About this podcast
Byte-sized lessons on investment strategy, financial metrics, business decisions, and/or market phenomena.
Episodes
The newest 20 of 96 episodes
- American Express - Why Buffett likes it more than Visa and Mastercard? · 11 min · Episode 96American Express is one of Warren Buffett's longest-standing bets. For over three decades, Berkshire Hathaway has held onto AmEx, through recessions, market crashes, and massive…
- Is Louis Philippe Indian or French? · 8 min · Episode 95Louise Philippe, Monte Carlo, Blackberrys, Bella Vita, and Da Milano are all foreign names of Indian brands. Is there a reason why Indian brands adopt English or…
- What went wrong with Intel? What is it up to now? · 11 min · Episode 94Intel's quintessential Intel Inside sticker on laptops and in the marketing materials of other PC brands helped it achieve global dominance in processing chips. However, another…
- Poka Yoke - Toyota's design thinking · 7 min · Episode 93The Toyota Production System (TPS) is a manufacturing system to ensure minimum wastage while constantly striving to improve quality. TPS is efficient, flexible, and extremely…
- How Lenovo took over IBM to become the world's largest PC maker? · 9 min · Episode 92In 2004, Lenovo bought IBM’s iconic PC division. But this wasn’t an overnight leap — it was the result of years spent learning inside the value chain. Starting as a distributor…
- Why Apple Moved To The Type-C Charging Port? · 10 min · Episode 91Apple is known to be restrictive in letting its devices connect or share data with non-Apple devices. It has a lot to do with delivering a clean user experience and utmost…
- Revlon's fall from glory to bankruptcy, and revival · 12 min · Episode 90This episode explores the journey of Revlon — from a brand that sold glamour and aspiration to one that filed for bankruptcy nearly a century later. It traces Revlon’s early…
- The curious case of Narayana Health's profits · 10 min · Episode 89Narayana Health's 40% profit comes from just a small business in the Cayman Islands. Is it the pricing power or a different brand identity that Narayana enjoys in Cayman? Cayman…
- Trent and Asian Paints - A tale of two popular stocks · 9 min · Episode 88Trent's ROE growth perhaps explains the rally in its stock, and Asian Paints' ROE slowdown perhaps explains the dull performance of its stock. Maybe it is the time frame you look…
- Nestle's brilliant razor and blade pricing model - and its pitfalls · 10 min · Episode 87Nestlé's Nespresso was a failed product when it was launched in the 1980s. A switch in product and pricing model helped make it a success. It was Nestlé's moat for a very long…
- Dmart's pseudo debt - a common accounting peculiarity · 9 min · Episode 86Most of Dmart's stores are owned, while a few are leased. Those leased stores are recorded as lease liabilities on Dmart's balance sheet. Lease liabilities are considered as good…
- Diet Coke Vs Coke Zero - What's the difference? Why the difference? · 11 min · Episode 85How can one drink be for women and the other for men? It is a day-to-day consumable, not even medicine. So, why target a drink to a specific gender? The lessons are in marketing…
- Wipro's multiple hats - from groceries to IT · 8 min · Episode 84Wipro started as a vegetable oil maker. Samsung started as a trader of dried fish, groceries, and noodles. Today, neither Wipro nor Samsung is known for what it started out to…
- Microsoft's bold pricing shift and the business rationale behind it · 10 min · Episode 83Microsoft Office used to be a one-time purchase. Now you probably pay for it every year. Why did Microsoft change its pricing so drastically? It was a risky move, but there was…
- Nike, Adidas, Puma, and their D2C pivot · 14 min · Episode 82For the longest time, Nike, Adidas, and Puma sold their sportswear through channel partners. However, in the early 2010s, they began shifting their strategy by selling directly…
- Why Amazon did not care for profits in its initial years? · 10 min · Episode 81In its early years, Amazon focused more on cash flows and not so much on profits. It inspired a generation of startups to chase scale and not worry about losses. Those imitating…
- Temasek - A sovereign wealth fund that other nations want to emulate · 10 min · Episode 80Many nations have tried to model their sovereign wealth funds after Singapore's Temasek. While Temasek is an SWF, it behaves like a quasi Venture Capital firm with only one…
- TikTok ban - How Instagram and YouTube swiftly took over the market? · 8 min · Episode 79A business might be a market leader. Network effects might have helped it become a moat. However, government regulations, through bans or restrictions, can make or break…
- Stanley Cups - from rugged uses to a stylish collectible · 12 min · Episode 78Launched in 1913, the Stanley Cup was marketed for its rugged uses by cops, defense personnel, and those engaged in outdoor activities. It remained a reliable but niche brand for…
- Zomato to Eternal - Taking a leaf from Google and Facebook's playbook · 12 min · Episode 77Google became Alphabet, Facebook became Meta, and Zomato became Eternal - is there a commonality among the three? Each new name has a more widespread and overarching tone than…
