AA219 - How Private Equity Killed Instant Pot (And Why Your Product Could Be Next)

Arguing Agile

Instant Pot had $300M+ revenue, passionate users, and $100M cash on hand.
So why did they file for bankruptcy?
The answer lies in the pattern of how private equity systematically destroys beloved products through financial engineering!

In this podcast, Product Manager Brian Orlando and Enterprise Business Agility Coach Om Patel examine the acquisition of Instant Brands and discuss how leveraged buyouts, special dividends, and debt loading likely turned a kitchen innovation success story into a cautionary tale for every product team.
Watch or listen to learn:
• Real reasons successful products fail under PE ownership
• Why "professional management" really means cutting the people who built the product
• How debt servicing kills innovation budgets
• The one question every product manager should ask their CFO
• Why product-led growth can't survive private equity's playbook
This isn't just about Instant Pot - it's about protecting the products and teams you care about from becoming the next casualty of financial engineering.
#ProductManagement #PrivateEquity #InstantPot
References:

• New Lawsuit Accuses Private Equity Company of Plundering Assets of Instant Brands; Michael Wolf, Nov 2024; https://thespoon.tech/new-lawsuit-accuses-private-equity-company-of-plundering-assets-of-instant-brands/
• Arguing Agile #61: AA61 - Experiences in Corporate Buyouts (Mergers & Acquisitions)
• Arguing Agile #96: AA96 - Stages of Company Decline, or When Companies Hate Their Customers

Tags
#ProductManagement #InstantPot #ArguingAgile
LINKS
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@arguingagile
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/362QvYORmtZRKAeTAE57v3
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/agile-podcast/id1568557596
Website: http://arguingagile.com
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Toronto Is My Beat (Music Sample)
By Whitewolf (Source: https://ccmixter.org/files/whitewolf225/60181)
CC BY 4.0 DEED (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en)

Chapters

1. Intro: Instapot's Bankruptcy (00:00:00)

2. Intro (00:01:08)

3. Deep Dive into Private Equity's Role (00:01:38)

4. Reading the Article on Spoon Tech (00:02:28)

5. Reading the Article (00:03:37)

6. Oops, I Did It Again! (00:04:54)

7. Financial Missteps (00:09:10)

8. Impact on Employees and Product Suggestions (00:10:28)

9. The Main Thesis (00:10:48)

10. Arguing: Professional Management (00:12:31)

11. Arguing: Synergy (00:13:43)

12. Economies of Scale (00:15:17)

13. Assumptions (00:15:42)

14. Searching for Evidence (00:16:37)

15. Two Concerns (00:18:25)

16. Core Expertise (00:19:44)

17. The People That Cared Got Cut (00:21:50)

18. Cash on Hand (00:22:50)

19. Pressure on Employees (00:23:38)

20. What to Do, Maybe (00:24:10)

21. Can PLG Survive PE (00:25:31)

22. Star Trek Box Office Theory (00:26:33)

23. Survivorship Bias (00:28:53)

24. Challenges of Data-Driven Decision Making (00:29:41)

25. UX and Community Building (00:31:00)

26. The Role of Community Managers in Gaming Companies (00:31:56)

27. The Impact of Layoffs on Community Building (00:32:37)

28. The Importance of Financial Literacy in Product Teams (00:34:13)

29. Exit Pressure and Survivorship Bias (00:35:05)

30. Scoring the Balance of Growth and Quality (00:36:38)

31. Why Even Care? (00:37:37)

32. 20% Market Contraction Moves (00:40:48)

33. Firesale as a Strategy (00:42:56)

34. Sustainable vs. Hockey-Stick Growth (00:45:40)

35. Compounding Technical Debt (00:47:29)

36. Grow First (00:49:17)

37. Rating Velocity vs Stability (00:51:17)

38. Bankruptcy-Resistant Products (00:52:03)

39. Time Sensitive Opportunities (00:57:16)

40. Responding on Time Sensitivity (00:58:51)

41. Customer (Dis)Loyalty (00:59:59)

42. Free Market Argument (01:01:16)

43. The Role of Financial Engineering in Company Success (01:01:59)

44. Lifeboat Scoring (01:03:33)

45. Final Thoughts (01:04:00)

46. Conclusion and Future Topics (01:04:55)

47. Preview of Part 2 (01:05:21)