Episoder
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Go back 20 years and consensus said that managing international equity portfolios from Australia was just too difficult.
Bob Desmond and his team at Claremont Global are proving that is yesterdayâs thinking. Starting from scratch in 2012 the business has grown to over $1 billion and the style of picking the eyes out of quality growth has been able to outpace global markets.
Desmond grew up in Rhodesia, the southern African country that was renamed Zimbabwe in 1980. He studied economics in Western Australia before heading back to his homeland to start working in markets.
Life became difficult under the Mugabe regime and Desmond packed his bags and headed to London where his world view opened before his eyes. It was here that he developed his quality growth strategy for stocks.
Always keen to relocate to Australia, Desmond got the green light for his migration in 2008 just in time to sidestep the worst of the GFC. He kicked off his career at financial group Evans and Co. Four years later Desmond and his colleagues set up Claremont Global.
Desmond has used his vast experience garnered on three continents to identify the best growth stocks on the globe. He does not believe in too much diversification and thinks excessive trading is counterproductive.
Tune in to the latest episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff to learn about Desmond's unique style of investing and some of the companies in the concentrated Claremont Global Fund.
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Australia is obsessed with interest rates like no other country, and it is distracting us from tackling more pressing challenges, like productivity, that would have a greater impact on the cost of living crisis facing many Australians.
That's the view of former Reserve Bank Governor Dr. Philip Lowe, who spent 43 years working at the RBA, including 7 years in the top job from 2016 to 2023.
Dr Lowe believes the current policy settings from the RBA are suitably restrictive with risks remaining and the battle to tame inflation hasn't been won. Lowering interest rates may ease some of the pain households are feeling, but it isn't the silver bullet many perceive it to be.
In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, Dr Lowe discusses the lessons through his RBA journey and shares his thoughts on some of the pressing economic issues of 2025.
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Chris Corrigan has had his fingerprints all over corporate Australia for more than 50 years now. The boy from Bowral joined stockbroking firm Ord Minnett in the late 1960s to get the ball rolling. When Ords formed a joint venture with US fund manager Bankers Trust in the early '70s, Corrigan jumped in boots and all. He saw an opportunity to derail the establishment life insurance companies that dominated the Australian landscape. A disruptive force, Corrigan steered BT Australia to the top of the mountain before he started to get restless for his next adventure.
Leaving BT in the late '80s, he formed his own investment vehicle, Jamison Equity, picking off opportunities as they arose. During the 1990s, a chance to buy into port operator Patrick Stevedores arose. Stevedoring had been a tough business in Australia, hamstrung by militant unions. Corrigan thought he would give it a go, and before long it was his sole focus.
The election of the Howard government in 1996 was the green light he needed to challenge the Maritime Union of Australia front on. He restructured the business and went about removing union workers. A decision by the High Court forced the MUA to the trade table, and a significant agreement was struck that improved Australia's container movements forever. The battle was on the front page every day, and Corrigan took a major personal hit, but eventually got his way.
In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, Corrigan shares the story behind the growth of an Australian investment powerhouse and his fierce battle to reform the Australian waterfront.
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Success and More Interesting Stuff is back in 2025 with new episodes being released on the first Tuesday of each month. We're excited for the year ahead and would love for you to subscribe to the podcast.
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Welcome to the final episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff for 2024. In this episode, weâre closing out the year with a guest who knows how to deliver a knockout punch.
Joe Aston spent 12 years as co-writer of the AFRâs Rear Window column, transforming it from a finance industry gossip page into a hard-hitting, no-holds-barred must-read. With a sharp wit and a fearless approach, Aston took on everyone from prime ministers and billionaires to untouchable institutions.
In October 2023, Aston signed off from Rear Window with a bang, exposing Qantas and its CEO Alan Joyce for their conduct during the COVID pandemic. But Aston didnât stop there. Instead of taking a break, he penned the bestseller The Chairmanâs Lounge, a deep dive into how Qantas fell from national sweetheart to corporate villain.
Before journalism, Aston cut his teeth in politics, working with Joe Hockey and Liberal Party icon Bruce Baird. He also spent time inside the walls of Qantas, gaining firsthand insights that would shape his future career.
Itâs a conversation you wonât want to miss as we wrap up an incredible year. I hope you enjoy this podcast and I look forward to bringing you more episodes of Success and More Interesting Stuff in 2025.
