Latest / The Dutch Investors / #46 | 6 lessons from 6 companies we analyzed | From toxic waste to billion dollar companies

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#46 | 6 lessons from 6 companies we analyzed | From toxic waste to billion dollar companies · The Dutch Investors

0:00
SPEAKER_00: Welcome back to a brand new episode by the Dutch Investors.
0:04
SPEAKER_00: And in today's episode, I want to tell you about six universal lessons from six companies we have analyzed over the past year.
0:12
SPEAKER_00: Of course, we've analyzed more companies and more episodes will follow, but I believe there is something to be learned from every single company you analyze.
0:22
SPEAKER_00: And in this episode, I want to share with you six lessons from six different companies.
0:28
SPEAKER_00: Enjoy.
0:38
SPEAKER_01: Could anyone do the same thing you did starting to do?
0:42
SPEAKER_02: Are you born with it?
0:44
SPEAKER_02: Is it DNA?
0:45
SPEAKER_02: Is it some early childhood exposure?
0:49
SPEAKER_04: The first element of investment is the lose.
0:52
SPEAKER_04: And the second moment of investment is don't forget the first rule, and that's all the rules are up.
1:05
SPEAKER_01: What I needed to get ahead was to commit against idiots.
1:09
SPEAKER_01: And luckily there's a large supply.
1:16
SPEAKER_00: Together with Hermes, the largest luxury company in the world.
1:21
SPEAKER_00: Around$240 billion in market cap as of today.
1:25
SPEAKER_00: Luxury companies are fundamentally different from other businesses because they grow on brand prestige, exclusivity, selling less, and emotional appeal.
1:36
SPEAKER_00: The functionality of these items doesn't really matter.
1:40
SPEAKER_00: While other sectors focus more on efficiency, cost-cutting, perhaps scalability, these luxury companies and brands rely more on craftsmanship, heritage, and desirability to maintain their position and pricing power.
1:56
SPEAKER_00: The focus is more on creating an experience and storytelling that resonates with consumers.
2:03
SPEAKER_00: It's about making them believe a dream.
2:07
SPEAKER_00: This in return makes them willing to pay top prices.
2:11
SPEAKER_00: At least in theory.
2:13
SPEAKER_00: It's about providing the dream consumers desperately crave.
2:18
SPEAKER_00: And this unique approach results in pricing power.
2:23
SPEAKER_00: But it also comes with its own set of challenges.
2:26
SPEAKER_00: Let's talk about mono brands for a second.
2:29
SPEAKER_00: Hermes, for example, Ferrari or even Brunello Cuccinelli can become stronger brands in the luxury tier because of their deep focus on an individual brand and experience.
2:43
SPEAKER_00: And this can be a huge benefit.
2:46
SPEAKER_00: Their ability to maintain a singular vision and refine their offerings has helped them command even higher prices and build unmatched brand loyalty.
2:56
SPEAKER_00: However, their valuation usually reflects this high standing.
3:01
SPEAKER_00: This makes them more expensive to invest in and doesn't necessarily mean better returns.
3:08
SPEAKER_00: When the management is exceptional, like in Hermes or even Ferrari, these mono brands can outperform and create a more cohesive luxury business, as leadership can maintain tight control over their vision, unlike holding companies that manage multiple brands.
3:28
SPEAKER_00: On the other hand, you have holding companies like LVMH and Caring, and they spread their investments across multiple brands and industries.
3:38
SPEAKER_00: And this gives them a level of resilience during tough economic times, in theory, but it doesn't always work.
3:46
SPEAKER_00: If one sector doesn't do as well, other sectors can help make up for this.
3:51
SPEAKER_00: And this should, in theory, create a stable base for long-term growth.
3:56
SPEAKER_00: Every single division has its own growth rate and own desirability depending on the economic times.
4:03
SPEAKER_00: However, mono brands don't have this.
4:07
SPEAKER_00: The higher the tier, the less the economic cycle really matters.
4:11
SPEAKER_00: The hermeses of this world become even more desirable then.
4:16
SPEAKER_00: Additionally, holding companies are frequently undervalued because it's difficult to accurately assess the hidden value of these portfolios.
4:25
SPEAKER_00: There might be a Hermes or Brunello Cuccinelli within these holdings, waiting to unlock value, but you never know until it's already too late.
4:36
SPEAKER_00: What I do like about the holding company like LVMH is that they are well positioned to buy and integrate potential new companies within the luxury industry.
