The Friday Thing #877

Lots of interest in the trend forecast agent from last week - thanks!

The Friday Thing 877 is about a podcast. A really, really long podcast....but we'll get to that in a moment.

One of my favourite genres of books over the years has been autobiographies. Like many others I expect, I read them to understand how people they think and work and what are the secrets to their success. One of the first I remember really enjoying was John McEnroe's, appropriately titled "You Cannot Be Serious". Another memorable one for me was Tim Collins "Rules of Engagement: A Life in Conflict". Not least for that speech.

I started to add books about companies to my list too - Apple, Sony, IBM, Ferrari, Rapha and many more. Always a quest to learn what made them successful - and what mistakes did they make that are lessons to learn.

Which brings me back to the podcast. Last year I listened to volumes 1 and 2 of Acquired's podcasts on Microsoft. Cumulatively, that is 9 hours and 13 minutes of time. The first volume is 4 hours and 22 minutes, the second is 4 hours and 51 minutes. That covers the first forty years of the company, so I am eager for volume 3, as the last ten years have been a remarkable ride that I have had a chance to see up close and participate in. I highly recommend the first two volumes as they're meticulously researched, and despite being something of a company historian myself, I learned plenty.

However, that is not the podcast I want to talk about today. The one I am enamored by as I have just finished listening is Acquired's episode on the luxury brand, Hermès. I had heard that this is their best/most popular episode, and I can now see why. Like the Microsoft volumes, it's meticulously researched and full of great storytelling. And back to my goal of autobiographies and stories of companies - I learned a BOAT load from this episode.

If you have any interest in brand building, this is essential listening. If you have any interest in financial dexterity (to avoid the overtures of LVMH) that's in there too - along with a masterclass from Bernard Arnault in how to create literally billions of dollars of value from nothing. And if you want some great stories about the Birkin and Kelly bags and how to create lore through retail stores and selling less product at a price well below what you easily could, it's all in here. It's one of the best stories I have ever encountered and is expertly told. Oh, and the audacity to try to own the colour orange. Brilliant.

Like Ben (one of the co-authors) I went into this thinking Hermès is just like LVMH. I left realizing it is almost the exact opposite of that business. It's a family run business that is worth a staggering $268 billion dollars. This makes Hermès the world's 36th most valuable company.

In short, it was well worth the investment of time and while I am certain it's not for everyone here, for a few, you will love it. And for me, I am placing it here in my digital bookstore as I know I'll come back to it again and again.

Bravo Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal . I'm now off to listen to the LVMH and Porsche episodes.

That's all for this week. Music is Falling by Julee Cruise.

Happy Friday

cheers,

Steve