MONEY DOCTOR
photo: LAUREN WINTZEL
Don’t Play Games Q A
Falling for Fungi It all began with passion and desire—a passion for growing
W. Mike Stewart AIF, RFC
Steve asks: I see a lot on the news about GameStop, What happened and can I take advantage of it?
A Hedge Fund named Melvin Capital Shorted an extraordinarily large position in Game Stop. Driving the share price down which
mushrooms and a desire to be home with their kids. Linda Bonomo Myers
is the point of shorting a stock. To short a stock you borrow shares from
started experimenting with growing them at home. The more they learned,
buy back the shares at a lower price, and pocket the difference. If the stock
and her husband, Kiefer, both had a fascination with mushrooms and
the more they wanted to know. They found a supportive online community
of mushroom growers who welcomed them and encouraged their interest. Before they knew it, they had a small but professional enterprise
growing mushrooms on their property, just north of Covington. “We started with a tiny grow tent Linda gave me for Christmas,” says Kiefer. “It only
grew one mushroom but that was enough. We were hooked!” They began expanding their setup to include a lab with a sterilizer, a sonic humidifier and professional filtration. They moved a shipping container onto their
property and built it into a fruiting room where temperature, humidity, CO2,
someone else, then immediately sell them. If the stock drops in price you price goes up, you lose because you must repurchase at a higher price.
A group of online forum users on the website Reddit spotted this
short position and to punish this risky gamble that the hedge fund took they organized through the use of the forum to “buy, buy, buy” GameStop stock and force the price up. The Hedge Fund “doubled down” on the short position and caused a “feedback loop” driving the price higher and higher.
The thing I want you to understand about investing is that it is
and lighting are all carefully controlled as the mushrooms grow.
investing, not gambling. Trying to take advantage of these situations
mane, black pearl, king trumpet and other mushrooms, as well as mushroom
putting your bet on “red”. There is no way to evaluate the outcome
Gretna Farmer’s Market on Saturday and signed up a couple of restaurants
fact that a company can be evaluated on many aspects of its product,
Myers Family Mushrooms began selling blue and pink oyster, lion’s
when they occur can be as dangerous as going to the casino and
tinctures, at the Abita Springs Art and Farmer’s Market on Sundays and the
because no one can predict the future. Investing is different in the
and a wholesaler. Linda stepped into the role of The Mushroom Lady, the face
position in the marketplace, amount of debt they utilize, competency of
of the company, while Kiefer stayed home and involved the kids in as many aspects of the business as he could. They proved to be quick studies, and it became a family business in every sense of the word.
“Our dream was to be home with the kids and this business has
allowed us to do that,” says Linda. “We see a lot of the same customers each week, and they tell us our mushrooms and tinctures are helping regulate
their blood pressure and mood and making them feel better in other ways. That’s a great feeling. We’ll probably never get wealthy selling mushrooms
management, etc. Given a proper time frame, being diversified in well evaluated companies will provide a strong possibility of success.
Events like these get big media coverage, look flashy, and give you the
fear of missing out. However, they almost always end badly for everyone involved. Investing, not gambling, is the only proven way to have success. You have financial questions? Call or email Mike today.
but spending our days together as a family is a different kind of ‘rich’.” “People contact me now asking advice about starting their own
mushroom business or just growing them for themselves,” Kiefer says. “It’s one of my favorite things to do, to help others get started.”
The entrepreneurial spirit has awakened in the oldest Myers child,
Amelia, too. The sixth grader spent her Christmas money this year on a
tent, rack, grow light, seed trays, and seeds to start her own sprout and
microgreen business she plans to run with her little sister, Voli—a business they’ll call Sprout Sisters.
W. Mike Stewart AIF, RFC • Wealth Management Services 985-809-0530 • wmsgroup@advisormike.com Check out Research Materials and Video Library at: www.advisormike.com March-April 2021 57
