Episode 128: Not Europe’s Blue Nile

Andrew Rickard stresses the importance of getting a credit report and outlines his plans for the Jewelers Board of Trade (JBT) after his recent appointment as its president. Plus: Lab-grown diamonds, tariffs, and the state of the industry. 

Nilesh Chhabria, chief operating officer at Finestar Diamonds & Jewellery, reflects on the recent JCK Las Vegas show, the market for fancy-shape diamonds, and why natural is regaining some of the ground it lost to lab-grown. 

German jewelry designer Katharina Junkert recounts the history of Pforzheim, the country’s famed manufacturing city. She also explains why German consumers prefer diamonds with high color and clarity — perhaps because of the weather? Plus: The positive and negative impacts of US ... Show More

David Sandstrom is the CMO of Klarna, the fintech company founded in Sweden in 2005. Klarna offers products and services to consumers and retailers in payments, social shopping, and personal finance. In 17 short years, Klarna has become Europe’s highest valued private fintech com ... Show More

John Wilson bought & grew a very small plumbing business 26x over the last 7 years, and today has plans to reach $100m.Topics in John’s interview:Growing up in his family’s home services businessTaking over the business at 23Acquiring a turnaround to grow his businessHis first ti ... Show More

Can success create a false sense of invincibility? For Pete, it did—and it cost him millions.After selling his business for $80 million, Pete felt unstoppable. But his overconfidence led him into a risky venture that didn’t pay off. Determined to prove he wasn’t a one-hit wonder, ... Show More

What happens when the big exit doesn’t fill the void?Josh Payne thought selling his company for $80 million would be the defining moment of his life. Instead, it sent him into one of the darkest periods he’d ever experienced.Josh’s story is a testament to the complexity of succes ... Show More

Trevor Boehm shares how Saturn Five started as a venture studio but found buying small businesses a better model. Topics in Trevor's interview:First rule of holdcos: Do No HarmBenefits of buying businesses in a single geographyWhat makes for a good owner-operator?How Saturn Five ... Show More

Scott and Ed open the show by discussing the DOJ’s antitrust lawsuit against Visa, Meta’s new AR glasses and the recent executive resignations at OpenAI. Then Scott explains why Palantir is one of the most overvalued companies in tech, and why he thinks the brand has resonated wi ... Show More

In this week’s Omni Talk Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Firework, Avalara, TGW, and Sezzle, Chris and Anne discussed:The recent pharmacy walkouts at CVS and WalgreensH&M enabling customers to design their own clothes with AISchnucks taking local produc ... Show More

Free Trial to Alf's Institutional Research?Ping Alfonso Peccatiello on Bloomberg for more info! In this podcast, Alf invites Peter Farac (aka @countdraghula on Twitter) to the show.Peter brings a wealth of experience running money and has specific skills in rates and vol markets. ... Show More

Jarett Berke told his intermediary "no restaurants" but changed his tune when he saw what a great business Lou's was.Topics in Jarett’s interview:Finding a business through an accountantWhy restaurants are a tough businessComparing military service to running a restaurantBuying a ... Show More