4:48
SPEAKER_00: And I don't really see an Hermes or Ferrari doing this.
4:52
SPEAKER_00: They are focused on a single brand and it doesn't really work for them.
4:56
SPEAKER_00: But just like everything else in life, it all comes with its pros and cons.
5:01
SPEAKER_00: But the lesson here is owning one great brand is art.
5:05
SPEAKER_00: Owning 50 without killing them is strategy.
5:09
SPEAKER_00: But if you could choose between a mono brand and a holding company within the luxury industry, and the valuation is exactly the same, it's probably better to focus on the mono brand.
5:22
SPEAKER_00: Okay, number 2.
5:24
SPEAKER_00: Moabruk, and I would guess probably no one really knows this company.
5:29
SPEAKER_00: And the lesson is about local monopolies.
5:32
SPEAKER_00: Mobruk is one of these companies you wouldn't really brag about at a dinner party, unless your crowd gets excited about incinerating hazardous waste.
5:43
SPEAKER_00: But in the world of investing, these dirty work businesses can be pure gold.
5:49
SPEAKER_00: They're built around local monopolies, thick, regulatory modes, and a business model nobody sane wants to compete with.
5:59
SPEAKER_00: At its core, Moebruk takes industrial, medical, and hazardous waste that no one else can or wants to process and neutralizes it through specialized treatment or high temperature incineration.
6:13
SPEAKER_00: Some of the most defensible modes in the world are built in sectors people actively avoid.
6:19
SPEAKER_00: Waste treatment, sewage infrastructure, quarries, animal byproduct processing.
6:26
SPEAKER_00: These businesses often smell, literally and figuratively, but that stench is also remote.
6:34
SPEAKER_00: They require huge upfront capital, political approval, regulatory compliance, and nerves of steel, all of which makes them incredibly difficult to enter and even harder to compete in.
6:49
SPEAKER_00: For example, you probably know the company Waste Management in the United States, or BEFESA in Germany, or even companies like Darling Ingredients, which turns slaughterhouse waste into renewable energy and feedstock.
7:06
SPEAKER_00: These companies operate in industries with high regulatory barriers, strong local or regional dominance, and a level of public resistance that stops new entrants before they even begin.
7:20
SPEAKER_00: Who in their right minds wants a toxic waste plant or a landfill built next to their home?
7:27
SPEAKER_00: Probably nobody.
7:29
SPEAKER_00: And politicians are incentivized to say no.
7:33
SPEAKER_00: But the result is, everybody that is there already is kind of having a local monopoly.
7:39
SPEAKER_00: It's not scalable in the traditional sense, but it's a mode that doesn't erode with competition, because the competition never showed up in the first place.
7:49
SPEAKER_00: So lesson number two.
7:51
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes the best businesses are the ones nobody wants to do, especially when regulations and local monopolies make it nearly impossible for anyone else to try.
8:05
SPEAKER_00: Okay.
8:06
SPEAKER_00: Lesson number three is about my favorite analysis of the year so far.
8:11
SPEAKER_00: It's about Games Workshop.
8:13
SPEAKER_00: And the lesson is about built-in basements.
8:17
SPEAKER_00: Games Workshop is a strange, successful story.
8:23
SPEAKER_00: The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and it does no ad campaigns, it has no real social media promotions, it does no acquisitions, and it doesn't even diversify its revenue streams into other categories.
8:37
SPEAKER_00: It's just one universe, one game, and an army, literally, of obsessive fans who can't get enough of the game.
8:49
SPEAKER_00: The best intellectual property doesn't really start in a C-suite strategy meeting.
8:56
SPEAKER_00: It usually starts with someone building a game in a basement, thinking about it in the shower, or during late-night conversations with friends who share the same obsession.
9:07
SPEAKER_00: It starts on folding tables with a problem in messy bedrooms, places where passion, problems, not planning or profits are the driving force.
9:18
SPEAKER_00: Warhammer, the game Games Workshop is all about, started as a nerdy tabletop game in the 1980s, made by and for hobbyists.
9:29
SPEAKER_00: Over time it became something far bigger.
9:32
SPEAKER_00: Long before Games Workshop figured out licensing deals, e-commerce, logistics, or even dividends, it figured out how to tap into something primal.
9:42
SPEAKER_00: Something.
9:44
SPEAKER_00: The joy of building something by hand, and the immersion of living in a world of your own creation.
9:52
SPEAKER_00: It's about being immersed in a different world, in a different story.
9:59
SPEAKER_00: You can't really copy Warhammer, just like you can't really copy Lego.
