How does it work?

A Grassroots® Research report begins life with a fund manager commissioning a piece of research. A Grassroots® Research project manager will then draw up a plan, working out what questions need to be asked and who needs to be contacted. For example, recent interviews have included discussions with port managers regarding global shipping markets, dialogues with resellers and channel monitors about changing semiconductor inventories, and conversations with cardiologists about cholesterol-lowering drugs.

These interviews are carried out by our network of Grassroots® Research reporters: freelance investigative journalists who gather information on business-related topics by questioning industry experts. This team of 67 reporters is aided by a further 252 Field Force investigators. These are part-time, independent contractors who specialise in market research, surveying consumers and gathering information on industry trends. In the past two years, our freelance reporters and Field Force investigators have spoken to over 50,000 industry contacts across the globe, including more than 575 purchasing managers, 425 pharmacists, 225 cardiologists, 175 travel agents, 145 CEOs and 120 farmers.

With the research complete, the reporter submits their written study which is then distributed to our fund managers. It’s the fund manager’s job to incorporate the research with their own analysis and, from there, come to an investment decision.