intel's inability to keep pace with competitors now puts it at risk of ARM-based chips beginning to erode its "last refuge: the server business.
Masters in Business: Dennis Lynch on Global Portfolio Management
In this episode of the Masters in Business podcast series, Barry Ritholtz interviews Dennis Lynch, the co-CIO and PM of investment firm Counterpoint Global.
Status Games: Engineering Scarcity in a World of Abundance
This podcast and accompanying article featuring Eugene Wei tie together a lot of recurring Beach Reads themes.
The Big Lessons From History
Morgan Housel recently published another thoughtful blog post – this one about how to best understand, interpret, and learn from history.
An Interview with Eugene Wei About the Half-Life of Information
This was as fun interview from Stratechery, in which Ben Thompson chats with Eugene Wei.
Zero Trust Information
This is a great article from Stratechery. In it, the author traces the evolution of the internet and secure networking in order to, in part, highlight the immense communicative power the internet yields.
Making is Show Business now
This blog post from Alex Danco reviews the topics introduced in the book Working in Public: The Making and Maintenance of Open Source Software .
Craft is culture
Past Beach Reads have included the work of Alex Danco, currently employed at Shopify and previously at Social Capital.
Signaling as a Service
I enjoyed this article from a blog I had never come across before. In it, the author expands on the notion of conspicuous consumption. Specifically, he examines what role software has in status signalling.
John Collison - Growing the Internet Economy
Overstatement and expectation management be damned - this edition of Invest Like the Best is one of the best podcasts I've ever listened to.
Platform Liquidity: Why Economic Incentives Matter
It's becoming increasingly difficult to come across a company that doesn't style itself as a platform. Previous Beach Reads have presented different frameworks about platforms, with a focus on marketplaces .
The Entertainment Value Curve: Why TikTok is On Fire and Quibi Isn't
Why is TikTok so successful, while new short-form video format Quibi has so far struggled to gain traction, despite serious backing from Hollywood and Silicon Valley heavyweights? "Quibi's shows were designed to be watched by a single pers.
Platform, Ecosystems, and Aggregators
In this episode of Invest Like the Best, Patrick O'Shaughnessy talks to Ben Thompson, who focusses on tech and the media in his Stratechery blog.
Status Games: Engineering Scarcity in a World of Abundance
This podcast and accompanying article featuring Eugene Wei tie together a lot of recurring Beach Reads themes.
Come for the Network, Pay for the Tool
I've featured the work of Toby Shorin in the past and think this recent post adds to the theme of increased online content creation.
Don't hate the playa, hate the game
In the April 28 edition of Beach Reads I included an article by Marc Andreessen called " It's Time to Build.
The great acceleration
One recurring theme in business analysis around COVID-19 impacts is that the big keep getting bigger.
Attacking the Moat
Critical to assessing how defensible companies are and how durable their growth will be is developing a good understanding of their moat(s).
Quantifying Quality
The headwinds experienced by value investors over the last 13 years or so are often chalked up to strength in another investment style: growth. However, often underlying growth is the all-important "quality" factor.
Understanding Stakeholder Value: Where do Profits Come From?
Intrinsic Investing recently published this piece that juxtaposes the familiar notion of "shareholder value" to an interesting term called "stakeholder value.
Corp Governance: The Achilles' Heel of "High Quality" Companies
I really enjoyed this article from a former activist investor.
Home Alone Together, in LA
I enjoyed this piece from The New Yorker. While the news around COVID-19 tends to revolve around numbers: case counts, GDP, unemployment, etc.
Uncertain Times
This article, published in Aeon in association with the Santa Fe institute, is a titillating real world study of complex systems.
Serendipity as a Skill
We find creativity and serendipity to be two of the most interesting yet underexplored areas of investing.
How Discomfort Makes Us More Creative
Institutionalizing creativity in professional organizations is incredibly difficult. Some books, like Ed Catmull's "Creativity Inc.
How Will You Measure Your Life?
What a phenomenal read. Most of us know Clayton Christensen from his book, "Innovator's Dilemma." And while an accomplished scholar, I was blown away by this speech he gave at HBS back in 2010.
Finite and Infinite Games: Two Ways to Play the Game of Life
I liked this post from Farnam Street - in it, the author frames two different philosophies for living life. The first is to approach life as a "finite game" and the second is to approach life as an "infinite game.
These articles generally appeared in the "Reflections" section of Beach Reads, but I've aggregated them in a different stand-alone section this time around.
