WEBVTT - Bloomberg Businessweek Weekend - June 4th, 2021 0:00:02.040 --> 0:00:06.400 This is Bloomberg Business Week Inside from the reporters and 0:00:06.600 --> 0:00:10.200 editors who bring you America's most trusted business magazine, plus 0:00:10.240 --> 0:00:14.200 global business, finance and tech news as it happened. Bloomberg 0:00:14.240 --> 0:00:17.759 Business Week with Carol Messer and Bloomberg Quick Takes. Tim 0:00:17.800 --> 0:00:22.360 Stinovic on Bloomberg Radio. Hi, everyone, welcome to the weekend 0:00:22.480 --> 0:00:25.040 edition of Bloomberg Business Week. This week it's a double 0:00:25.120 --> 0:00:27.480 issue of the magazine. Well, last week we brought you 0:00:27.480 --> 0:00:31.000 the cover story featuring the Gospel. According to Kathy Wood, 0:00:31.040 --> 0:00:33.080 the issue is still on news stands and available online 0:00:33.080 --> 0:00:35.920 at Bloomberg dot com and of course on the Bloomberg terminal. 0:00:36.080 --> 0:00:39.120 So this week, Tim, we're gonna take everyone inside Apple's battle, 0:00:39.159 --> 0:00:43.040 well kind of against everything. Plus we speak with Anthony Nodo, 0:00:43.159 --> 0:00:45.640 the CEO of Sophie. They just went public this week 0:00:45.640 --> 0:00:47.800 with the help of a blank check company better known 0:00:47.960 --> 0:00:52.320 as a spack. I've heard of them. They're back. They 0:00:52.320 --> 0:00:54.840 are not a new idea, but nonetheless there's quite a 0:00:54.880 --> 0:00:57.280 mania when it comes to those blank check companies. Also, 0:00:57.320 --> 0:00:59.440 we're going to hear from the beer and wine industry 0:00:59.680 --> 0:01:03.080 about how a pandemic has changed the way Americans consume alcohol. 0:01:03.240 --> 0:01:05.120 All of that to come. We begin, though, with a 0:01:05.160 --> 0:01:08.480 reminder that this week mark the anniversary of the race 0:01:08.560 --> 0:01:13.120 massacre in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the community known as Black Wall Street. Today, 0:01:13.319 --> 0:01:15.840 dozens of attorneys and activists are involved in a lawsuit 0:01:15.880 --> 0:01:19.200 against the City of Tulsa. Attorneys representing survivors and their 0:01:19.200 --> 0:01:23.039 descendants are calling for, in part, reparations, they also want 0:01:23.120 --> 0:01:26.280 justice and more accountability from government officials well tom Back 0:01:26.280 --> 0:01:28.520 in April, the U. S House of Representatives agreed to 0:01:28.560 --> 0:01:32.440 discuss the possibility of establishing a commission to study reparations, 0:01:32.600 --> 0:01:35.600 more than thirty years after the proposal was first introduced. 0:01:35.840 --> 0:01:38.480 President Biden called the plan a good idea. As for 0:01:38.600 --> 0:01:41.640 full reparations from the federal government, it probably won't come 0:01:41.720 --> 0:01:44.680 anytime soon. That said, the city of Evanston, Illinois, is 0:01:44.720 --> 0:01:48.200 already getting started. Joining us with an article in It's 0:01:48.200 --> 0:01:51.520 a feature in the current issue of Bloomberg Business Week, magazine, 0:01:51.520 --> 0:01:54.160 available on news stands and at Bloomberg dot com. Slash 0:01:54.160 --> 0:01:57.600 business Week is Joel Weber, editor at Bloomberg News, and 0:01:57.720 --> 0:02:02.520 Susan Burfield, Projects and invest Agations reporter at Bloomberg business Week. 0:02:03.000 --> 0:02:07.760 They join us from Brooklyn joel Um, I'm I'm wondering 0:02:08.000 --> 0:02:12.119 about this because reparations are, at least how Evanston is defining, 0:02:12.160 --> 0:02:16.320 reparations are a lot more complicated than just giving people money, 0:02:16.360 --> 0:02:20.160 that's right. And and I just thought this story Um, 0:02:20.200 --> 0:02:25.239 that Susan and her colleague, our colleague Jordan Holman worked 0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:29.120 on for the magazine was amazing and perfectly timed. And 0:02:29.120 --> 0:02:32.480 and I think the reparation story is one that it 0:02:32.480 --> 0:02:35.640 has been, you know, one of the most interesting to watch. 