5SR - January 9, 2024

Hitha on the riptide economy, Taraji P Henson, and why you buy

Author

Hitha Palepu
January 09, 2024

Today’s curator is the founder of #5SmartReads, Hitha Palepu. She’s a consummate multihyphenate - CEO of Rhoshan Pharmaceuticals, author of WE’RE SPEAKING: The Life Lessons of Kamala Harris and How to Pack: Travel Smart for Any Trip, and professional speaker. Hitha is an unabashed fan of Taco Bell, Philadelphia sports teams & F1, romance novels, and is a mediocre crafter. She lives in NYC with her husband and two sons.

This has been the strangest economy in recent history. Employment numbers are strong, wages are ticking upward, and the stock market reached unprecedented highs in the past months.

But interest rates are still high, as are consumer prices on everyday goods. I’ve personally seen a number of startups cease operations or accept the lowest balled deals for survival. Despite what the numbers say, many feel that the economy is as Jay Sean sang.

(I couldn’t help myself and no, I’m not sorry).

It’s apparently the “riptide economy”, and smaller private companies (with annual revenue between $100-750M) are an underreported bellwether of how the economy is actually faring.

“Between 2019 and the end of 2022 (the most recent full-year data), earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) — a key measure of earnings — declined 24% for midmarket companies. For public companies, it soared 18%.

- EBITDA margins collapsed by 25% in the midmarket; the Russell 3000's margins only softened by 2%.

- Financial leverage, or the ratio of debt to EBITDA, rose 62% in the midmarket; in stark contrast, it declined 14% among public companies.”

So why does this sector warranted this level of investigation? It employs almost 1/3 of our workforce and accounts for 1/3 of the private sector GDP. This sector is a significant one, and these companies’ reality differs from the large public corporations who tend to dominate the economic news.

Taraji P. Henson Is Tired of Fighting (New York Times)
article is gifted via my subscription

Taraji P. Henson’s words in this video is one I can’t stop thinking about. And this article mercifully goes deeper and offers vital context for not just this soundbite, but what it means to be a Black woman in America (not just Hollywood).

This is such an honest and vulnerable interview, and I was pleasantly surprised that Kyle Buchanan let Henson’s words and stories take up space in this interview (versus centering the piece on his perspective, which I’ve seen happen too often in celebrity profiles). Please take the time to read the entire interview. I’ll leave you with the quote that I’ll be carrying with me in how I work and show up in the world:

“I always want to be this shining example of how you age in this business and show grace to those coming up, so I had to go work on myself because I was becoming tired of the fight. I thought maybe I’d just quit, but then I have Danielle and Fantasia saying, “If you quit, then what about us?” I know that they appreciate it. They know how hard I fight, and they’re like, “You taught me so much.” I don’t want them to have this conversation. I’m tired of Black women having this conversation, and I’ll be glad when it’s a different conversation we’re having.

So I guess I can’t quit just yet. I said all of that, just to say I can’t quit.”

Trying to summarize or comment on this piece does it a disservice. 

I encourage you to read it in full, and also remind you that our top diplomats and intelligence officials continue to spend much of their time in the region negotiating a diplomatic end to a war that has claimed far too many innocent lives.

Created for Clicks (Marie Claire)

Have you thought about how many of your purchasing decisions are based on what you actually need and want, versus buying into viral trends?

I’m guilty of this, for sure (and it has contributed to the impulsive, emotional shopping habit I’m working on minimizing). I also recognize that many of these decisions are strongly influenced by simply scrolling on social media and being online:

“Going viral can feel like creating magic in a bottle—unpredictable, lucky, impossible—but it’s not accidental. Our intense desire to dress like ladies of leisure—complete with bucket hats and earth-tone outfits, if not waterfront property—is less serendipity and more a full-on strategy. Fashion and beauty brands are creating, marketing, and promoting intentionally for the sake of Internet clicks, and often, the hype of it all. But is that enough to stay relevant?”

Reviewing my December order history was my own horrifying aha moment of how my online habits have influenced purchases I neither needed or really wanted once they arrived. I’m all for allocating some of your hard-earned money into items and experiences that bring you joy and pleasure. I would just ask that you ask yourself “who’s influencing this purchase?” and waiting a week or so before you click “buy.”

I’ve been in deep conversations with my healthcare friends about this news, which has the paradoxical quality of being surprising and unsurprising.

On one end, it’s fairly unprecedented to see a drug manufacturer seemingly cut the middleman and fulfill prescriptions through telehealth providers.

The key word is seemingly. Halle accurately highlighted that LillyDirect is working with existing providers in the telemedicine, in-person, and digital pharmacy spaces to fulfill these orders:

Matthew Herper (one of my favorite industry reporters) also highlights this move as a way to curb the demand from compounding pharmacies who “manufacture” their own supply of these drugs (with great risk and with no quality oversight). Revenue is also a driver here (Lilly and the other companies manufacturing these GLP-1 drugs receive no revenue from compounding pharmacies making their own versions).

This article does an excellent job of explaining this news with the context and in-depth reporting it requires. 

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