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Bega Cheese turned 125 this year. It started as the Bega Co-operative Creamery Company in 1999, and for over a century, things were pretty quiet. That all changed in 2000 when a young dairy farmer, Barry Irvin, took the reins as chairman. From then on, itâs been a whirlwind of growth and transformation.
In 2011, Irvin took Bega to the Australian stock market, and under his leadership, the company made several key acquisitions. Today, Bega isnât just a dairy business. Itâs a major player in Australian food, owning brands like Vegemite, Peanut Butter, Dare Milk, and Yo Plait. Now, Bega has a market cap of around $1.6 billion.
But Barry Irvinâs story is about more than business success. Heâs faced significant personal challenges too. His son, Matthew, was born with profound autism. Irvin became a key figure in Giant Steps, a nonprofit supporting children with autism. In 2019, Irvin faced his own health battle, being diagnosed with bowel cancer. Despite a tough fight, he beat the disease and returned to lead Bega once again.
In this episode of the Success and More Interesting Stuff podcast, I chat with Barry Irvin about his journey, both personal and professional. Itâs a story of resilience, leadership, and the determination to succeed.
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David Lyons has travelled around the world chasing a rugby ball. From the time he started to take the game seriously as a 15-year-old he was earmarked for success. Twice he toured Europe with the Australian schoolboys, opening his eyes to a world significantly larger than the one he experienced growing up in the NSW country town of Molong.
Lyons played 46 tests for the Wallabies over 8 years including two World Cups and a British Lions tour. At just 28 years he picked up his ball and moved to Wales for a few seasons before settling in France for a longer stint.
It was in Europe that he started to plan for his future. He studied at Oxford and in Monaco. This set him up for a career in finance.
Heading back to Australia, Lyons picked up a role at KPMG before eventually deciding to pitch his own tent. In 2021 he joined with some other like-minded professionals and launched AAG Partners. The group specialises in the agriculture sector.
Acutely aware from his farming days in Molong of the financial volatility in the agricultural industry, he has deliberately sought out ways to deliver higher returns with less risk.
In this podcast, Lyons talks about the journey from rural NSW to representing Australia at an elite level on the global stage. He also shares his passion for continuous learning and how this is helping to uncover new opportunities through his agriculture investment firm AAG Partners.
0:00 - Introduction1:30 - Growing up in Molong7:00 - A passion for agriculture and entrepreneurship9:15 - Building a career in Rugby16:02 - What it takes to be truly great in any field21:52 - Going global and moving to Europe26:13 - Continuous learning and development28:29 - Returning to Australia29:30 - Starting AAG Partners34:45 - A formula for higher returns for less risk in agriculture39:45 - A revolution in cotton farming -
Sometimes, misfortune can lead to opportunity.
Wes Maas was an aspiring young rugby league player trying to establish himself in the NRL. The kid from Dubbo had boundless energy and in his spare time, he worked in an equipment hire business. A football injury not only meant he was out of action on the field, but it also took him out of the hire yard and into head office. It was here that his world opened up.
The family-run business was successful. It concentrated heavily on return on total assets. Wes was quick to catch on. It wasn't long before he threw in his NRL dream and headed back to Dubbo for a fresh start.
Still in his early 20s, Wes spent his savings on a bobcat and borrowed twice that amount to buy a tipper. Suddenly, he was running his own business. Never happy to rest on his laurels, Wes expanded his fleet of equipment. He was keen to diversify and soon started an equipment hire business, leaning on his knowledge from his time in Sydney.
While Dubbo may seem to some to be a remote place to build an empire, Wes saw its potential. He was able to buy a quarry under the nose of an international giant. Then, his world expanded.
Property development and civil works followed in 2020. Wes looked to float the business on the share market, in the hope that a capital raise would help it grow even further. Maas Group (ASX: MGH) listed and started to expand.
Today, this former rugby league player runs a $1.5 billion business and he has amassed a personal fortune in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
The group has assets throughout regional New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland, with Dubbo right in the middle. Still, only in his 40s, Wes' journey has a long way to go.
In this podcast, Wes takes investors through his early days as an aspiring rugby league player and the early days of running his own business - back when his family referred to him as "Neville No-Trade".
