Planet MicroCap Podcast | MicroCap Investing Strategies

In this engaging discussion, Ben Kohn, President and CEO of PLBY Group, Inc., navigates the challenges of reviving the iconic Playboy brand. With a focus on returning to its roots and innovative partnerships like the Byborg deal, Kohn shares insights on managing cultural risks. He elaborates on the company’s vision for digital transformation and attracting a new audience while maintaining brand relevance. The conversation also touches on strategic investments and the future of sustainable publishing in a changing landscape.

My guest on the show today is Brian Kitchen, President & CEO, Ryan Kavalauskas CFO of Ascent Industries Co. (NASDAQ: ACNT). Ascent Industries Co. is a company that engages in a number of diverse business activities including the production of specialty chemicals and industrial tubular products. Ascent will be joining us in Las Vegas, and I invited the team on to learn more about: History of Ascent Industries Brian and Ryan's background and why they decided to join Ascent; and, Their experience turning around specialty chemicals businesses Path to profitability while still focused on growth, and 3-5 year vision for the company For more information about Ascent Industries, please visit: https://ascentco.com/ This podcast was recorded and is being made available by SNN, Inc. (together with its affiliates and its and their employees, “SNN”) solely for informational purposes. SNN is not providing or undertaking to provide any financial, economic, legal, accounting, tax, or other advice in or by virtue of this podcast. The information, statements, comments, views, and opinions provided in this podcast are general in nature, and such information, statements, comments, views, and opinions, and the viewing of/listening to this podcast are not intended to be and should not be construed as the provision of investment advice by SNN. The information, statements, comments, views, and opinions expressed in this podcast do not constitute and should not be construed as an offer to buy or sell any securities or to make or consider any investment or other course of action. The information, statements, comments, views, and opinions expressed in this podcast (including by guest speakers who are not officers, employees, or agents of SNN) are not necessarily those of SNN and may not be current. Reference to any specific third-party entity, product, service, materials, or content does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by the SNN. SNN assumes no responsibility or liability for the accuracy or completeness of the content contained in third party materials or on third party sites referenced in this podcast or the compliance with applicable laws of such materials and/or links referenced herein. The views expressed by guest speakers are their own and their appearance on this podcast does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. SNN does not make any representation or warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of any of the information, statements, comments, views, or opinions contained in this podcast, which may include forward-looking statements where actual results may differ materially. SNN does not undertake any obligation whatsoever to provide any form of update, amendment, change, or correction to any of the information, statements, comments, views or opinions set forth in this podcast. SNN EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL LIABILITY OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR OTHER DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF ANY INDIVIDUAL'S USE OF, REFERENCE TO, RELIANCE ON, OR INABILITY TO USE, THIS PODCAST OR THE INFORMATION PRESENTED IN THIS PODCAST. By accessing this podcast, the listener acknowledges that the entire contents and design of this podcast, are the property of SNN, or used by SNN with permission, and are protected under U.S. and international copyright and trademark laws. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this podcast may save and use information contained in the podcast only for personal or other non-commercial educational purposes. No other use, including without limitation, reproduction, retransmission, or editing of this podcast may be made without the prior written consent of SNN.

In this discussion, John Rotonti, Portfolio Manager at Islamorada Investment Management, delves into the electrification of industrial sectors and its investment implications. He shares insights on evaluating businesses in this evolving landscape, particularly the aging U.S. electrical grid and increasing semiconductor demand. John also recounts his unexpected journey into investing, emphasizing the need for thorough research, cash flow analysis, and understanding management incentives. His passion for quality businesses and long-term growth shines through as he navigates the future of infrastructure investments.

My guest on the show today is Denver Smith, Managing Partner & Chief Investment Officer at Carlson Ridge Capital. We've done a number of episodes over the years on Activist Investing, and I'd say all the investors that end up going activist, it's a reluctant endeavour; they basically, with all the circumstances happening in that particular company, made a conscious decision doing a time and cost analysis that it was a necessary step. But the biggest difference between most activist investors we've had on, or rather, investors that have gone active, is that they wouldn't necessarily describe themselves as activist investors; it was all situational. While becoming an activist investor was initially unintentional with my guest today, Denver Smith, he is now most certainly intentional when the circumstances are ripe. And we dive into what a ripe situation looks like. And for full disclosure, we discussed a number of companies during today's podcast, I am not a shareholder in any of them. For more information about Carlson Ridge Capital, please visit: https://carlsonridge.com/ We're excited to announce that we'll be partnering up with MicroCapClub for our full slate of investor conferences in 2025. Ian Cassel and his team at MicroCapClub have not only built and fostered the best community of MicroCap investors, but it's arguably one of the best investing communities, period. We couldn't be more thrilled to leverage our expertise in curating and hosting large scale MicroCap conferences, and teaming up with MicroCapClub to put together world class conferences for the MicroCap community. First up, the Planet MicroCap Showcase: VEGAS in partnership with MicroCapClub will be held on April 22-24, 2025 at the Paris Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Registration is now live, please visit: https://www.meetmax.com/sched/event_113149/conference_home.html. See you in Vegas! Planet MicroCap Podcast is on YouTube! All archived episodes and each new episode will be posted on the Planet MicroCap YouTube channel. I’ve provided the link in the description if you’d like to subscribe. You’ll also get the chance to watch all our Video Interviews with management teams, educational panels from the conference, as well as expert commentary from some familiar guests on the podcast. Subscribe here: http://bit.ly/1Q5Yfym Click here to rate and review the Planet MicroCap Podcast The Planet MicroCap Podcast is brought to you by SNN Incorporated, The Official MicroCap News Source, and the Planet MicroCap Review Magazine, the leading magazine in the MicroCap market. You can Follow the Planet MicroCap Podcast on Twitter @BobbyKKraft