10:04
SPEAKER_00: The IP took decades to build.
10:07
SPEAKER_00: The ruleset is constantly evolving and changing.
10:11
SPEAKER_00: The painting tutorials are part of the journey.
10:14
SPEAKER_00: The effort you put in is part of it.
10:17
SPEAKER_00: The community gatekeeps the lore.
10:19
SPEAKER_00: And newcomers love it.
10:22
SPEAKER_00: There are dozens of cheaper Lego alternatives, yet no real Lego fan even considers it.
10:29
SPEAKER_00: And when people love what you've built so much that they cosplay your characters, paint them, write stories about them, put their lives' work into it, and argue over their backstories, you have done way more than just selling a piece of plastic.
10:44
SPEAKER_00: It's power of bottom-up brand building.
10:48
SPEAKER_00: So the lesson we can take away from Games Workshop was that the best and most valuable ideas don't always come from boardrooms.
10:57
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes they start from basements.
11:00
SPEAKER_00: Lesson number 4 is about Portillos.
11:03
SPEAKER_00: I analyzed this restaurant chain with Brett from Chit Chat Stocks back in May 2025.
11:09
SPEAKER_00: Portillos is a Chicago-style restaurant chain and has fewer than 100 locations.
11:16
SPEAKER_00: Yet it generates more revenue per restaurant than chipotle, chick-filet, and even McDonald's.
11:25
SPEAKER_00: Portillos isn't really fine dining, it doesn't win Michelin stars, it doesn't serve artisanal cuisine.
11:33
SPEAKER_00: What keeps people coming back is the consistent quality, the speed, the affordability, and most importantly, the authentic Chicago style food.
11:43
SPEAKER_00: Before I get to the lesson of Portillos, what makes this company so interesting is that it's not really about a deep mode or cutting-edge innovation.
11:53
SPEAKER_00: It's rather simple, which I like.
11:55
SPEAKER_00: The restaurant, Portillos, serves food, and people either come back, or they don't.
12:03
SPEAKER_00: It's not about there's no secret algorithms, there's no switching costs, there's no confusing technology involved, it's about three things.
12:12
SPEAKER_00: Food, people, and operations.
12:15
SPEAKER_00: The right restaurants can effectively scale the same successful concept over and over again.
12:23
SPEAKER_00: Think about Chipotle, which we analyzed, or Texas Roadhouse, which we also analyzed, who have done just that.
12:31
SPEAKER_00: Scale the same concept and just keep doing what works.
12:35
SPEAKER_00: If you get the food right, have a scalable concept, hire the right people, and run a tight ship, you can expand for years and let the numbers stack up.
12:47
SPEAKER_00: I get it, the brand isn't invincible, its mode is more cultural than structural, and it's definitely not immune to wage inflation or even commodity costs.
12:58
SPEAKER_00: But when you build a restaurant that pays back its investment in 3 years, and then just prints cash for decades to come, you don't really need perfection, you just need discipline to keep doing what works.
13:12
SPEAKER_00: In investing, we sometimes chase the world-class modes, the highest returns on capital, the strongest technology companies, visionary founders, and I like it, yes, of course that's fun.
13:26
SPEAKER_00: But every now and then, a business comes along that's just good.
13:30
SPEAKER_00: It's priced fairly, it's run well, it's growing predictable, with decades of white space ahead.
13:38
SPEAKER_00: So the lesson I took away from Portillos was that you don't always need the best product or the strongest mode.
13:46
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes a good business with a great playbook and a long runway is all you need.
13:52
SPEAKER_00: I thought that was a great lesson from Portillos.
13:55
SPEAKER_00: Next up is HIMS and hers health.
13:59
SPEAKER_00: This analysis was done by Matthijs back in April 2025, and the lesson is about trust.
14:07
SPEAKER_00: Hims is a company that aims to revolutionize the healthcare system in the USA but also globally.
14:14
SPEAKER_00: But when we talk about the USA specifically, it suffers from many inefficiencies and bottlenecks for patients.
14:22
SPEAKER_00: The business is surfing on a big wave towards telehealth, aiming to make health more affordable and personalized.
14:30
SPEAKER_00: Both good things, I guess.
14:32
SPEAKER_00: They are the market leader in this segment today, and they're gaining market share over competition year after year.
14:40
SPEAKER_00: While the revenue has grown with a staggering 95% kegger since 2018, the founder of the company is still at the helm and owns a substantial share position in the company itself.
