Good strategy follows a method: hypothesise, test, decide. Without hypotheses, due diligence drifts and growth strategy stalls. With them, every question tests a belief, every answer moves closer to a decision. The difference: useful information, not more information. You don't hire a strategy firm just for their process. You hire one to make a better decision.

GenAI economics are about to get real. An incoming pricing reset will eventually reshape your new AI cost structure

Current AI prices reflect a subsidy phase, not a stable end-state. Enterprises building on today's flat-fee plans face a 10-35× cost increase as providers move toward sustainable economics.

R.M. Williams hit 65 stores and a domestic TAM ceiling, then opened on Jermyn Street. Double-digit UK growth, three years running. But GYG is down 52% selling Mexican food to America, and A2 Milk lost 79% of profit when COVID shut the daigou channel. When does going global reflect genuine strategic intent, and when is it investor theatre? Four brands. Three questions every board needs to answer.

Bain Capital making moves to relist Estia Health is a signal: Australian aged care is about to enter its next phase.

The 85+ cohort is growing fast and may be the wealthiest generation ever to enter late old age. Australians over 65 already control more than a third of national household wealth.

But modern seniors don’t just have more money. They have:
• higher expectations
• stronger choice behaviour
• less tolerance for institutional experiences

As the lines to retirement living offerings are blurring, aged care is shifting from a last-resort service to a late-life consumer category.

The Slop Bowl Economy: When Growth Slows, Advantage Breaks

Fast casual “healthy bowl” chains are facing their reckoning in 2025. Sweetgreen is down –72% YTD, CAVA –44%, Guzman y Gomez –38%, and even Chipotle –35% — while McDonald’s and Yum! Brands quietly post gains.

The same diners, the same economy — so why the split?

• Macro exposure. Stagflation squeezes margins: fast casual bears higher labour (30–35% of sales) and ingredient costs, while delivery platforms skim margins. Customers trade down to value meals or skip $16 salad bowls altogether.

• Flawed growth playbooks. Adding stores hasn’t solved structural cost traps. Scratch kitchens, fragile supply chains, and rising overheads compound fragility. Scale has not delivered efficiency.

• Strategy gap. Expansion ≠ strategy. The real game is bending costs down, building loyalty (e.g., Chipotle’s 40m+ Rewards members), focusing on profitable geographies, and owning a clear value or premium niche.

👉 The takeaway: The “Slop Bowl Economy” is stagflation in disguise. Investors are punishing hype without advantage. Expansion is easy — but only those who prove efficiency at scale and sharpen differentiation will survive.

♻️No Time To Waste: Last year, Australia committed A$450M+ to protect national parks and preserve the Great Barrier Reef, natural assets critical to its identity and economy. Yet despite this investment in preservation, Australia still buries a third of its waste. With recovery stuck at 67%, the nation is 13 points short of its 80% recovery target by 2030, landfilling ~10M tonnes each year the gap persists.

➡️Australia Isn’t the Recycling Leader You Think:
A 67% recovery rate looks respectable, until you stack it against the 68% achieved in the more populous United States, Norway’s 80%, and Singapore’s 97%.