0:02:35.800 --> 0:02:39.520 Evanston is Illinois is particularly interesting because this is the 0:02:39.560 --> 0:02:42.720 first US city to really promise that that they would 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:45.360 take this stuff on and and boy, that's not easy. 0:02:45.400 --> 0:02:48.400 It turns out, even even then, the word reparations can 0:02:48.440 --> 0:02:51.639 be controversial. So so Susan, can you can you help 0:02:51.680 --> 0:02:55.919 us understand what Evanston is going through and where it 0:02:56.000 --> 0:02:58.680 might go from here. So, you know, as you said, 0:02:58.760 --> 0:03:01.960 there's some kind of two efforts underway throughout the country. 0:03:02.000 --> 0:03:05.320 There's an effort at the national level, at least to 0:03:05.400 --> 0:03:10.880 begin talking about a federal reparations program that would probably 0:03:11.440 --> 0:03:16.440 come to trillions of dollars um for every eligible African American. 0:03:16.800 --> 0:03:20.320 And then there are cities like Evanston that are looking 0:03:20.440 --> 0:03:24.840 at what UM the local cases for reparations for you know, 0:03:25.000 --> 0:03:30.440 injustice discrimination against black residents that the cities themselves are 0:03:30.480 --> 0:03:34.920 responsible for and that they can pay within their budget. 0:03:35.080 --> 0:03:38.640 So that's usually programs of millions of dollars, in the 0:03:38.640 --> 0:03:41.880 case of Evanston ten million dollars and Susan, they're doing 0:03:41.880 --> 0:03:45.520 this through the lens of real estate. Explain why that is. 0:03:45.880 --> 0:03:49.160 You know, for a city like Evanston, UM, it's not 0:03:49.320 --> 0:03:54.560 going to attempt UM to make restitutions for something as 0:03:54.680 --> 0:03:59.560 huge as the years of slavery. But what the city 0:03:59.760 --> 0:04:03.600 why to take responsibility for and is holding itself account 0:04:04.040 --> 0:04:09.400 accountable for, is for housing discrimination UM that black residents 0:04:09.440 --> 0:04:13.520 faced in Evanston for several decades. UM that contributes, as 0:04:13.560 --> 0:04:18.039 we know everywhere to UM a racial income gap of 0:04:18.080 --> 0:04:22.080 almost seven times between black and white families. And you know, 0:04:22.120 --> 0:04:25.600 in Evanston, UM, it's pretty well documented the ways in 0:04:25.640 --> 0:04:29.400 which black residents UM at one point lived all over 0:04:29.440 --> 0:04:33.120 the city and then over the course of about two decades, 0:04:33.440 --> 0:04:37.000 we're all steered toward one neighborhood in Evanston now known 0:04:37.000 --> 0:04:40.080 as the Fifth Ward. And Susan can you know rewind 0:04:40.080 --> 0:04:43.160 the clock because this goes back actually decades and Evingston 0:04:43.240 --> 0:04:49.080 what happened? Yeah, so you know, um, Evanston can document 0:04:49.240 --> 0:04:52.640 kind of the first arrival of black residents to the 0:04:52.720 --> 0:04:57.520 late UM, eighteen fifties and sixties. Uh. And over the years, 0:04:57.640 --> 0:05:01.240 you know, there were increased none were of black residents, 0:05:01.320 --> 0:05:05.760 especially the Great Migration UM of the nineteen twenties. And 0:05:06.200 --> 0:05:12.239 as more black residents settled in Evanston, Uh, there began 0:05:13.200 --> 0:05:18.239 kind of official and unofficial codes and restrictions on where 0:05:18.279 --> 0:05:22.919 they could live. And then there came redlining, which was 0:05:23.000 --> 0:05:27.240 a national policy but also took place in Evanston. UM 0:05:27.279 --> 0:05:31.240 that further made it difficult for black residents who now 0:05:31.279 --> 0:05:35.719 we're all living in this one fairly concentrated area um 0:05:35.839 --> 0:05:40.960 to get a fair mortgage. And that policy plus under 0:05:41.000 --> 0:05:45.480 investment by the city, the results in a neighborhood where 0:05:45.480 --> 0:05:48.880 the property values are lower than elsewhere in Evanston, the 0:05:48.960 --> 0:05:54.760 homes are worth less and families were lost wealth. UM. 0:05:54.839 --> 0:05:58.159 In one of the stories that we highlight UM of 0:05:58.240 --> 0:06:02.240 Carlos Sutton, his home, his grandfather's home was actually moved 0:06:02.680 --> 0:06:06.159 from one part of Evanston to the fifth ward and 0:06:06.600 --> 0:06:10.640 the home had it been um remained where it was, 0:06:10.680 --> 0:06:14.280 I'm sorry, would today be worth maybe five dred thousand dollars. 