14:54
SPEAKER_00: For decades, industries like men's health, hair loss, mental health, weight management were kinda built on silence.
15:04
SPEAKER_00: People didn't really like to talk about it, and they still don't do today, but it is kind of changing.
15:10
SPEAKER_00: And although it is changing, people still feel uncomfortable or ashamed.
15:17
SPEAKER_00: People don't like to talk about their insecurities or imperfections.
15:21
SPEAKER_00: Not to their friends, often not even to their doctors, and I can relate.
15:26
SPEAKER_00: The issue is not with price or accessibility, it's more with discomfort.
15:32
SPEAKER_00: And that's where HIMS comes in.
15:35
SPEAKER_00: HIMS didn't invent one new medicine, it just made getting help a little less awkward, a little easier.
15:43
SPEAKER_00: It meets people right at that tipping point, so to say, where you're fed up with avoiding the mirror or Dutching conversations, and it makes it easy to take action.
15:53
SPEAKER_00: It's not very different from other great brands.
15:57
SPEAKER_00: Chewy, for example, sends flowers when your pet dies.
16:00
SPEAKER_00: Apple removes friction you didn't even know was there.
16:04
SPEAKER_00: HIMS removes the voice in your head that says, Oh my god, this is so embarrassing, or I don't want to go to the doctor, and you probably know the feeling.
16:14
SPEAKER_00: In healthcare, trust is the product, and HIMS earned it by listening.
16:20
SPEAKER_00: Turns out, making people feel human is one hell of a business model.
16:24
SPEAKER_00: So the lesson we took away from HIMS is removing friction is great, removing shame is better.
16:31
SPEAKER_00: Next up is the largest company in the world.
16:34
SPEAKER_00: Well, it changes every day, but Microsoft.
16:38
SPEAKER_00: And it's about infrastructure.
16:40
SPEAKER_00: When recording this analysis, Microsoft is over$3.4 trillion in market cap.
16:46
SPEAKER_00: Our analyst Matthijs Mbauke put together two deeply impressive deep dives of Microsoft, over 60 pages of research and more than two hours of podcast discussion.
16:58
SPEAKER_00: It was a great discussion, and I learned a lot of new things about a company I thought I knew pretty well.
17:04
SPEAKER_00: Although Microsoft is far from physical infrastructure like buildings, toll roads, or shops, you literally can't do without them.
17:12
SPEAKER_00: Most businesses run on Windows.
17:14
SPEAKER_00: They use Outlook for email, Word for documents, Excel for everything from budgets to billion dollar models.
17:22
SPEAKER_00: Meetings happen in Teams, code is pushed through GitHub, servers run on Azure.
17:29
SPEAKER_00: You could swap one or two of those tools, but try removing them all at once across thousands of employees, and you'll see why Microsoft is almost impossible to replace.
17:41
SPEAKER_00: The real mode here is not only product quality, but how deeply integrated Microsoft has become into how the world operates and works today.
17:51
SPEAKER_00: Microsoft basically built the foundation.
17:54
SPEAKER_00: It became the default for millions of organizations.
17:58
SPEAKER_00: And once something becomes default, it's very here nearly impossible, difficult to get off it.
18:06
SPEAKER_00: All to maybe save some money.
18:09
SPEAKER_00: So most companies don't even consider it.
18:12
SPEAKER_00: Other companies have laid this foundation too.
18:15
SPEAKER_00: AWS with cloud hosting, Visa with payments, SAP with enterprise software, Alphabet with Android, arguably Google too.
18:28
SPEAKER_00: But nothing lasts forever, but the infrastructure is definitely last to go.
18:34
SPEAKER_00: So the lesson we took away from Microsoft is, if you built the infrastructure, not just a product, you become unreplaceable.
18:43
SPEAKER_00: Alright, so that were 6 lessons from 6 different companies, all vastly different, and not every company ended up in a buy.
18:53
SPEAKER_00: We say no to most companies, but we truly believe that but we truly believe there is something to be learned from each and every company.
19:02
SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it's a moat, sometimes it's a mistake we made, sometimes it's just a great reminder of what matters most.
19:09
SPEAKER_00: That is why we study companies for ourselves, for you, and for our amazing members.
19:16
SPEAKER_00: Because every business has a lesson worth remembering.
19:20
SPEAKER_00: If you want to join our growing community of like-minded investors, check out thedutchinvestors.com.
19:27
SPEAKER_00: That's it for today.
19:28
SPEAKER_00: Like always, stay curious, keep learning, and happy investing!