Luxury Brands Thrive on Certainty and Inflation Resilience

2min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

The market favors businesses with predictable cash flows and revenue growth, particularly in sectors like luxury goods. Brands like Hermès and LVMH thrive in any economic climate due to their sustained demand and ability to adjust prices with inflation. Hermès, especially, demonstrates remarkable growth in China, which constitutes half of its business, showcasing resilience despite local economic challenges. A comparative study suggests that the value of luxury items, such as Birkin bags, may even surpass traditional inflation hedges like gold and the S&P 500 over extended periods, emphasizing the premium status and investment potential of high-quality luxury products.

On today’s episode, Clay is joined by Shree Viswanathan for a stock deep dive on Hermès. Hermès is a luxury goods manufacturer renowned for its high-quality craftsmanship. The brand is known for its iconic products, such as the Birkin and Kelly bags, silk scarves, and equestrian-inspired items.

Since the IPO in 1993, shares of Hermès have compounded at 20.6% (excluding dividends), while the S&P 500 had a total return of just 10.4%.

Shree Viswanathan is the founder and portfolio manager of SVN Capital.

IN THIS EPISODE YOU’LL LEARN:

00:00 - Intro

02:38 - A business overview of Hermès.

10:28 - Examples of Hermès thinking exceptionally long-term in their business strategy.

30:16 - The attempted takeover of Bernard Arnault.

37:59 - The strength of Hermès’ moat.

56:01 - The growth opportunities ahead for Hermès and the luxury industry more broadly.

01:03:22 - How Hermès approaches capital allocation.

01:14:15 - Shree’s thoughts on Hermès’ valuation.

01:29:51 - Risks that investors should monitor for Hermès.

And so much more!

Disclaimer: Slight discrepancies in the timestamps may occur due to podcast platform differences.

BOOKS AND RESOURCES

Join the exclusive TIP Mastermind Community to engage in meaningful stock investing discussions with Stig, Clay, Kyle, and the other community members.
Shree’s fund: SVN Capital.
Follow Shree on Twitter.
Best Anchor Stocks write-ups on Hermès.
Books mentioned: 100 Baggers, The Founder’s Mentality, The Luxury Strategy.
Stewart Brand’s seminar on long-term thinking.
Howard Marks’ podcast with Morgan House.
Related Episode: WSB585: Concentrated Value Investing w/ Shree Viswanathan.
Mentioned Episode: WSB645: The King of Luxury w/ Christian Billinger.
Follow Clay on Twitter.
Check out all the books mentioned and discussed in our podcast episodes here.
Enjoy ad-free episodes when you subscribe to our Premium Feed.

NEW TO THE SHOW?

Follow our official social media accounts: X (Twitter) | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok.
Check out our We Study Billionaires Starter Packs.
Browse through all our episodes (complete with transcripts) here.
Try our tool for picking stock winners and managing our portfolios: TIP Finance Tool.
Enjoy exclusive perks from our favorite Apps and Services.
Stay up-to-date on financial markets and investing strategies through our daily newsletter, We Study Markets.
Learn how to better start, manage, and grow your business with the best business podcasts.

SPONSORS

Support our free podcast by supporting our sponsors:

HELP US OUT!

Help us reach new listeners by leaving us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts! It takes less than 30 seconds, and really helps our show grow, which allows us to bring on even better guests for you all! Thank you – we really appreciate it!

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://theinvestorspodcastnetwork.supportingcast.fm

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://theinvestorspodcastnetwork.supportingcast.fm