0:06:14.839 --> 0:06:17.480 Where it is now it's worth about a hundred and 0:06:17.520 --> 0:06:21.279 fifty thousand dollars. That was Business Week Projects and Investigations 0:06:21.279 --> 0:06:24.680 reporters Susan Burfield and Business Week editor Joel Weber. The 0:06:24.720 --> 0:06:26.719 Evanson story is one will be keeping an eye on 0:06:26.839 --> 0:06:28.960 for months and years to come. Yeah, it sounds like 0:06:29.000 --> 0:06:31.360 it's been thought about for years already, but let's see 0:06:31.400 --> 0:06:33.920 if it actually moves forward. Coming up, one of our 0:06:33.960 --> 0:06:36.280 biggest interviews of the week, we're talking about so FI 0:06:36.360 --> 0:06:38.960 CEO Anthony Nodo. He joined us to talk about his 0:06:39.000 --> 0:06:41.320 company's first day of trading on the NASDAC and why 0:06:41.360 --> 0:06:44.840 a blank check company was its best option for gone public. 0:06:45.000 --> 0:06:56.800 You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week. This is Bloomberg. This 0:06:57.240 --> 0:07:00.920 is Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Masser in Bloomberg Quick 0:07:00.960 --> 0:07:06.200 Takes Tim Spinovin from Bloomberg Radio. It went public via 0:07:06.279 --> 0:07:08.760 aspack this week, and it was a spack back by 0:07:08.839 --> 0:07:11.640 venture capital investor and what many have called the pied 0:07:11.640 --> 0:07:15.160 piper of the blank check world. We're talking about Tom Polyopatia, 0:07:15.360 --> 0:07:18.040 we're talking about the fintech firm Social Finance, better known 0:07:18.080 --> 0:07:20.920 too many people. As so far the company raised almost 0:07:20.920 --> 0:07:23.520 two and a half billion dollars to fuel growth. To 0:07:23.560 --> 0:07:26.280 find out more so far, CEO Anthony Nodo joined us, 0:07:26.320 --> 0:07:28.440 and his name is probably pretty familiar because he of 0:07:28.440 --> 0:07:31.000 course was the former CEO and CFO over at Twitter, 0:07:31.040 --> 0:07:34.640 former Goldman Sachs partner, and now his current company among 0:07:34.680 --> 0:07:37.640 the latest to capitalize on this popular investment vehicle. I 0:07:37.680 --> 0:07:40.600 think each company has to evaluate the different ways to 0:07:40.680 --> 0:07:43.760 go public based on their facts and circumstances, and for 0:07:43.880 --> 0:07:46.440 us this was a great option. We had a few 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:50.400 things to consider. First, um, we we wanted to convert 0:07:50.480 --> 0:07:53.520 our capital structure where that was largely preferred shares to 0:07:53.640 --> 0:07:57.400 common shares. That wasn't necessity for two reasons. One, order 0:07:57.440 --> 0:08:00.320 to file with the Battle Reserve for a bank charter, 0:08:00.880 --> 0:08:04.239 we needed a comment act that could become a public company. 0:08:04.800 --> 0:08:08.400 We also needed to make that conversion. We also had 0:08:08.440 --> 0:08:12.840 two capital needs. First, um, we had bought Galileo in 0:08:12.960 --> 0:08:15.640 March of two thousand and twenty UM and with that 0:08:15.720 --> 0:08:17.840 came a seller note, and that note was going to 0:08:17.880 --> 0:08:20.000 be doing March at two thousand one, So that was 0:08:20.040 --> 0:08:23.160 one capital need. A second capital need was to finance 0:08:23.200 --> 0:08:25.280 the bank if and when we were able to achieve 0:08:25.320 --> 0:08:29.160 a charter UM And so we were raising private money 0:08:29.200 --> 0:08:31.680 at the time, and we got approached by a number 0:08:31.680 --> 0:08:34.000 investors that wanted to put even more capital into the 0:08:34.040 --> 0:08:38.000 company and also considered UM supporting us in and going public. 