I used to think growth meant expansion. New customers. New markets. New products. New everything. If it wasn’t new, it wasn’t growth—at least that’s what I believed for a long time. And honestly, that belief worked… right up until it didn’t. Because eventually, you run into a wall. Not a dramatic, obvious wall. Not the kind that announces itself with flashing lights and a warning sign. No, this one is quieter. Subtler. It creeps up on you in the form of diminishing returns, rising competition, and that uncomfortable realization that everyone else had the exact same idea you did. Welcome to saturation. And once you’re there, all those strategies built on “just go get more” start to feel a little… naive. The Moment I Realized “More” Wasn’t the Answer I remember the exact phase when things stopped scaling the way I expected. Effort went up. Results… didn’t. I was doing more outreach, producing more content, exploring more channels—basically throwing everything I had at the ide...
Quality at Scale: Why I’m Obsessed With Dominant Platform Businesses (and Why You Probably Should Be Too)
I’ll admit it: I used to chase excitement. Not in relationships—well, maybe there too—but definitely in investing. I wanted the next big thing. The undiscovered gem. The company nobody was talking about yet. The one that would 10x while everyone else was still arguing about valuation models and “fair price.” You know what I got? A portfolio full of “almosts,” “what ifs,” and a few very humbling reminders that just because something is early doesn’t mean it’s good . Eventually, I got tired of being early. So I did something radical. I started paying attention to companies that were already winning. Not kind of winning. Not “on the verge.” I mean dominating . And that’s when I stumbled into what I now think is one of the most misunderstood—and underappreciated—concepts in investing: Quality at scale. More specifically: dominant platform businesses . What I Mean by “Quality at Scale” (Because Everyone Throws Around “Quality” Like It’s Confetti) Let’s get something straigh...