When Parking Lots at Aldi Tell You More Than the Stock Market

Who would’ve thought that Google searches for “blonde to brunette” could be a harbinger of economic slowdown? But here we are. As an investor, it is a reminder that the best signals are not always in the headlines—they are in the margins: packed parking lots at Aldi, a woman in my dance class mentioning how she swapped $200 salon visits for $9 press-on nails.

These are just some of the things that I’m hearing and seeing in my day to day.

This week’s newsletter explores the ways financial pressure is reshaping behavior—from how companies forecast revenue to how homeowners think about “equity,” and how women, in particular, are recession-proofing their lives in quiet but powerful ways.

Let’s get into it.

📝 My Latest Written Pieces: When Home Equity is a Burden, Rather Than a Benefit.

I’ve got two new Forbes articles out:

📊 Why Sales Teams Should Ditch Weighted Averages – As a VC investor, I’ve been seeing more and more early stage companies provide “weighted averages” for forecasting future sales. In my view, this is not the way to go do it. I break down three better ways to forecast than using WACV.

🏠 Why $35 Trillion in Equity for American Homeowners Is More Burden Than Boon – Homeowners are sitting on a ton of equity, but most cannot access it. I dig into some of the lesser discussed implications in this piece.

🎙️ On the Podcast: Conversations That Matter

Money Memories is back this Wednesday with Adam Silver, founder of Plural Energy (not the NBA commissioner). We get into how blockchain could play a role in the energy transition—do not miss it if you are curious about climate tech or crypto’s real-world impact. If you were waiting last week for the drop, you didn’t miss anything. Sorry for the delay and hope that you’ll find he episode worth the wait.

ICYMI: I also spoke with Michael Lux of Student Loan Sherpa about how to navigate student debt in today’s economy. Still super relevant—check it out here!

💡 On Designing for Women in Fintech

This Wall Street Journal article hit home: Young Women Are Starting to Recession-Proof Their Lives.

From skipping manicures to cutting out Ubers and relying on AI for therapy, the story highlights how female consumers—once dubbed "recession-proof" due to their resilience and spending—are now tightening their belts in a big way.

What stood out to me was not just the behavioral shifts, but the broader narrative shift: financial anxiety is creeping in, even among high-earning, educated women. And while men’s consumer sentiment has somewhat stabilized, women’s confidence in the economy continues to drop.

I also asked you all on Instagram where you're cutting back—and your top three answers echoed these shifts:
1️⃣ Shopping for clothes
2️⃣ Eating out / coffee
3️⃣ Rent (some of you even moved when faced with steep increases)

Another interesting note, searches for nearest Aldi stores have been booming, check out these Google results:

It looks like we’re all feeling the squeeze.

Now I want to hear the flip side: What are you not compromising on right now?
Reply to this email or DM me on IG @ilonaonthemoney —I’d love to feature your voice in an upcoming Money Memories episode.

🔗 Other Interesting Reads & Listens

📌 Wool, water, Wifi: Modernizing an ancient business at the final frontiers of e-commerce - How a group of women in Kyrgyzstan are bringing traditional techniques into the 21st century. Side note, the Verge is quietly doing outstanding, consistently reporting.
📌 Gout Gout’s winds of change whip Australian athletics into frenzy – Is someone knocking on Usain Bolt’s 200M record already?

Until next time,

Ilona