My guest on the show today is with Devin LaSarre, Founder & Editor of Invariant. I've been following Devin for a while on social media, and invited him on to better understand his overall investing philosophy, and then specifically dig into an industry / idea a bit further. This episode I would say falls into the "ways of seeing" bucket, meaning, every once in a while I have a conversation on here with someone that has a completely different way they look at investing that I find very unique. In this case, Devin's focus on finding very "unclean" stories and doing the work to clean it up struck a chord that I wanted to understand further. I had a blast jamming on this concept, and then diving further on the Nicotine industry and his thesis on Haypp Group. And for full disclosure, we discussed a number of companies during today's podcast, I am not a shareholder in any of them. For more information about Invariant, please visit: https://invariant.substack.com/ You can Follow Devin LaSarre on Twitter/X: https://x.com/DevinLaSarre We're excited to announce that we'll be partnering up with MicroCapClub for our full slate of investor conferences in 2025. Ian Cassel and his team at MicroCapClub have not only built and fostered the best community of MicroCap investors, but it's arguably one of the best investing communities, period. We couldn't be more thrilled to leverage our expertise in curating and hosting large scale MicroCap conferences, and teaming up with MicroCapClub to put together world class conferences for the MicroCap community. First up, the Planet MicroCap Showcase: VEGAS in partnership with MicroCapClub will be held on April 22-24, 2025 at the Paris Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Registration is now live, please visit: https://www.meetmax.com/sched/event_113149/conference_home.html. See you in Vegas! Planet MicroCap Podcast is on YouTube! All archived episodes and each new episode will be posted on the Planet MicroCap YouTube channel. I’ve provided the link in the description if you’d like to subscribe. You’ll also get the chance to watch all our Video Interviews with management teams, educational panels from the conference, as well as expert commentary from some familiar guests on the podcast. Subscribe here: http://bit.ly/1Q5Yfym Click here to rate and review the Planet MicroCap Podcast The Planet MicroCap Podcast is brought to you by SNN Incorporated, The Official MicroCap News Source, and the Planet MicroCap Review Magazine, the leading magazine in the MicroCap market. You can Follow the Planet MicroCap Podcast on Twitter @BobbyKKraft

My guest on the show today is Gavin Burnett, CEO of Locafy (NASDAQ: LCFY). Locafy is a software-as-a-service technology company specializing in local search engine marketing. Founded in 2009, Locafy's mission is to revolutionize the US$700 billion SEO sector.   SEO, also known as Search Engine Optimization, is phrase you have probably heard a million times, and you probably couldn't define exactly what it is. You're not alone. And the main reason being is that it's a sector that is evolving so quickly that it's difficult to keep up. I invited on Gavin today because, since I last interviewed him back in February 2023, the company has had it's own evolution in tackling this both simple and complex problem every company must figure out: how do people find our business on the internet. We discuss this, and:  Locafy's suite of solutions The company's business strategy What the competitive landscape looks like Progress towards profitability; balancing growth vs. focus on profitability, and their 3-5 year vision for the company For more information about Locafy, please visit: https://locafy.com/  This podcast was recorded and is being made available by SNN, Inc. (together with its affiliates and its and their employees, “SNN”) solely for informational purposes. SNN is not providing or undertaking to provide any financial, economic, legal, accounting, tax, or other advice in or by virtue of this podcast. The information, statements, comments, views, and opinions provided in this podcast are general in nature, and such information, statements, comments, views, and opinions, and the viewing of/listening to this podcast are not intended to be and should not be construed as the provision of investment advice by SNN. The information, statements, comments, views, and opinions expressed in this podcast do not constitute and should not be construed as an offer to buy or sell any securities or to make or consider any investment or other course of action. The information, statements, comments, views, and opinions expressed in this podcast (including by guest speakers who are not officers, employees, or agents of SNN) are not necessarily those of SNN and may not be current. Reference to any specific third-party entity, product, service, materials, or content does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by the SNN. SNN assumes no responsibility or liability for the accuracy or completeness of the content contained in third party materials or on third party sites referenced in this podcast or the compliance with applicable laws of such materials and/or links referenced herein. The views expressed by guest speakers are their own and their appearance on this podcast does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. SNN does not make any representation or warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of any of the information, statements, comments, views, or opinions contained in this podcast, which may include forward-looking statements where actual results may differ materially. SNN does not undertake any obligation whatsoever to provide any form of update, amendment, change, or correction to any of the information, statements, comments, views or opinions set forth in this podcast. SNN EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL LIABILITY OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR OTHER DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF ANY INDIVIDUAL'S USE OF, REFERENCE TO, RELIANCE ON, OR INABILITY TO USE, THIS PODCAST OR THE INFORMATION PRESENTED IN THIS PODCAST. By accessing this podcast, the listener acknowledges that the entire contents and design of this podcast, are the property of SNN, or used by SNN with permission, and are protected under U.S. and international copyright and trademark laws. Except as otherwise provided herein, users of this podcast may save and use information contained in the podcast only for personal or other non-commercial educational purposes. No other use, including without limitation, reproduction, retransmission, or editing of this podcast may be made without the prior written consent of SNN.