He also shares some of the plans the Maas Group team has for the future, and some of the greatest moments in the journey so far.
https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/the-former-rugby-league-player-who-now-runs-a-1-5-billion-business
Timecodes:
0:00 - Intro 1:54 - Early rugby days 4:18 - Major lessons Wes took away from this time 5:12 - Overcoming injury and why everything happens for a reason7:17 - Learning the equipment hire game on the job 9:49 - Moving home to Dubbo11:12 - Starting his own business17:02 - Building an achievable long-term business plan 20:27 - Scaling the business 24:09 - Expanding into building materials 29:12 - Listing on the ASX and COVID experience34:32 - Rising rate environment and impact on Maas Group36:34 - Importance of "steady" not "rapid" growth 38:20 - Growth plans for the future 39:16 - What happens when an acquisition doesn't work40:12 - Importance of good people 41:17 - Areas that are exciting over the next five years 43:46 - How Wes defines success -
It is rare for a person to spend the first half of their working life in the public service and then pivot to build a multi-billion dollar financial business. Making the story even more remarkable is that this person grew up in regional Queensland - where financial products are hardly the main course of the local economy.
Ian Macoun, the Managing Director and Founder of Pinnacle Investment Management (ASX: PNI) was born in Rockhampton - a city best known for its cattle production. He left town to work for the Queensland Treasury before being poached as a 33-year-old to run the newly constructed Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC).
It was here that he was introduced to the world of investing. With QIC up and running, Macoun headed to Sydney, joining the private sector. A stint at Westpac opened his eyes to the opportunity in funds management and in 2000, he struck out with Mike Crivelli forming Perennial Funds Management.
It wasn't long though, and Macoun was thinking of an alternative funds management model. Taking minority ownerships in multiple managers, providing the onerous back office functions and accessing the key ingredient for any fund manager - funds.
He discovered this opportunity at stockbroker Wilsons Advisory. Macoun teamed up with Steve Wilson to change his fledgling Hyperion Funds Management arm into a multi-manager model. This was the birth of Pinnacle Investment Management.
Today, Pinnacle has been spun out of Wilson's and has 16 affiliates with a staggering $110 billion of total funds under management. It is growing rapidly and Macoun believes $200 billion is not out of the question.
In this episode of Sucess and More Interesting Stuff, Macoun opens up about his early years and upbringing, shares how he came up with the Pinnacle model and outlines his plans for the future.
Note: For disclosure purposes, the funds associated with Matthew Kidman own shares in Pinnacle Investment Management.
https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/no-shortcuts-how-ian-macoun-built-a-100-billion-funds-management-behemoth/
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Traditionally, on the show, we talk to people involved in some shape or form with the share market. Today, we are excitedly going off-piste and delving into the unlisted world in one of Australia's outstanding success stories.
In 2008, Lina Calabria and two partners decided to start nine separate businesses as consultants. They had plenty of bright ideas and thought that creating a portfolio of companies, while unorthodox, was a low-risk path to success.
Within a few years, they selected Bellroy, an accessories business that specialises in male wallets, as the pick of the bunch. From humble beginnings, Bellroy, named after combining Bell's Beach and Fitzroy, has grown into a global brand with more than $130 million in sales.
Bellroy sells in dozens of countries and has created its own category called Carry. In other words, they design products you carry around, such as slim wallets, backpacks, work bags, duffel bags, totes, passport holders, and phone cases. It's niche but nicely profitable.
Today, Calabria sees a great opportunity to expand Bellroy in both products and countries, and she believes doubling and possibly tripling the business is a realistic goal.
Click on the player below to hear how Calabria and the team at Bellroy created their own category and navigated the trails of COVID-19 to build a business making a name on the global stage.
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Stockbroking is a dangerous game. Investors depend on your advice, but the smallest slip-up can see the relationship turn nasty. As a result, most brokers tend to be as conservative as possible; not Hugh Robertson.
Robertson a 40-year veteran of the stockbroking scene in Melbourne, thrives at the risk end of the curve, specialising in micro and small cap stocks. He works like a gold prospector out in the field with his metal detector looking for the next big discovery.
His list of wins includes Monadelphous (ASX: MND), Service Stream (ASX: SSM), Bellamyâs (ASX: BAL), Hub24 (ASX: HUB), Afterpay and PSC Insurance (ASX: PSIN). He found most of those companies well before they'd been researched by the investment community and, in some cases, even before they listed on the share market.
