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Business Breakdowns

Business Breakdowns

By: Colossus | Investing & Business Podcasts
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 Learn how companies work from the people who know them best. Each episode dissects a single business - from its origins and model to its financials and competitive edge. We uncover the lessons behind every success story. Learn more at www.joincolossus.com. Economics Personal Finance
Episodes
  • CME Group: The House Always Wins - [Business Breakdowns, EP.224]

    CME Group: The House Always Wins - [Business Breakdowns, EP.224]
    Jul 23 2025
     This is Matt Reustle and today we are breaking down the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. My guest is Adam Chandler, co-PM at Claremont Global, and together we get into the nitty gritty of exchanges. We all know how integral exchanges are to the financial system but we rarely stop to understand how they operate, how they make money, and how they shape the flow of dollars. This episode aims to do just that. Please enjoy this breakdown of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. —- Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ joincolossus.com/episodes⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠). Show Notes (00:00:00) Introduction to Business Breakdowns (00:00:51) Introducing the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (00:01:52) Understanding the Exchange Business (00:03:38) The Role of Clearinghouses (00:04:29) Diving into CME's Specialization (00:07:18) Historical Evolution of CME (00:09:40) Modern Operations and Risk Management (00:19:39) CME's Market Position and Growth (00:29:13) Revenue Breakdown and Product Insights (00:35:23) Volume Drivers: Treasuries and Interest Rate Markets (00:36:47) Comparing CME with Other Exchanges (00:42:10) Profitability and Cost Structure of CME (00:45:37) Capital Allocation and Dividend Strategy (00:47:35) Innovation and New Product Offerings (00:49:24) Impact of Passive Investing on CME (00:53:09) Risks and Regulatory Environment (00:58:26) Key Lessons from CME's Business Model
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    1 hr
  • Agilent: Back To The Lab - [Business Breakdowns, EP.223]

    Agilent: Back To The Lab - [Business Breakdowns, EP.223]
    Jul 16 2025
     This is Matt Reustle. Today, we are breaking down Agilent. If you aren't familiar with Agilent, it is a $30 billion market cap company at the time of this recording, and they focus on one of the more interesting niches: equipment and instruments sold into laboratories. Its equipment is being sold to the life sciences sector, diagnostics, applied chemical markets, and some very unique R&D work. My guest is Mark de Vos, fund manager at Troy Asset Management, and he brings us through the story of Agilent. It was born within Hewlett-Packard, which spun off a little more than 25 years ago, and Mark helps break down highly complex concepts like chromatography. This is a deeply ingrained industry player with a unique razor and razor blade model and an evolving business. Please enjoy this breakdown of Agilent. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page⁠⁠⁠ ⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠. —- Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit⁠⁠⁠⁠ joincolossus.com/episodes⁠⁠⁠⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠⁠⁠⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠⁠⁠⁠). Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to Business Breakdowns (00:02:28) Understanding Agilent's Core Business (00:03:28) Agilent's Market and Customer Base (00:04:55) Agilent's Historical Background (00:08:58) Agilent's Product and Service Strategy (00:13:51) Competition and Market Position (00:24:29) Financial Performance and Growth (00:28:07) New Business Segments and Innovations (00:35:32) Valuation and Investment Insights (00:40:07) Lessons From Agilent
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    42 mins
  • Patek Philippe: Watch Perfection - [Business Breakdowns, REPLAY]

    Patek Philippe: Watch Perfection - [Business Breakdowns, REPLAY]
    Jul 9 2025
    This is Matt Reustle. Today we are replaying our Breakdown of Patek Philippe. You never own a Patek Philippe. You merely watch over it for the next generation. I'll say it's the best marketing campaign in history, a campaign appropriate for the world's premier watchmaker and a watchmaker worthy of a Business Breakdown. Our guest today is John Reardon from Collectability. John has worked at Sotheby's, the auction house, and spent a decade at Patek Philippe in the early 2000s. He continues to write for Patek Philippe Magazine while he has launched Collectability, a brand dedicated to vintage and preowned Patek Philippe. We cover what makes Patek such a special brand. There is an almost 200-year history in craftsmanship and countless patents (like that self-winding mechanism that powers all automatic watches today.) What Philippe Stern did in 1989 could be worthy of a 10-episode series, so there is much to learn from this episode. Please enjoy this breakdown of Patek Philippe. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here. ----- Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @JoinColossus | @zbfuss | @ReustleMatt Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to Business Breakdowns (00:02:41) The main differences between Patek Philippe and Rolex (00:06:32) An introduction to Patek Philippe’s brand (00:08:47) The founding story of the business (00:11:14) Henry Graves and the watches that he made for the brand (00:16:46) The production process for making a Patek Philippe watch (00:19:56) A look at the 1989 and its importance to the business (00:22:08) The types of people who were interested in the brand and purchasing at auction in 1989 (00:24:41) An overview of the successful marketing campaigns of the 1990s (00:27:26) Patek’s strategy at auctions, embracing both consignment and buying (00:30:38) The general size and scope of the Patek Philippe secondary market (00:32:20) The brand’s perspective of the secondary market and whether it affects the way they market new items (00:36:47) John’s personal experience working at Patek Philippe (00:40:36) The company’s distribution strategy (00:43:42) Breaking down the points of sale, branded dealers versus authorized dealers (00:44:29) The mindset behind consolidating dealers and the exclusivity it created as a byproduct (00:46:22) How the LVMH acquisition of Tiffany has affected Patek Philippe (00:49:18) The potential of Patek Philippe being acquired by another company (00:53:48) Lessons learned from Patek Philippe
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    59 mins
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