Hamish McKenzie

Hamish McKenzie is presented in Founder Mode: Chris Best, Founder & CEO, Substack as the writer and later Substack co-founder who pushed Chris Best from media criticism toward company formation. Best says he sent Hamish an essay draft about broken internet media incentives, and Hamish responded that the critique was not new unless they could answer what should be done about it.

The source makes Hamish important because he embodied the first customer problem. Best says Hamish was the kind of writer who understood the need for a better publishing and payment route, which helped turn the abstract manifesto into a practical paid newsletter product.

Connections

• Chris Best and Substack - co-founder context in the source.
• Creator-Owned Audience - creator and writer economics problem Hamish helped make concrete.
• Bill Bishop and Sinocism - first customer case that validated the early product.
• Founder Mode - adjacent company-building frame used later in the episode.