Robertson has a unique style. He does not rely on numbers to make his decisions. To make matters harder, he has always found reading difficult. Instead, following his natural instincts, he garners information by getting to know people.
His conversations are endless and his intuition for what might work is uncanny. Most investors would've run into Robertson on Collins Street, with a cigarette in one hand and his mobile phone in the other, on the scent of the next big thing.
That doesn't mean he gets all his stock calls right â far from it. Like anyone dealing in small companies, there are always disappointments. His troubled children include Envirosuite (ASX: EVS) and Maggie Beer (ASX: MBH), but the ledger sits firmly in the positive.
Interestingly, Robertson is comfortable sitting on the boards of the companies he backs. Some people in the investment community would describe this as unorthodox, but Robertson likes to make sure he knows the people running the companies he's recommending to his clients. And if the company heads down the wrong path, he's prepared to make the changes required to right the ship.
His other great love is the land. Like most Collins Street farmers, it has been a rocky road. Early setbacks, though, have subsequently led to some prize properties in rural Victoria and probably the best garden in the state.
In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, I speak with Hugh about his path to stockbroking, his passion for prospecting and some of the incredible stories he has brought to the market. Hugh also shares a few of the emerging companies catching his eye right now.
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Richard White always wanted to be a rockstar. He was still young when it dawned upon him that it might be more profitable and realistic to become a tech titan instead.
Sounds simple enough, but the journey has taken many twists and turns. Over 40 odd years, White thought life was perfect, hanging out in a rock band and rubbing shoulders with the likes of ACDC and The Angels. Unfortunately, he was going broke.
A problem solver, he pivoted and thought repairing guitars for established rock stars was a way to make an interesting living. The business was a resounding success, but it wasn't perfect. It couldn't be scaled. And another salient lesson was learned.
Nexy, a lighting business was built and sold, and then a stint in the computer hardware distribution game rounded out some much-needed business skills.
In between ventures, White took on some consultancy work. Just by chance, some of his clients were in the freight forwarding game and White, ever alert, identified things could be done a lot better.
So he got to work again and started writing software. Even though he had little practical training, he had twigged the entire freight forwarding industry needed a hand, and he took his products and started selling them more broadly. It is rare that one individual can write the software and then sell it. That was way back in the late 1980s.
During the 1990s, his business became the platform for many major transport companies. Not satisfied, White decided to disrupt his own business. In the early 2000s, he rebuilt his product suite before forging into North America and Europe with a name changed to WiseTech.
The company followed its customers and spread its tentacles around the globe. In 2016, White decided to list on the ASX. He thought publicly traded shares would give him the currency he needed to buy the missing bits to cement a global empire.
And he was right. Close to 50 acquisitions later, WiseTech owns the space. The share price has risen a staggering 26 times from $3.35 to $90. Today WiseTech is valued at $30 billion and is the largest software company listed on the ASX.
According to White, the music is still playing. And WiseTech has a few hit songs to knock out yet.
Note: This podcast was recorded on Wednesday 24 April 2024.
Timecodes:
0:00 - Intro 2:29 - Richard's favourite musicians 4:27 - Richard's on his enduring love for music 6:46 - The influence of Richard's upbringing on his career11:17 - The importance of being able to put ideas into practice 13:58 - How Richard taught himself how to build hardware 16:01 - On sales (and lessons learnt from his previous businesses)17:18 - Why cash is king 19:36 - The importance of persistence 21:59 - How Richard identified a problem he could solve in freight forwarding26:14 - Why good sales is actually marketing 27:42 - The beginnings of WiseTech30:38 - On the importance of education and how it helped grow WiseTech32:46 - Taking WiseTech global34:35 - External investment in the company and an IPO40:16 - On signing DHL pre-IPO41:37 - Dealing with volatility: commentary on the 2019 short attack and early COVID-19 struggles 44:45 - WiseTech has acquired 49 companies since listing 45:48 - Why people are a business's most important intellectual property49:13 - Educating the next generation (and why "STEM" isn't working)52:08 - The DNA of WiseTech Global today...53:09 - ... And what could disrupt that55:38 - Richard on his succession/retirement and legacy -
A revolution has taken place in share investing since the turn of the century. American firms have led the charge with the likes of Vanguard and Blackrock taking passive investing around the globe.