My guest on the show today is Kyle Grieve, Host of We Study Billionaires Podcast on the Investor's Podcast Network. I've been a fan from afar and had the chance to hang with Kyle at our conference in Vancouver last year. We had a blast and thought we should bring that energy to the podcast. I wanted to learn more about his background and how he got hooked into our MicroCap world here. We dove deeper into his thoughts on the differences between a quality business and quality investment, his criteria for an ideal investment and we close with lessons learned that came to his mind from his interviews on the We Host Billionaires podcast. And for full disclosure, we discussed a number of companies during today's podcast, I am not a shareholder in any of them.   For more information about We Study Billionaires, please visit: https://www.theinvestorspodcast.com/we-study-billionaires/   You can Follow Kyle Grieve on Twitter/X: https://x.com/IrrationalMrkts    We're excited to announce that we'll be partnering up with MicroCapClub for our full slate of investor conferences in 2025. Ian Cassel and his team at MicroCapClub have not only built and fostered the best community of MicroCap investors, but it's arguably one of the best investing communities, period. We couldn't be more thrilled to leverage our expertise in curating and hosting large scale MicroCap conferences, and teaming up with MicroCapClub to put together world class conferences for the MicroCap community. First up, the Planet MicroCap Showcase: VEGAS in partnership with MicroCapClub will be held on April 22-24, 2025 at the Paris Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. Registration is now live, please visit: https://www.meetmax.com/sched/event_113149/conference_home.html. See you in Vegas! Planet MicroCap Podcast is on YouTube! All archived episodes and each new episode will be posted on the Planet MicroCap YouTube channel. I’ve provided the link in the description if you’d like to subscribe. You’ll also get the chance to watch all our Video Interviews with management teams, educational panels from the conference, as well as expert commentary from some familiar guests on the podcast. Subscribe here: http://bit.ly/1Q5Yfym Click here to rate and review the Planet MicroCap Podcast The Planet MicroCap Podcast is brought to you by SNN Incorporated, The Official MicroCap News Source, and the Planet MicroCap Review Magazine, the leading magazine in the MicroCap market. You can Follow the Planet MicroCap Podcast on Twitter @BobbyKKraft

Adam Wilk, Founder and Portfolio Manager at Greystone Capital Management, shares his expertise on microcap investing with insights inspired by Buffett’s philosophy on shareholders. The discussion dives into how companies attract the investors they deserve. Adam emphasizes the need for effective communication to unveil a company's hidden growth potential, showcasing patience in long-term investing, illustrated by a case study of Despagar. He tackles misconceptions about small-cap investments, promoting their growth while highlighting the importance of strategic management.

Whit Huguley, Fund Manager at River Oaks Capital, shares his insights on microcap investing, blending experience from private equity with a focus on rigorous due diligence. He discusses the unique opportunities presented by the pandemic and the importance of capital allocation strategies like share buybacks. Whit emphasizes building strong relationships with company management and identifies qualities of successful micro-cap leaders. He also delves into current trends in community banking and the undervalued state of micro-cap firms.

Conor Maguire, Founder and Editor of the Value Situations Newsletter, shares his journey from accounting to a value investing focus on special situations. He discusses the importance of thorough research and strategies for navigating market mispricing, particularly in distressed investments. The conversation dives into challenges within the UK equity market, revealing opportunities in undervalued stocks. Maguire also emphasizes personal investment lessons from public equity trades that highlight the necessity of market analysis for better decision-making.