Dry Powder: The Private Equity Podcast
Inflation was supposed to be transitory, or at least that was the hope back in April and May when it first started making news. Today, however, a lot of our private equity clients are not just hoping for the best, they’re preparing for the worst.
“Management teams have just never dealt with this level of inflationary pressure before,” says Shawn O’Brien, an associate partner in our Commercial Excellence practice at Bain & Company. “It is kind of the perfect storm of raw input costs rising, transportation costs rising, labor costs rising, etcetera.”
As one of Bain’s leading experts on pricing strategies, Shawn is uniquely positioned to help our clients weather this inflationary storm. In part one of our inflation series, Shawn describes how private equity firms are moving beyond the usual cost-cutting playbook and developing pricing strategies that can withstand an inflationary storm.
“While it’s scary for a lot of funds,” Shawn told me, “it’s enlightening for them to see the role that price can play to help counteract that. I think it’s opening a broader dialogue around price actually being a core part of the value-creation plan.”
The Private Equity Podcast
In our podcast series, Bain's Hugh MacArthur interviews leading experts on the trends and opportunities that will redefine the private equity industry.
Catch new episodes by subscribing to Dry Powder on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you may listen.
First published in febbraio 2022