Disenchantment with active fund managers has seen funds flow into the passive sector, accelerated by the emergence of exchange traded funds, or simply ETFâs.
In Australia, the revolution arrived late. Active managers held sway for many years before eventually the dam wall broke. The American behemoths came hard, but they didnât have it their own way.
Aussie startup Betashares grew out of the GFC and took up the fight. Cobbled together by Alex Vynokur, an immigrant from the former Soviet Union, it wasnât long before Betashares captured the attention of market participants around the country.
15 years on and Betashares has more than 90 ETFâs, $37 billion assets under management and 150 employees. It is the second largest ETF provider in the Aussie market and in 2023 managed to rank number one for inflows with 37 per cent market share.
As a 16-year-old Vynokur and his family left the Ukraine as the walls of the former Soviet Union came crumbling down. Alex had no English and had to start from scratch. He caught on quickly and in a few short years was studying Law at UNSW.
A brief stint working as a lawyer was followed by a job at finance house Pengana with Malcolm Turnbull and Russell Pillemer. He deduced that not all active managers were able to beat the market. Around the same time, he latched onto the emergence of ETFs. Mortgaging his house and taking time for a fact-finding tour of the US saw him kick off Betashares.
In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, Alex discusses his view on the future of both passive and active investment styles, the incredible growth of Betashares and his passion for making an impact on war-stricken Ukraine.
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Affordable housing seems to be an elusive goal in Australia. However, Lifestyle Communities (ASX: LIC), which is celebrating its 21st birthday in 2024, might have just cracked the code.
The companyâs land rent model is spreading across Victoria at an ever-increasing rate. To date, more than 30 villages within driving distance of Melbourne have been built or are in the planning stage. In total, more than 5,700 homeowners have been accommodated with many more to come.
Lifestyle Communities started life modestly. At the helm was property veteran James Kelly ably assisted by his partners Bruce Carter and Dael Perlov. The company debuted on the ASX four years later, quietly backdooring into a listed cash box. Over the next 17 years, only the insiders and some unsuspecting investors have enjoyed the stunning 2,500% return. Today the company has a market value of $1.7 billion.
Like most successful businesses the original idea was a simple one. Make housing affordable for empty nesters in their late 50s and early 60s. Sell your home and move into a brand-new village nearby. Buy the home and rent the land, having enough capital left over to live a comfortable life."In Australia, every night, we have 12 million empty bedrooms, which speaks volumes to this empty nester challenge that Australia faces," Kelly says."We should have a 'last home buyers' grant. We know that first-home buyers' grants typically go into the builder's pocket when the government hands those out when there's a downturn in housing. But a 'last home' buyers grant would actually encourage people to get out of their homes, downsize and free up housing stock for the next generation."Today, Kelly, at 64 years old, is a prime candidate to be a Lifestyle Communities customer. I get the feeling though that he is still happy to keep the accelerator to the floor.
I first met James not long after the company listed on the ASX in 2006. He has always been an engaging, upbeat individual, defying the typecast property developer image. In this podcast, he takes investors through the journey, and shares what keeps him inspired after 21 years in the business.
Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 28 February 2024.
