Oil spiking, conflict in the Middle East, inflation back on the move — and global markets at fresh all-time highs. Something doesn’t add up. In Episode 126, Ben Law sits down with David Berthon-Jones, CIO of Aequitas Investment Partners, for a clear-eyed look at what’s really driving markets, where the risks are quietly building, and what intergenerational farming families need to be thinking about as they protect and grow off-farm wealth across the next generation.

What do a Valentino runway, a Women Changing the World Gold Award, and a great-grandmother’s knitted baby blanket have in common? More than you’d think. Vanessa Bell’s journey — from international fashion and high-powered media to Woolmark Licensee and superfine Merino grower at Walcha NSW — is a rare look at what vertical integration on a farming enterprise can actually look like. And what it takes to back yourself when the idea feels impossibly big.

Most farming families know succession matters. Very few start early enough to get it right. Ben Law — former financial adviser and founder of AgriCoach — joins Josh and Steph Borowski on Hard Ground to talk about why farm transitions so often break families, and what it takes to build the clarity, trust, and alignment needed to protect both the farm and the people behind it.

Mike Logan went from stretching a cotton farm’s balance sheet to its limit to chairing advisory boards for some of Australia’s most ambitious family businesses. In this episode, he and Ben Law unpack the structure that high-performing families use to make better decisions, develop the next generation, and build for the long term — and why the question you’re not asking could be costing you more than you think.

Most rural families treat the end of financial year as their main reason to talk to their accountant. The families building something truly generational? They’ve rewritten that relationship entirely. Sarah Becker — Chartered Accountant, Rural Business Advisor, and Central Queensland grazier — joins Ben Law to share what the top performers are actually doing differently, and why the gap between a dream and a plan is wider than most families realise.

What changes when a farming family stops relying on tradition… and starts building a business that can grow beyond them? This episode will challenge how you think about developing the next generation.