Editor's note: For today's Weekend Edition, we're taking a break from our usual fare to share a classic essay from Steve. Most recently published in 2019, on our company's 20-year anniversary, he details how his dream of "doing better" for investors grew into Stansberry Research today. It's one more way that Steve helped found this company with a mindset of putting loyal customers – you all – first. Here he is...

I'm proud to share an incredible milestone with you... Stansberry Research has now been around for 20 years!

Porter Stansberry and I had two simple ideas when we started our little publishing company back in 1999...

• We wanted to deliver world-class investing ideas – written in plain language that basically anyone could understand.
• We didn't ever want to make a "quick buck" at the expense of our customers... Instead, we wanted to build a long-term business by always doing what's right for our subscribers first – believing that the rest would take care of itself.

Our two goals worked... Today, we have hundreds of thousands of loyal customers just like you. We are flattered and humbled. Thank you!

To show you how far we've come – and how much this means to us – I want to "pull back the curtain" and tell you how I got started in this business. And I want to show you a key way we're staying true to our vision today.

You might not know it, but Porter and I have actually known each other much longer than 20 years...

The two of us were surfing buddies in our early teens, and we lived together (with Porter's brother) when we were around 20 years old. Here's a photo of Porter and me as knucklehead teenagers...

Who's the third Florida teenager in the photo? It's Kelly Slater – who went on to become the greatest of all time – the "G.O.A.T." as they say – in professional surfing.

That photo brings back a lot of good memories!

Porter and I have been sharing some of those early memories with readers throughout the years.

In fact, one of them was how I got my start in the newsletter industry. It all comes back to our two simple goals...

I'd just quit my job as the vice president of a global mutual fund. I distinctly remember going over to my girlfriend's apartment complex and telling her what I'd just done.

I told her I wanted to do something else. And then, right there on the pool deck, I laid out a half dozen investment newsletters from other analysts.

"I can do better than these, I think," I told her.

"What do you mean, 'better?'" she asked. I didn't really know. "Can you make money doing this?" I didn't really know. "Well, how do you get readers?" Once again, I didn't really know.

It wasn't a thought-out plan... I just thought that I could help a lot of people do a lot better with their own money.

So I got my start in the industry working for an existing group. And a few years later, in 2001, Porter talked to me about starting my own newsletter... about writing whatever I wanted, with a "blank check" travel and research budget. I couldn't say no!

That was 18 years ago. The girlfriend asking the good questions by the pool soon became my wife... And now, Stansberry Research as a whole has just turned 20. Time flies.

Porter and I have changed a lot over the years (and I don't mean just our waistlines)... But our vision for Stansberry Research hasn't changed. We're still committed to sharing great investment ideas that anyone can use to take charge of their own money. And we're still committed to putting you – our customer – first.

So if you're a loyal subscriber, we'd like to thank you. It's been a great 20 years... better than we could have ever imagined. And we're looking forward to many great years from here.

Good investing,

Steve

Editor's note: Brett Aitken, Stansberry Research's publisher, is making a special announcement on December 15 to wrap up this year. In short, we're opening up our Stansberry Alliance membership to the public for a limited time.

This unique, flagship membership is normally by invitation only. That's because it gives you access to nearly all of the financial research we publish, plus everything we'll publish in the future – for life – without ever paying a regular subscription fee again.

If you've been with us for long – or have only just joined us recently – and you've been waiting for an opportunity to join our Alliance members, now is your chance. And it will likely be your last chance to join at this price. So don't wait... Click here to learn more.