Timecodes:
0:00 - Intro
2:33 - From an idea in a cafe to a $1.8 billion company - coming up with the Lifestyle Communities concept
5:36 - The transformation of the retirement industry
7:17 - Early financing struggles and selling the concept
11:28 - The intrinsic desire to be part of a community
13:03 - James Kelly's upbringing, family life and first foray into property
16:03 - The lasting impact and legacy of property investment and development
17:14 - The key to successful property development
19:04 - Experiences that created the leader James Kelly is today
25:52 - The importance of pricing risk as a busy owner
29:22 - The Lifestyle Communities model and its first development
34:09 - Backdoor listing on the ASX
37:18 - Lifestyle's most recent capital raise and plans for the future
40:38 - The transformation of Lifestyle's share register
41:56 - The opportunity in Generation X
45:56 - Why leaders/managers should focus on being kind
47:46 - How to solve Australia's housing crisis
50:32 - Why James Kelly won't be retiring any time soon
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Over the last four years, Success and More Interesting Stuff has been privileged to host some of the legends of the Australian equity market. Arguably though no one has had more of an impact on the industry than Kerr Neilson. Originally from South Africa, Neilson landed on Australian shores in 1983 where he joined the ranks of Bankers Trust. BT was on the rise and Neilson stood out among the pack. After just two years, he was placed in charge of the retail business. Under his leadership, it became the growth engine of the firm managing money around the globe. BTâs mercurial handling of the 1987 crash saw Neilsonâs retail arm of the company hit its stride, garnering billions of dollars to manage. Stellar performance and a growing reputation as a canny operator saw Neilson build a name for himself. In 1993, Neilson decided to go it alone forming Platinum Asset Management. As one BT operative described on the day of his departure, âthe trading room floor at BT felt like it was hosting a funeral.â Counting George Sorosâ Quantum Fund among its original investors, Platinum got off to a flying start. Pitching itself as a global investor, the company powered through the next decade reaching $26 billion of funds under management. In 2007, Neilson and his team decided to float Platinum. It was good timing, with the market nearing a peak before the Global Financial Crisis. Neilson ran Platinum for another decade before handing the reins to Andrew Clifford. In 2022, he decided to depart the Platinum board, ready for the next part of his journey. In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, Neilson shares some of the major moments that shaped his career trajectory, some of his biggest wins during this time, as well as why his inventive ancestors taught him the "importance of being in the game - whatever the new game is" - and right now, he believes that is AI. He also addresses some of the major changes that he hopes are on the horizon for Platinum investors - and shares why he still believes he has a responsibility to shareholders even after all this time. Note: This interview was recorded on Thursday 8 February 2024.
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In 1987, Olev Rahn was pounding the streets of New York's financial district, meeting with Wall Street's best strategists. Rahn, who was running BT Financial's institutional business Pendal, felt distinctly uneasy about the exuberance gripping financial markets. It felt like a giant bubble, and the deeper he dug, the more convinced he became that a reckoning was just around the corner.Rahn's instincts proved spot on as markets cratered on what has since become known as Black Monday. Combining put options and futures selling saw BT breeze through the '87 crash while others crumbled. From that moment, BT was the main game in town. Billions flowed into the coffers, and it was the number one place to work in Australia. Rhan remained key until BT Australia was sold to the principal group for 2.1 billion in 1999.In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, Rahn discusses the growth of BT Financial in Australia, the key figures that were instrumental in building the firm, and how the firm navigated the 1987 crash. Rahn also shares his views on markets in 2024 and why he is happy to have some cash at hand.
Time stamps
0:00 - Introduction3:10 - Early life and leaving Estonia8:15 - Developing an interest in economics9:49 - An opportunity with Ord Minett and the XYZ method of research15:13 - A move to London on the back of booming markets20:03 - A call with Chris Corrigan and bringing active management to Australia25:05 - Good performance leads to rapid growth Keating30:41 - Kerr Neilson and Jillian Broadbent join BT as it becomes a powerhouse34:15 - 1987 and the era of corporate excess38:54 - The strategies Olev Rahn used to protect BT from the crash of 198742:00 - The signs of exuberance prior to the 1987 crash47:39 - A golden era for Bankers Trust50:00 - Olev Rahnâs views on markets in 2024 -
Every year, fund manager Eley Griffiths invites stockbrokers from across the country to a lavish dinner. In the cutthroat world of the share market, stockbrokers rarely get treated by their clients. Eley Griffiths, the $1.2 billion small company manager known affectionately as EGG, is a rare breed.
The fact that EGG is currently celebrating its 20th year is a testament to the value that everyone contributes to the process of grinding out returns in the volatile small company market. It is a deliberate strategy and reflects the founder's personality.
Ben Griffiths is a 30-year-plus veteran of the market. The son of a comedian, Griffiths has always loved an audience, and appreciated their participation in the show, whether it be the speech at the annual dinner, or the day-to-day process of picking stocks.
Leaving school, Griffiths found himself on the trading floor of the ASX. He's old enough to remember the 87 stock market crash. From this came many lessons, including a desire to switch to funds management. He found a home as a dealer at Mercantile Mutual and was planted in the middle of a treasure trove in the form of Greg Matthews, David Paradice, Peter Mellett, and John Morgan. He progressed from dealer to analyst, and then portfolio manager. At the turn of the century, he had a brief stint at BT where he worked with Brian Eley, and before long the two had hatched a plan to form EGG and do it their way.