0:08:38.400 --> 0:08:40.360 And so what we ended up doing was choosing a 0:08:40.440 --> 0:08:45.040 private round with zero price who invested three in seventy 0:08:45.080 --> 0:08:47.959 five million dollars. Then we closed that UM on or 0:08:48.000 --> 0:08:52.640 about December. We launched the pipe confidential pipe process on 0:08:52.720 --> 0:08:55.520 the UH and we're able to complete that by the 0:08:55.600 --> 0:08:58.760 thirty one and then announced the combination of those two 0:08:58.840 --> 0:09:00.840 and the third leg of the store, which was a 0:09:00.880 --> 0:09:05.000 spact merger with Social Capital Head of Sophia five UM 0:09:05.120 --> 0:09:08.360 on January four. And the combination of those three pieces 0:09:08.400 --> 0:09:11.120 made it a unique approach trust to raise capital and 0:09:11.160 --> 0:09:13.079 go public at the same time, and it was the 0:09:13.240 --> 0:09:15.520 right outcome for us versus a regular way I p 0:09:15.640 --> 0:09:18.400 O or well, no shortage of spacts out there, So 0:09:18.400 --> 0:09:23.240 why Social Capital Head of Sophia founded by we're approached 0:09:23.240 --> 0:09:26.800 by a number of different um UM spacts and UM 0:09:26.840 --> 0:09:29.440 we were confident that we're ready to become a public company. 0:09:29.520 --> 0:09:32.000 We knew we would have to go through a pretty detailed, 0:09:32.679 --> 0:09:35.720 more detailed process from a diligence standpoint than going public 0:09:35.800 --> 0:09:39.679 as it's a merger UM, and we thought that Chamath's 0:09:39.760 --> 0:09:44.400 team brought one first and foremost a strategic UM perspective 0:09:44.440 --> 0:09:46.200 to the table for us and that we could partner 0:09:46.200 --> 0:09:52.000 on different strategic opportunities over time. Number Two, UM they 0:09:52.080 --> 0:09:54.959 had great experience in conducting the type of diligence of 0:09:55.000 --> 0:09:57.280 a company like US, as they've done with other companies, 0:09:57.559 --> 0:10:00.920 to make sure they brought the credibility to Pipe investors 0:10:00.960 --> 0:10:03.600 when they made when they made the announcement and brought 0:10:03.640 --> 0:10:06.640 us to Pipe investors. Uh. Three, they had great experience 0:10:06.640 --> 0:10:10.280 and executing spects and so the combination of strategic value 0:10:10.720 --> 0:10:13.720 UM the diligence process that we knew would bring incremental 0:10:13.720 --> 0:10:18.079 credibility to the Pipe investors. And then three UM expertise 0:10:18.120 --> 0:10:20.240 and having done this before were the three factors and 0:10:20.320 --> 0:10:23.120 why we chose Social It was a tough decision. We 0:10:23.200 --> 0:10:25.560 brought three options to the board that came down to 0:10:25.559 --> 0:10:28.320 the wire, and the board chose Social Capital. So you 0:10:28.320 --> 0:10:30.800 guys are all in their student loans. There's personal loans, 0:10:30.840 --> 0:10:34.959 there's home loans or insurance, small bies financing, UM investing. 0:10:35.040 --> 0:10:38.120 There's a lot on your platform. Will crypto be part 0:10:38.120 --> 0:10:40.840 of it at some point? We do offer within invest 0:10:41.040 --> 0:10:44.560 the ability to buy single stocks without commissions, fractional shares 0:10:44.600 --> 0:10:49.199 which we pioneered, robe advisory accounts which we've created ourselves. UM. 0:10:49.200 --> 0:10:53.200 We also have UM five so far ETFs UM, and 0:10:53.280 --> 0:10:57.720 we do offer cryptocurrency. We offer eighteen different coins UM. 0:10:57.760 --> 0:11:00.600 We do it in a very appropriate it way and 0:11:00.600 --> 0:11:04.200 that we disclosed to the volatility of that asset class 0:11:04.240 --> 0:11:06.000 and the risk that you could lose all your money 0:11:06.120 --> 0:11:08.480 every time you put in a bye order. That is 0:11:08.480 --> 0:11:11.480 disclosed before you hit the hit the buy button. UM. 0:11:11.520 --> 0:11:13.719 It is an asset class that our members one, and 0:11:14.120 --> 0:11:17.160 you want to provide cercified selection for them. Because you 0:11:17.240 --> 0:11:20.360 have an array of services that you can offer folks 0:11:20.400 --> 0:11:22.560 on the platform. What do you think is going to 0:11:22.640 --> 0:11:25.760 be the best growth opportunity, provide the best margins for you? 0:11:25.800 --> 0:11:27.560 Where is going to be the big business in your view? 