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250 Hampton Newsletter
February 2025
Eric Olson
February 05, 2025
Friends of 250 Hampton,
Month eight of my search is in full swing. As I noted last month, I am back to working my pipeline and no longer have any opportunities under LOI. I am feeling the groundhog day vibes at this stage and, as a result, I am leaning on my new mantra: Chop Wood, Carry Water.
The Search
January was a busy month. I spent much of it reviewing deals and building up my pipeline. I was able to review 50+ CIMs and put in 4 IOIs. Good businesses are out there and available. It is just a matter of finding the right one.
Active Opportunities
Medical Products Distribution - Dead
Despite getting creative and putting a revised, fair, and solid deal on the table, this deal is officially dead. That’s how it goes sometimes. I’ll keep this one on the radar. You never know. Things could change down the road.
IOIs
As I noted above, I was able to put in four IOIs during January. After calls with ownership teams, I am now focused on two of these opportunities (one of which is in medical device manufacturing and distribution). I am waiting on updated financials for both of these opportunities and will determine whether or not to push to LOI after I review the updated numbers. More to come.
Value Add
Eyes
I read an excellent book in January titled “Why We Make Things and Why It Matters: The Education of a Craftsman” by Peter Korn. Korn uses his decades as a furniture maker to explore what it means to make things and why making things is such a big part of our humanity.
Here’s a passage from the book that really stuck with me and comes after a set of reflections on happiness and its role in the creative process and life (emphasis mine).
In ninth-grade anthropology class, Mr. Platt taught us that the capacity to make and use tools was mankind’s defining characteristic. Forty-plus years later, I have arrived at a different conclusion. Mankind’s defining characteristic is the construction of narratives that explain who we are and how the world works. These mental maps do not only frame our experience of reality; they actually shape reality, because they guide us as we interact with the world. Meaning and fulfillment, as I’ve experienced them, come through the independent exercise of this capacity, and creative practice is a powerful way to do so. I could never have imagined, half-listening from the third row, just how transformational the use of tools would be.
Korn’s reflection on his career as a craftsman will give you many things to reflect on. I couldn’t recommend this book enough, especially if you enjoyed “Shop Class and Soulcraft” and other similar books.
Ears
Technically this podcast was released on February 3rd, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to mention it to all of you. The latest EconTalk podcast, Coase, the Rules of the Game, and the Costs of Perfection (with Daisy Christodoulou), was a fun and thought provoking one. The main thrust of the podcast was a discussion about what the introduction of VAR (Video Assistant Referee) has done to the game of soccer (and other sports).
We were all likely guilty of thinking that VAR, and similar systems, were the right next step. Calls would be more accurate. Games would be fairer. What’s not to like? As it turns out, we don’t always get more sure when we have more information. How many times have referees turned to VAR, then upheld or changed a call, only to have already been disagreed with by the expert former referee who has been talking about what the call should be while we, the fans, have been waiting for the referees? In addition, the reviews disrupt the flow of the game and, on top of that, it turns out that it is very hard to judge the intent of a player, something on which a lot of calls rely, with slow motion replays and fifteen different angles. Is improving the accuracy of refereeing worth the downsides VAR creates?
No solutions, only tradeoffs. That is a big theme of this podcast and it is made very relatable given the subject matter of sports. I’ll leave you all with this quote from Randolph Nesse on the topic of tradeoffs that Christodoulou also quotes in her book on VAR:
The body is a bundle of tradeoffs. Everything could be better but only at a cost. Your immune system could react more strongly, but at the cost of increased tissue damage. The bones in your wrist could be thick enough that you could safely skateboard without wrist guards, but then your wrist would not rotate, and you could throw a rock only half as far. You could have an eagle's ability to spot a mouse from a mile away, but only at the cost of eliminating color vision and peripheral vision. Your brain could have been bigger, but at the risk of death during birth. Your blood pressure could be lower at the cost of weaker, slower movement. You could be less sensitive to pain at the cost of being injured more often. Your stress system could be less responsive at the cost of coping less well with danger.
Thought of the Month
“Take a good hard look at people’s ruling principle, especially of the wise, what they run away from and what they seek out.”
That's it for the February newsletter. Look for the next one at the beginning of March. Thank you all for your support. It means a lot. Onward!
Best,
Eric