Looking back over 20 years, there were some difficult times. The first 12 months were a real grind, and then years later, Eley became seriously ill before passing away in 2018. Through all this EGG has moved forward with Griffiths at the helm. In the 20th year, the group is branching out into the mid-cap fund. No doubt there are plenty more returns, and broker dinners to be had.
Time stamps
5:00 The highs and lows of 20 years in small caps9:50 The powerful role of Ben Griffithsâ grandmother13:15 Working on the trading floor in the 1980s20:15 His move into institutional broking26:40 âA richer training ground you could not have hoped forâ32:00 A âblank sheetâ opportunity at BT42:30 Reflections on Lehman Brothersâ collapse48:00 The loss of Brian Eley52:00 His market outlook for 2024. -
Graham "Skroo" Turner grew up in splendid isolation. His family owned an orchard in Southeast Queensland, and he rode a pushbike to school, which was so small it only required one teacher. Even when he went to university, he avoided humans and decided to study vet science.
Skroo, now seventy-four years old, still sits atop of Flight Centre (ASX:FLT), Australia's largest travel agency, which operates in twenty-four countries. He is the fearless leader of thousands of employees and has a unique management technique that has allowed the company to scale well beyond its humble beginnings.
While Flight Centre was officially born in the early 1980s in Australia, its predecessor, Top Deck, kicked off in 1973, dreamt up over a beer with some friends at Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany. The Top Deck story is legendary in Australian corporate history, with Skroo and his clan driving buses out of London to all parts of the globe, including Afghanistan and Morocco.
He was back in London a few weeks ago to celebrate the 50th birthday of Top Deck and enjoy a beer with some of the old crew who shared his sense of adventure.
Skroo has come a long way in the 50 years and has run into a few potholes and even roadblocks. There was 9-11, The GFC, and of course the COVID-19 virus that induced a near-death experience for Flight Centre. Somehow he has battled through and still seems to enjoy it. In fact, not much has changed. He still looks and sounds like an orchard farmer from Queensland, retaining his laid-back manner that disguises an entrepreneur with a mean competitive streak.
In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, Turner talks about growing up on a farm, how he began his career in tourism, his unique approach to management as well as the highs and lows of Flight Centreâs journey.
Time stamps
0:00 - Introduction1:50 - 50-years since the launch of Top Deck4:56 - Growing up in isolation and breeding a sense of adventure8:59 - Travelling through Europe sows the seeds of a travel business16:10 - The first Flight Centre stores and rapid growth24:20 - Flight Centre lists on the ASX26:08 - The âFamilies, Villages and Tribesâ approach to management30:43 - Donât sweat the small stuff and the alchemy of growth34:56 - The enormous cost of COVID-19 for Flight Centre40:26 - The future for airline travel in Australia46:08 - Making Flight Centre relevant for young people47:42 - Succession -
It's been just over a decade since Andrew Alcock took a risk on a small up-and-coming investment platform. The gamble has certainly paid off. Since joining the firm in July 2013, HUB24's (ASX: HUB) share price has skyrocketed around 4200% - turning an ASX-listed microcap into a market-leading 30-bagger.
In the early months of 2013, HUB24 was on its knees. The company experienced a boardroom battle, an emergency capital raising, and a lack of leadership. Born out of the stockbroking outfit InvestorFirst, the company was losing millions of dollars a year and its future was doubtful.
The boardroom bloodbath saw founder Otto Buttula depart, and Bruce Higgins installed as the new chairman. The company looked externally for a fresh start - and a CEO who could bring new ideas and a large dose of optimism.
In a bold decision, they landed on Alcock, an unknown quantity to the listed market. At the time, Alcock was running the AMP-owned planning group Genesys Wealth Advisers.
HUB24âs share price in July 2013 was hovering around $1 a share and the company had just posted a loss of $9.7 million with funds under advice of just $479 million. Alcock obviously knew the industry better than most and saw a bright future for HUB24.
Fast forward a decade and things have changed. HUB24, along with its close rival Netwealth, have ushered in a new breed of financial platforms, leading the charge against the incumbents â MLC, BT, and ironically, AMP.
Today, HUB has over $80 billion in funds under advice and in FY23 it booked a net profit of just under $60 million. The companyâs share price trades at around $33 with a market capitalisation of $2.8 billion.
Alcock who, as a youngster on Sydney's North Shore dreamed of playing the keyboards in a band, has clocked up 10 years in charge of HUB24 - and he believes the next decade looks even brighter for the investment platform. Along with his right-hand man Jason Entwistle and a burgeoning team, there is a belief that the surge towards the top of the charts will continue.