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:29.719 You know, we design each one of the businesses to 0:11:29.800 --> 0:11:32.640 be best in class from a consumer value proposition, but 0:11:32.840 --> 0:11:36.280 also best in class unit economics, and so we design 0:11:36.360 --> 0:11:38.920 them all to be attractive on their own. Um. We 0:11:39.000 --> 0:11:43.000 do get incremental benefits when people take the second, third, 0:11:43.040 --> 0:11:44.920 or fourth product with us, but they have to stand 0:11:44.960 --> 0:11:47.040 on their own, both from a value probably to the 0:11:47.040 --> 0:11:50.959 consumer and the unit economic standpoint for us financially. Uh. 0:11:51.000 --> 0:11:53.360 And the reason why we do that is we want 0:11:53.400 --> 0:11:55.680 to meet the member where they are with what they want, 0:11:56.280 --> 0:11:58.719 what we make money. So you so you're saying all 0:11:58.760 --> 0:12:00.520 of it's going to be lucrative. There isn't one of 0:12:00.559 --> 0:12:02.040 the things that you said, Okay, this is going to 0:12:02.120 --> 0:12:04.160 be our bread and butter. Yeah, they're all. They're all 0:12:04.280 --> 0:12:07.960 architecturally the long term to be standalone, viable, attractive businesses 0:12:08.000 --> 0:12:10.640 by themselves. And many companies are in just one of 0:12:10.679 --> 0:12:13.760 the product categories. Many are just in mortgage, justin student loans, 0:12:13.760 --> 0:12:16.959 are justin brokerage, or justin checking or savings. I want 0:12:16.960 --> 0:12:19.400 to talk a little bit about profitability and so Fi's 0:12:19.480 --> 0:12:22.440 path to profitability. You currently lose money more than two 0:12:22.760 --> 0:12:27.120 million dollars in nineteen twenty each year. What is the 0:12:27.120 --> 0:12:29.720 path to profitability and when do you get there? Well, 0:12:29.760 --> 0:12:33.480 we achieved positive ebada um in the fourth quarter of 0:12:33.480 --> 0:12:36.080 two thousand twenty is our first quarter of positive EBADA 0:12:36.679 --> 0:12:39.600 since we embarked on such an ambitious strategy to become 0:12:39.640 --> 0:12:43.480 a one stop shop and comprehensive suite financial services products 0:12:43.559 --> 0:12:45.959 on on one app UM SO we made a smith 0:12:46.280 --> 0:12:50.000 amount of investment in two thousand nine, eighteen and nineteen 0:12:50.400 --> 0:12:52.520 and started to bear fruit of that investment two thousand 0:12:52.520 --> 0:12:55.040 and twenty, hitting positive EBADA in the fourth quarter of 0:12:55.120 --> 0:12:58.400 twenty UM and again in UH the first quarter of 0:12:58.800 --> 0:13:01.400 two thousand and twenty one UM and on a trailing 0:13:01.440 --> 0:13:03.960 told month basis UM we as you'll see in our 0:13:04.000 --> 0:13:08.600 financial disclosures, we've we've also achieved positive BADA so from 0:13:08.640 --> 0:13:11.679 a profitability standpoint, as it relates to non gap metric 0:13:11.760 --> 0:13:13.640 of IBADAD, which we think is the best measure for 0:13:13.720 --> 0:13:16.640 cash flow, we've gotten to that point now. Each one 0:13:16.640 --> 0:13:19.440 of our businesses is not profitable or our learning business 0:13:19.520 --> 0:13:22.719 is very profitable. It's a it's a you know, very 0:13:22.920 --> 0:13:25.960 very well growing business UM. You can see the growth 0:13:26.080 --> 0:13:28.520 rates for the business in our filings, but it's a 0:13:28.559 --> 0:13:32.160 it's a high grower but also very profitable. Our technology 0:13:32.200 --> 0:13:36.000 platform is a high even higher grower business UM with 0:13:36.160 --> 0:13:40.080 great profitability. As well with about thirty margins. And then 0:13:40.080 --> 0:13:42.880 our financial services business which consists of so FI Invest, 0:13:43.000 --> 0:13:45.480 so Fi Money and so By credit card um. That's 0:13:45.480 --> 0:13:49.120 an acquisition business where we recoup the customer opposition costs 0:13:49.160 --> 0:13:51.559 we make in year one over the you know, year 0:13:51.600 --> 0:13:53.640 and a half the two years after we acquire them. 0:13:53.920 --> 0:13:57.199 So on a per account basis, we may be hitting profitability, 0:13:57.640 --> 0:14:00.200 but because we're acquiring more customers than we cur we 0:14:00.200 --> 0:14:03.200 have that are profitable, it shows a loss in that 0:14:03.320 --> 0:14:05.800 in that business, which has also seen in our financials. 