Thirty-six Thousand Feet Under the Sea
This was a wild read detailing the mission of a wealthy man and team of misfits to the deepest depths of the world.
Snow Science Against the Avalanche
This long-form article, from The New Yorker, is a great read about nature, science, and human foibles. In it, the author gives the history and current science around avalanche mitigation.
Global Growth Business Analyst
We're looking to add to the Laguna-based investment team.
Mike Trigg - Defying the Fade at WCM
In this podcast, Mike Trigg, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst at WCM, is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators .
Why Do Money Managers Fail?
In this introspective piece, Paul Black, President & Co-CEO of WCM Investment Management, explores the silent killers that cause money managers to fail.
WCM Business Culture Analyst
Over the years, we've come to believe that culture is one of the most important—yet least understood—drivers of long-term value. It separates the great companies from the merely good ones.
The Business Brew Podcast: Sanjay Ayer – The Example of Self Awareness
In this podcast, WCM Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst Sanjay Ayer is interviewed by Bill Brewster on The Business Brew .
Sanjay Ayer – The Example of Self Awareness
In this podcast, Sanjay Ayer, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, is interviewed by Bill Brewster on The Business Brew.
Mike Trigg - Defying the Fade at WCM
In this podcast, Mike Trigg, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
Paul Black - Gratitude, Fun, and Growth Stocks
In this podcast, Paul Black, co-CEO & Portfolio Manager, is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
Why Culture Matters
One of WCM's strongest competitive advantages is our focus on corporate culture—both at our own firm and within the companies in which we invest.
Why Do Money Managers Fail?
In this introspective thought piece, Paul Black, co-CEO & Portfolio Manager at WCM Investment Management, explores the silent killers that cause money managers to fail.
Mike Tian - Moat Trajectories and Investing in China at WCM
In this podcast, Mike Tian, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
How to Build a $100B Money Manager with Paul Black & Mike Trigg
In this podcast, Paul Black, Portfolio Manager & CEO, and Mike Trigg, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, are interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
FAR FROM THE FINISHING POST: Sanjay Ayer (WCM) - Think Different, Get Better
In this podcast, Sanjay Ayer, Portfolio Manager and Business Analyst, is interviewed by Tom Yeowart and George Viney of Troy Asset Management.
Hidden Value Stocks: WCM Focused International Value Interview
In this interview, Andrew Wiechert and Drew French, co-Portfolio Managers for WCM's global value equity strategies, are interviewed by Rupert Hargreaves of Value Walk.
Work at WCM
WCM exists to maximize value and create opportunity for all of its stakeholders. We do this by living out our core values of fun, gratitude, and serving others.
Insights
From our unique approach to pattern recognition and culture research, to our location in Laguna Beach—a quaint artist colony in Southern California—we live and breathe creative thinking. We value independent thinkers. We value artists.
Hidden Value Stocks: WCM Focused International Value Interview
In this interview, Andrew Wiechert and Drew French, co-Portfolio Managers for WCM's global value equity strategies, are interviewed by Rupert Hargreaves of Value Walk.
How to Build a $100B Money Manager with Paul Black & Mike Trigg
In this podcast, Paul Black, Portfolio Manager & CEO, and Mike Trigg, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, are interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
FAR FROM THE FINISHING POST: Sanjay Ayer (WCM) - Think Different, Get Better
In this podcast, Sanjay Ayer, Portfolio Manager and Business Analyst, is interviewed by Tom Yeowart and George Viney of Troy Asset Management.
Mike Tian - Moat Trajectories and Investing in China at WCM
In this podcast, Mike Tian, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
Why Do Money Managers Fail?
In this introspective thought piece, Paul Black, co-CEO & Portfolio Manager at WCM Investment Management, explores the silent killers that cause money managers to fail.
Sanjay Ayer – The Example of Self Awareness
In this podcast, Sanjay Ayer, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, is interviewed by Bill Brewster on The Business Brew.
Mike Trigg - Defying the Fade at WCM
In this podcast, Mike Trigg, Portfolio Manager & Business Analyst, is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
Why Culture Matters
One of WCM's strongest competitive advantages is our focus on corporate culture—both at our own firm and within the companies in which we invest.
Paul Black - Gratitude, Fun, and Growth Stocks
In this podcast, Paul Black, co-CEO & Portfolio Manager, is interviewed by Ted Seides on Capital Allocators.
Artist Studio
From our unique approach to pattern recognition and culture research, to our location in Laguna Beach—a quaint artist colony in Southern California—we live and breathe creative thinking. We value independent thinkers. We value artists.
Insights
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