In this episode of Success and More Interesting Stuff, Alcock openly shares his inspirational journey to the top, some of the challenges along the way, as well as some of the exciting initiatives for HUB24 in the future.
Note: This interview was recorded on Thursday 23 November 2023.
Timecodes0:00 - Intro 2:01 - HUB24's recent record-breaking results 3:34 - A deep dive into Andrew's beginnings 4:40 - Andrew's two early ambitions: medicine and music 5:50 - Life growing up on Sydney's North Shore in a family of six kids 10:10 - Bible college, marriage at 21, and the beginnings of a career in tech14:40 - How Andrew was introduced to the finance industry 17:24 - Andrew's first gig as a CEO (and why he is all fight, no flight)21:15 - A foray into financial advice at Genesys Wealth 22:54 - On what attracted him to take the opportunity at HUB2428:53 - The first few months in the role 32:21 - How the industry has changed since then 34:22 - On the benefits of having a rival in Netwealth35:44 - Why it's important to have a vision (but set realistic goals along the way)37:43 - The Royal Commission into misconduct in the banking, superannuation and financial services industry (and the beginnings of a "revolution" at HUB24)40:23 - The attributes of a good leader 44:59 - What keeps Andrew up at night 47:18 - On Bruce Higgins's retirement from the chair of HUB2449:04 - What investors can expect from HUB24 over the next decade52:50 - How HUB24 is using AI to improve efficiency for advisers and investors 55:38 - How investors should measure HUB24's success 58:32 - On coming out publicly and the importance of being authentic -
Anton Tagliaferro grew up in Malta, playing football and studying with the dream of someday becoming a doctor. This was pushed aside, however, when political unrest in his native country led him to leave for London, where he ended up studying accounting.
Soon after graduating, Anton discovered the world of funds management and was hooked on the idea immediately. Through taking advantage of chance opportunities, Anton was able to migrate into an equities manager role, where he began building a personal brand as a reliable investor.
After receiving encouragement from clients, Anton struck out on his own and founded Investors Mutual Limited in 1998. The timing put Tagliaferro and his team at the formation of the tech bubble.
"We set up, and the first six months things were going ok. And then the tech boom comes along," he recalled.Bolstered by a background in accounting, and some unorthodox methods of avoiding the pressures of the crowd, Tagliaferro avoided falling into the common pitfalls of Dot-com stocks.
"Every single piece of rubbish with technology in the name was running, and all the while every decent company was being sold down," he said.This led to several years Anton described as the most brutal in the business, as indices bloated with overvalued tech stocks, leaving his value portfolio in the dust. He persevered, however, and when the tech bubble eventually burst, his fund's fortunes flipped and would end up drastically outperforming the market overall.
This demonstration of high conviction investing, in the face of much criticism, built Tagliaferro and IML a reputation in the market, and their funds under management grew accordingly.
Recently, Anton has been able to move into retirement, which he now spends contributing to the development of soccer in Australia. That being said, he still keeps an eye on the markets and hasn't ruled out a return to the industry.
"If I was starting a boutique fund manager today, and I might start one next year, I haven't decided yet, I'd focus on international equities," Anton said. "I think the Australian market - the amount of superannuation, the amount of money chasing a handful of stocks... it's such a concentrated index - and if you look at the quality below the top 20, I've gone through it a thousand times, I'm still going through it, and you take out the REITs and resources, there are very few good quality industrials in Australia."In this podcast, Anton shares his origin story, his serendipitous journey into funds management, and the challenges he has faced along the way. He also provides his view on the current market landscape and opens up about his plans for the future.
Timecodes:
0:00 - Introducing Anton2:12 - Growing up in Malta, early career path through accountancy9:10 - Getting a start in London13:36 - Coming to Australia16:17 - Grabbed by the stock market18:25 - How do you get into Funds Management21:00 - Lucking into an equities manager position at Perpetual28:50 - Perpetual launches a fund31:25 - Move to County and lessons from institutional investors34:20 - Investing philosophy37:00 - "It's time to set up your own thing"39:25 - Hardest time in Anton's career41:45 - Collapse of the tech boom45:20 - What drove performance50:15 - What's the state of markets at the moment56:26 - What's next? - Vis mere