0:14:05.800 --> 0:14:08.760 But we focus on unit economics, return of our business 0:14:08.760 --> 0:14:11.760 and prolo and economics to make sure that overall these 0:14:11.760 --> 0:14:16.240 businesses can be great unit economic businesses individually and in total. 0:14:16.320 --> 0:14:19.360 And so we're balancing both growth at a high rate 0:14:19.600 --> 0:14:23.480 with profitability in the overall mix. That's so FI CEO 0:14:23.560 --> 0:14:26.400 and former CEO and CFO at Twitter Anthony no No 0:14:26.640 --> 0:14:28.720 to explain to us why the company chose to go 0:14:28.800 --> 0:14:30.960 this spack round versus a traditional I p O, though 0:14:31.000 --> 0:14:33.040 I think it is part of a broader conversation Carol 0:14:33.080 --> 0:14:35.800 about why some companies choose to forego the traditional I 0:14:35.880 --> 0:14:38.360 p O process. The road show what's referred to as 0:14:38.400 --> 0:14:41.160 that s one filing and do this back instead. All 0:14:41.200 --> 0:14:43.920 rights still ahead on Bloomberg Business Week, finding that work 0:14:43.960 --> 0:14:46.600 life balance in the wake of zoom meetings and online learning. 0:14:46.600 --> 0:14:48.040 I don't know about you, Tim, but I'm still trying 0:14:48.040 --> 0:14:49.640 to figure it out. Yeah, I think we all are. 0:14:50.000 --> 0:14:58.440 This is Bloomberg broadcasting from the financial capital of the world, 0:14:58.600 --> 0:15:02.080 Bloomberg Live the Free in New York to Washington, d C. 0:15:02.280 --> 0:15:07.000 Bloomberg to Boston, Bloomberg one oh six one does San Francisco, 0:15:07.040 --> 0:15:10.480 Bloomberg nine sixty to the country Sirius XM Chado one 0:15:10.560 --> 0:15:13.720 nineteen and around the globe the Bloomberg Business app and 0:15:13.760 --> 0:15:19.360 Bloomberg Radio dot Com. This is Bloomberg Business Week having 0:15:19.360 --> 0:15:21.560 it all, doing it all well. Not easy being a 0:15:21.560 --> 0:15:24.640 working parent. We know that, especially hard during the pandemic 0:15:24.880 --> 0:15:27.240 when so many were working or worried about keeping their 0:15:27.320 --> 0:15:29.160 jobs while at the same time taking care of and 0:15:29.200 --> 0:15:32.160 often schooling their kids at home because of the pandemic, 0:15:32.360 --> 0:15:35.000 or even taking care of elderly family members. Yeah. Someone 0:15:35.000 --> 0:15:37.440 who knows a lot about that is Daisy Dowling, founder 0:15:37.480 --> 0:15:40.160 and CEO of Work Parents. It's an executive coaching and 0:15:40.200 --> 0:15:42.600 training firm She's out with a new book. It's called 0:15:42.600 --> 0:15:45.360 A Work Parent, The Complete Guide to Succeeding on the job, 0:15:45.640 --> 0:15:48.720 staying true to yourself and raising happy kids. And Tim 0:15:48.720 --> 0:15:51.200 we started by asking about how and why she created 0:15:51.240 --> 0:15:54.200 this resource for working mothers and fathers. So when I 0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:56.800 started writing this book, I wanted it to be the 0:15:56.840 --> 0:15:59.320 book that I myself needed to read, both as an 0:15:59.360 --> 0:16:02.360 executive coach and as a mom. So for years I 0:16:02.440 --> 0:16:05.200 worked with hard working men and women who are trying 0:16:05.240 --> 0:16:08.239 to get ahead on the job and fulfill their ambitions 0:16:08.240 --> 0:16:11.120 and earn a living, build their careers, all while at 0:16:11.160 --> 0:16:14.400 the same time being the present loving parents they wanted 0:16:14.400 --> 0:16:17.160 to beat. And I could advise them professionally, but I 0:16:17.200 --> 0:16:20.560 didn't have such great advice or tips or a single 0:16:20.600 --> 0:16:22.640 resource I could point them to they would help them 0:16:22.680 --> 0:16:25.080 do both of those things at the same time. And 0:16:25.080 --> 0:16:28.280 then when I became a mom nine years ago, I 0:16:28.320 --> 0:16:30.760 got you know, the problem came home with me and 0:16:30.920 --> 0:16:34.200 I saw it for you know firsthand myself. I couldn't 0:16:34.200 --> 0:16:36.520 figure out how to find care, how to talk to 0:16:36.560 --> 0:16:39.760 my boss's boss about still wanting to get that promotion 0:16:39.920 --> 0:16:42.880 even after I had just had a baby, and every 0:16:42.880 --> 0:16:46.600 you know, practical and and ambition related question in between. 