Kelly Granat

consumer products expert, marketing expert, and this was a largely membership, loyalty-driven business around cosmetics where almost the entire employee base is female that had great product curation but not a great culture inside the company and really hadn't built a great marketing muscle. And she came in and added all of that to the formula and the new economics of the business.

consumer products expert, marketing expert, and this was a largely membership, loyalty-driven business around cosmetics where almost the entire employee base is female that had great product curation but not a great culture inside the company and really hadn't built a great marketing muscle. And she came in and added all of that to the formula and the new economics of the business.

They always had great four walls as a retailer, but really added something different to the go-to-market and the proposition to the customer and how the company was run, who she hired. And that's a great example of a very strong business that could be managed even better by somebody who had the expertise that they lacked.

They always had great four walls as a retailer, but really added something different to the go-to-market and the proposition to the customer and how the company was run, who she hired. And that's a great example of a very strong business that could be managed even better by somebody who had the expertise that they lacked.

So we knew her because, again, we track people, right? We follow people who we think are great. And when we owned McDonald's, many years ago, she was a CMO. So I met her for the first time at a meeting at corporate headquarters, where they roll in five or six different executives. And she came in, and I didn't know who she was. And

So we knew her because, again, we track people, right? We follow people who we think are great. And when we owned McDonald's, many years ago, she was a CMO. So I met her for the first time at a meeting at corporate headquarters, where they roll in five or six different executives. And she came in, and I didn't know who she was. And

She spoke and answered a bunch of questions and was super thoughtful and insightful. And she walked out and I was like, who is this person? And I Googled her and saw her background. And she used to work in CPG, which tends to be great training ground for analytical thinkers. And then we kind of followed her. And I knew Ulta.

She spoke and answered a bunch of questions and was super thoughtful and insightful. And she walked out and I was like, who is this person? And I Googled her and saw her background. And she used to work in CPG, which tends to be great training ground for analytical thinkers. And then we kind of followed her. And I knew Ulta.

And we were sort of dazzled by their four-wall unit economics and done a bunch of work on the company. But the execution had been uneven, I would say, prior to her arrival. And there were things we thought were missing in terms of how the business was being run.

And we were sort of dazzled by their four-wall unit economics and done a bunch of work on the company. But the execution had been uneven, I would say, prior to her arrival. And there were things we thought were missing in terms of how the business was being run.

And so when the board announced her hiring, we were like, oh, my God, this is kind of perfect because she's exactly the right leader for the opportunity that this company has and has the right skills to kind of really lift what's happening here. And so...

And so when the board announced her hiring, we were like, oh, my God, this is kind of perfect because she's exactly the right leader for the opportunity that this company has and has the right skills to kind of really lift what's happening here. And so...

There always has to be room for them in the portfolio, right? Because those are the great compounding businesses. I mean, we owned both those companies at their IPOs and had meaningful positions. And, you know, with the benefit of hindsight, never should have sold. I mean, they would have gone to very large positions over time. So, of course, it would have trimmed.

There always has to be room for them in the portfolio, right? Because those are the great compounding businesses. I mean, we owned both those companies at their IPOs and had meaningful positions. And, you know, with the benefit of hindsight, never should have sold. I mean, they would have gone to very large positions over time. So, of course, it would have trimmed.

Look, that's why a portfolio is such an interesting entity because it's a balance of a lot of different things. And so the people thing is hugely important for us and we always want to know who we're lined up with and what their incentives are and all the things I mentioned.

Look, that's why a portfolio is such an interesting entity because it's a balance of a lot of different things. And so the people thing is hugely important for us and we always want to know who we're lined up with and what their incentives are and all the things I mentioned.

But there's also a lot of room for owning just fantastic businesses that to your point, whether you have an A plus CEO or an A minus, I'm not sure it really matters that much on the margin. We just want to make sure we're not paying too much for them, right?

But there's also a lot of room for owning just fantastic businesses that to your point, whether you have an A plus CEO or an A minus, I'm not sure it really matters that much on the margin. We just want to make sure we're not paying too much for them, right?

So that's, I think, always the key to in those situations is we want to own a stable of great businesses, particularly when there's a moment of dislocation or a question of doubt about something or there's a perception of a competitive threat that we think is sort of being overplayed in the market. Those often give us the opportunity to own great businesses at more reasonable prices.

So that's, I think, always the key to in those situations is we want to own a stable of great businesses, particularly when there's a moment of dislocation or a question of doubt about something or there's a perception of a competitive threat that we think is sort of being overplayed in the market. Those often give us the opportunity to own great businesses at more reasonable prices.