What does it take to consistently outperform the market?

That was the central question at Performativ’s latest LinkedIn Live session, where Michael Gielkens, Owner & Partner at Tresor Capital, joined me for a deep dive into the philosophy and discipline behind a strategy that has beaten global benchmarks by ~3% annually since 2017.

Gielkens, a wealth manager turned co-owner of Tresor Capital, shared his journey, the principles guiding his high-conviction approach, and why family-controlled holding companies continue to be at the heart of his strategy. For wealth managers, CIOs, and investment professionals, his insights reveal both the challenges and opportunities in delivering long-term performance beyond the index.

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From Hobbyist to Professional Wealth Manager

Michael’s passion for investing began shortly after the 2008 financial crisis, with an early investment in Berkshire Hathaway. Inspired by Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger, he immersed himself in shareholder letters and books, learning what it meant to think like a long-term owner.

His career formally began in Luxembourg in 2016 as an analyst for a wealth management company. By 2021, he and three partners acquired a Dutch firm, bringing clients and strategies back to the Netherlands under what is now Tresor Capital. Since then, Tresor’s core philosophy has been refined into a disciplined approach centered around family-controlled holdings and benchmark-agnostic investing.

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The Case for Family-Controlled Holdings

Why build a strategy around family- and founder-led holding companies? For Michael, the answer is clear: long-term alignment and “skin in the game.”

Citing Charlie Munger’s famous line, “Show me the incentives, and I’ll show you the outcome,” Michael argues that insider ownership is the most effective solution to the classic principal-agent problem. When 80–90% of management’s wealth is tied to the business, decisions tend to be far more disciplined.

This alignment isn’t a guarantee against mistakes, but it ensures that management feels the same pain as outside shareholders during downturns, and the same gains in success. For Tresor, insider ownership is a non-negotiable filter when selecting holdings.

Examples like Investor AB and Berkshire Hathaway highlight the power of this model: compounding returns across decades, supported by families with a multi-generational outlook.

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A Benchmark-Agnostic Philosophy

One of the biggest differentiators for Tresor Capital is its refusal to “hug” the index. While many asset managers mimic benchmark allocations, Tresor takes a benchmark-agnostic approach.

Yes, they report performance against global indices, as regulations require. But allocation decisions aren’t guided by index weights. Instead, Michael and his team focus solely on risk-adjusted return potential within their investment universe.

This independence enables Tresor to take bold positions, avoid over-diversification, and allocate capital only to businesses that meet their high standards for return on capital and compounding potential.

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The Role of Cash: Defensive and Opportunistic

Another defining feature of Tresor’s approach is its use of cash. Tresor doesn’t time markets, but it does adjust allocations based on relative valuations.

Take Brookfield Corporation, a long-term holding. At times, it represented over 10% of the portfolio; at others, less than 5%. This dynamic positioning reflected shifts in discount levels relative to intrinsic value. By trimming exposure when valuations closed the gap, Tresor built cash buffers, later redeployed in 2022’s downturn, capturing attractive entry points.

The philosophy is simple: use cash as a flexible lever. In turbulent periods, it provides defense. When opportunities arise, it fuels conviction buys.

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High Conviction Over Diversification

Tresor limits its holding company strategy to 25 positions, with the top 10 accounting for two-thirds of the portfolio. The top five often make up nearly half.

Why so concentrated? Because each holding company is already diversified, often owning hundreds of businesses. Buying too many such companies would dilute the very edge Tresor seeks.

Instead, Tresor doubles down on high-conviction names. Recent examples include Constellation Software and Investor AB, both now over 10% of the portfolio. Constellation, a serial acquirer in vertical market software, has compounded returns above 30% since 2005. Investor AB, led by Sweden’s Wallenberg family, has delivered generational stewardship, with structural returns above 12% since 1919.

Both represent exactly what Tresor values most: proven capital allocation, insider alignment, and long runways for reinvestment.

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Scenario-Based Valuation: Planning for Multiple Futures

To discipline decision-making, Tresor applies a scenario-based valuation framework. Each potential investment is modeled across five outcomes, from highly pessimistic to highly optimistic.

Probabilities are then assigned, with 75% weighted toward conservative and base cases. Only if a company offers sufficient upside even under these cautious assumptions will it enter the portfolio.

This framework ensures Tresor avoids over-optimism, while maintaining readiness to act when markets misprice risk.

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Managing Through Downturns

Market cycles inevitably test conviction. Tresor’s approach is to differentiate between price-driven declines and fundamental impairment.

When industries are indiscriminately punished, such as the recent selloff in software, Michael’s team often leans in, increasing positions if fundamentals remain intact. Conversely, if long-term prospects weaken, they reallocate to better opportunities.

This balance of patience and discipline has allowed Tresor to outperform not only during recoveries, but also in compounding returns over full cycles.

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Technology and Operational Excellence

Performance alone isn’t enough. For Tresor, client trust depends on operational excellence and transparency.

Before digitization, reporting relied heavily on reports from custodians and manual processes. Today, Tresor leverages Performativ’s portfolio management solution to centralize client portfolios, integrate listed and non-listed assets, and deliver seamless reporting through a customized app.

This technology allows Tresor to provide clients with the clarity and customization they expect, elevating client service to match the quality of their investment philosophy.

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Looking Ahead: Undervalued Opportunities

Where does Michael see opportunity today? Despite market excitement around AI and big tech, he argues that family-controlled holding companies are undervalued once again.

Currently, Tresor’s portfolio trades at an average 25–26% discount to intrinsic value, higher than historical norms. For Michael, this suggests that investors overly focused on short-term themes may be overlooking the compounding potential of these structures.

As history has shown with Berkshire, Investor AB, and others, long-term stewardship can deliver extraordinary results, provided investors have the discipline to hold through cycles.

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Key Takeaways for Wealth Managers

Michael’s philosophy offers several lessons for wealth managers and investment professionals:

• Alignment matters. Insider ownership ensures management decisions are tied to shareholder outcomes.
• Conviction beats breadth. Concentration in the best ideas outperforms over-diversified portfolios.
• Cash is strategic. Used flexibly, it provides defense and fuels opportunity.
• Process drives results. Scenario-based valuation and benchmark-agnostic positioning enforce discipline.
• Technology underpins trust. Operational excellence and transparent reporting strengthen client relationships.

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A Closing Reflection

Beating the benchmark is not about chasing trends or hugging indices. For Michael Gielkens and Tresor Capital, it’s about conviction, discipline, and a relentless focus on long-term alignment. By concentrating on family-controlled holdings, applying rigorous valuation frameworks, and combining that with modern client-facing technology, they’ve created a strategy that has consistently delivered above-market returns.

For wealth managers navigating a complex market, Michael’s story is a reminder that sustainable outperformance comes from clear principles, disciplined execution, and the right infrastructure to support it all.