0:16:47.080 --> 0:16:50.000 And because I couldn't find that single source resource, that 0:16:50.120 --> 0:16:53.440 one complete cookbook, I decided to write it. Well, I 0:16:53.440 --> 0:16:55.720 gotta say it reminds me of when I was pregnant 0:16:55.800 --> 0:16:57.920 and what to expect when you're expecting, because I just 0:16:58.240 --> 0:17:01.400 like it kind of takes you through different parts of 0:17:01.960 --> 0:17:04.040 that book, your pregnancy, but this takes you part, you know, 0:17:04.119 --> 0:17:09.840 through different points of being a working parent. Um. You know, 0:17:10.000 --> 0:17:12.639 there's one thing that jumped out at me about communication, 0:17:12.720 --> 0:17:15.080 and I like this communicating with the village. We do 0:17:15.200 --> 0:17:17.720 talk about it takes a village, you know, to raise 0:17:17.800 --> 0:17:21.640 kids to kind of do anything in this society. Um, 0:17:21.680 --> 0:17:23.439 but how you communicate with that village is a really 0:17:23.480 --> 0:17:27.480 important thing. It is. And listen, throughout the course of 0:17:27.480 --> 0:17:30.720 the pandemic, working parents have been so stretched and pressured 0:17:31.040 --> 0:17:33.520 that we're not doing a lot of communication. When we 0:17:33.600 --> 0:17:36.840 don't need to write our boss calls, we answer, our 0:17:36.920 --> 0:17:39.320 kids need that, you know, help getting into distance learning. 0:17:39.320 --> 0:17:41.920 We're on it. But in terms of that kind of 0:17:41.920 --> 0:17:45.640 back and forth, the proactive communication with your child caregivers, 0:17:46.160 --> 0:17:50.119 with maybe relatives, with extended members of your community, with 0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:53.120 all the people you're looking to and want to look 0:17:53.160 --> 0:17:55.600 to now in the new normal to help you not 0:17:55.680 --> 0:17:58.560 just raise your child, but build your career. You really 0:17:58.560 --> 0:18:00.560 want to think about how much you're in front of 0:18:00.600 --> 0:18:03.040 those people, what kind of connections and touch points you're 0:18:03.080 --> 0:18:05.840 having with them, and have them not be on a 0:18:05.920 --> 0:18:09.520 need to or must basis, but really be ones where 0:18:09.680 --> 0:18:12.159 you're building that relationship and making sure that village is 0:18:12.160 --> 0:18:14.560 a strong one. So what's different about I'm one of 0:18:14.600 --> 0:18:16.440 seven kids. My mom was a stay at home mom 0:18:16.520 --> 0:18:18.920 until we got a little bit older. Uh, and we 0:18:18.920 --> 0:18:20.880 were all or some of my older siblings were heading 0:18:20.880 --> 0:18:24.760 off to college. Um, is it tougher being a working 0:18:24.800 --> 0:18:28.720 parent today than it was a few years ago, or 0:18:28.760 --> 0:18:30.840 twenty years ago or thirty years ago? And I'm trying 0:18:30.840 --> 0:18:32.920 to think twenty years ago and so long ago. It's 0:18:33.640 --> 0:18:37.400 you know, the year two thousand. Yeah. Yeah, it's such 0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:39.960 a great question. And so many of my coaching clients 0:18:39.960 --> 0:18:42.639 grapple with this. You know, I saw my parents do it. 0:18:42.800 --> 0:18:45.040 I see you know some of the very senior people 0:18:45.040 --> 0:18:47.280 at work. You know they've done this. Why is it 0:18:47.320 --> 0:18:49.800 so hard for me? And we beat ourselves up about that. 0:18:50.200 --> 0:18:53.439 But here's the thing. Working parents doesn't just feel harder 0:18:53.480 --> 0:18:56.359 or seem harder, It actually is harder for a couple 0:18:56.400 --> 0:18:59.960 of different reasons. First of all, the way you're working 0:19:00.080 --> 0:19:02.600 parent now, whether you're part of a dual career couple 0:19:02.840 --> 0:19:06.360 or if you're a single or solo parent, you are 0:19:06.440 --> 0:19:10.000 operating in a frame that your parents maybe didn't have to, 0:19:10.200 --> 0:19:12.720 and your grandparents almost certainly didn't have to. There was 0:19:12.800 --> 0:19:15.720 much more likely that one partner, one person at home 0:19:16.040 --> 0:19:18.280 was going to be more available to look after the 0:19:18.600 --> 0:19:21.400 great big task of raising the family. And then, think 0:19:21.400 --> 0:19:24.840 about it from a technology perspective. So even if you're 0:19:24.880 --> 0:19:27.960 a working parent back in oh five, oh six, that's 0:19:28.000 --> 0:19:30.760 not really that long ago, but you weren't doing it 0:19:30.800 --> 0:19:35.040 with that kind of seven pressure and constant communication and 0:19:35.040 --> 0:19:37.320 that feeling of always being on that we now have 0:19:37.480 --> 0:19:39.919 because of the smartphone. Now. Don't get me wrong, I 0:19:39.960 --> 0:19:42.119 love my iPhone as much as the next person, and 0:19:42.160 --> 0:19:48.360 it's a great tool it allows for I know, I'm 0:19:48.440 --> 0:19:51.080 kidding a little bit, but i'm but I'm also it's 0:19:51.160 --> 0:19:55.320 something that really kind of keeps us going. It does. 0:19:55.600 --> 0:19:58.639 It does, and that's not something that you know twenty 0:19:58.720 --> 0:20:02.280 years ago that you're or that your mentors had to do. 0:20:02.560 --> 0:20:05.240 So there's a constant pressure. I keep telling people, we're 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:07.520 in a new game here, and we've got to get 0:20:07.560 --> 0:20:09.760 a whole new set of tools and ways of thinking 0:20:09.800 --> 0:20:12.240 about working parenthood that will keep us on our front foot. 0:20:12.280 --> 0:20:15.160 That's Daisy Dowling, founded CEO of Work Parent and Executive 0:20:15.160 --> 0:20:17.640 coaching and training firm. You're listening to Bloomberg Business Week. 0:20:17.680 --> 0:20:19.840 Coming up next, it's the CEO of lands End on 0:20:20.000 --> 0:20:23.040 his company's growth and the possibility of becoming a meme stock. 0:20:23.080 --> 0:20:25.000 I gotta say it was a fun conversation. I really 0:20:25.080 --> 0:20:27.840 enjoyed it. I really also found it interesting kind of 0:20:27.880 --> 0:20:30.399 how they're evolving the company. It's a brand that's been 0:20:30.440 --> 0:20:32.760 around for a long time, but they're figuring out how 0:20:32.800 --> 0:20:34.439 to kind of keep it going. Yeah, who did you 0:20:34.480 --> 0:20:36.280 have one of those backpacks with their initials on when 0:20:36.320 --> 0:20:39.520 they're a kid? Right? Exactly. I bought a few uniforms 0:20:39.520 --> 0:20:51.600 from the company. This is Bloomberg. You're listening to Bloomberg 0:20:51.600 --> 0:20:55.280 Business Week with Carol Messer and Bloomberg Quick Takes. Tim 0:20:55.280 --> 0:20:59.560 Stenovik from Bloomberg Radio. I'm not sure if you've noticed 0:20:59.600 --> 0:21:02.080 probably shod cheers of lands and they're on a tear 0:21:02.240 --> 0:21:05.400 up kind of around this year. The retail are also 0:21:05.480 --> 0:21:07.800 raising its full year guidance for sales and earnings after 0:21:07.840 --> 0:21:11.440 it posted first quarter results that exceeded an earlier company forecast. 0:21:11.720 --> 0:21:14.400 One big reason why e commerce sales that have brought 0:21:14.480 --> 0:21:17.399 in a lot of new customers. Land and CEO Jerome 0:21:17.440 --> 0:21:19.840 Griffith joined us with a look back and look forward 0:21:19.880 --> 0:21:22.320 to and about the possibility of being a Meme stock. 0:21:22.400 --> 0:21:24.800 The conversation started with a look back at those fraud 0:21:24.840 --> 0:21:27.960 early days of the pandemic just about fourteen months ago, 0:21:28.320 --> 0:21:32.640 well obviously about a year ago when we went into lockdown. 0:21:32.680 --> 0:21:34.600 It was real shock for everyone, and you know, we 0:21:34.680 --> 0:21:38.920 shut doors and and furlough folks and took salary reductions 0:21:39.160 --> 0:21:42.280 very quickly, and we're able to try and adapt to 0:21:42.359 --> 0:21:46.080 whatever the new normal was going to be. Our demand 0:21:46.119 --> 0:21:49.119 went down in March last year, but very quickly rebounded 0:21:49.119 --> 0:21:51.000 in April and then went on a tear for the 0:21:51.040 --> 0:21:54.080 rest of the year. You've seen a lot more consumers 0:21:54.640 --> 0:21:58.399