Table of contents

• EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

• FEATURED REPORT 📰

• TOGETHER WITH WEALTHBRITE* 🤝

• A BIT OF FUN 😄

• IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

Neurodivergence is extremely underreported in the legal profession (usually because people fear being judged).

So, Amelia (a trainee from Clifford Chance) is trying to change this — to make these invisible conditions more visible.

If you’re neurodivergent, you can fill this form to share your experience and help others in the industry.

The plan is to share knowledge on things like reasonable adjustments and issues around open disclosure.

If it applies to you, you can even complete the form anonymously.

- Idin 

P.S. Thanks to those of you who sent in Netflix recommendations last week — I’ve got loads on my list now!

FEATURED REPORT 📰

🔥 Supreme got copped

What's going on here?

EssilorLuxottica (a global glasses company) has agreed to buy the streetwear brand Supreme for $1.5 billion from VF Corporation (the owner of brands like Vans and The North Face).

Why did the deal make sense?

For the seller (VF Corporation):

Supreme didn’t fit with its other brands (like Timberland, Vans, and Dickies). Also, the sale helps reduce VF Corporation's significant net debt of $5.3 billion.

For the buyer (EssilorLuxottica):

• 📈 Supreme apparel is in demand. Their releases (or “drops”) are super infrequent and are released in limited numbers, which drives up the hype (and price).

  

  Click here image to see the latest Supreme drops

• 🕶️ There are licensing opportunities. EssilorLuxottica owns Ray-Ban and Oakley. They’re hoping that adding Supreme’s iconic red logo on those glasses means they’ll sell.

• 💾 Supreme has access to valuable data. Supreme mostly does direct sales through its website to its loyal fans. So, it has loads of user data on them. This will help EssilorLuxottica target fashion-conscious people with money to spend.

(Quick question: do you know what this is + have you used one? → 💾 Reply to let me know)

Has the deal completed?

Nope — as two big fashion companies are merging, the deal needs approval from regulators to make sure it’s not going to harm consumers.

The Federal Trade Commission in the US, the European Commission in Europe, as well as various authorities across Asia need to give it the green light first.

Which law firms are involved in this deal?

Latham & Watkins are acting as legal advisors to EssilorLuxottica (here’s Latham’s announcement on it).

Davis Polk is acting as legal advisor to VF Corporation (here’s what Davis Polk had to say).

TOGETHER WITH WEALTHBRITE* 🤝

Want to becoming more commercially aware — completely free?

Wealthbrite (founded by Carla, an ex-lawyer) is looking for some people to test their new commercial awareness programme.

A couple weeks ago, we asked for some testers and got 100+ responses. So we’re running it up again.

If you want to improve your commercial awareness and have some time over the next few weeks (the trial’s running in August), then this is made for you.

* This is sponsored content

A BIT OF FUN 😄 

I'm ready for the situational judgement test 🙃

IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• 🚨 A European Union court decided TikTok must follow stricter rules, like Google, Meta, and Apple, under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). TikTok argued they’re not an online “gatekeeper” like the other companies mentioned. But the court pointed at TikTok’s rapid growth since 2018. It said it was a “gatekeeper” so has to follow the stricter regulations. The DMA means companies can get fines of up to 20% of their global revenue if they don't follow the rules.

• 📈 Business owners are rushing to sell their companies before Labour raises taxes. Experts say entrepreneurs fear Labour might increase capital gains tax when they announce their first budget in the autumn. This has caused mergers and acquisitions in the UK to jump 71% to 855 deals in the first quarter.

• 💼 Kirkland and A&O are both offering big rewards to associates for referring new lawyers. A&O Shearman and Kirkland are both offering $50,000 for a successful referral. Also, ex-A&O employees can get a $25,000 bonus for referring a new lawyer to the firm. If you’re at either of these firms right now, you better start hitting up your uni mates.

• 📱 Apple hit a record $8 billion in annual sales in India (up 33% from last year's $6 billion). iPhone sales made up over half of that number. Apple is focusing on India to diversify beyond China because of trade tensions. Although Apple has a small market share in India, with iPhones representing only 3.5% of 690 million smartphones, the country is one of Apple's fastest-growing markets.

• 🌿 Law firms are facing growing pressure to improve their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting. Clients and future lawyers are focusing more on sustainability. Firms are hiring ESG experts to help map their environmental footprints, set science-backed targets and report their statistics.

AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• 🚬 Unhealthy: Save so much on cigarettes abroad that the trip itself becomes free (obviously no endorsement of smoking – just an interesting site)

• 👩‍💻 Tech: TLDR’s free newsletter covers tech, startup, and coding stories in a quick 5-minute email*

• 🟨 Art: Make some simple pixel art (here’s what I made 👇️)

  

   

Credit: r/internetisbeautiful

* This is sponsored content

STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

• 📹️ Free application help: If you're applying to commercial law firms, check out my YouTube channel for actionable tips and an insight into the lifestyle of a commercial lawyer in London.