The Best One Yet - BONUS 🔮 “Predictions Pod” — Our 3 Big Wishes for 2023

Episode Date: December 26, 2022

To end 2022, we whipped up our annual un-zuckably bold pod of the year — Our 3 big business predictions for 2023:Budweiser should launch the 1st zero alcohol bar chainAmazon should launch a theme park: AmazonLandNike should acquire Major League PickleballYetis, these are bold, expensive, and kinda crazy ideas — but we really wish those stories would happen in 2023.We’re back to our regular daily TBOY pods on Tuesday, January 3rd.Until then, we’re dropping some more bonus material on Instagram @tboypod. if ya know, ya know. Happy New Year! Celebrate the wins.$BUD $NKE $AMZNLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick, this Jaggin, this is Jack's turtle neck. I'm so glad you're going to acknowledge it this thing. I mean, it's, it's thick, it's big, it's got a gravitational pull. I know. They didn't even, it's like they just... Dude, if you rub it fast enough, you get electricity. I assume they didn't even stitch it. They just took it off the sheep.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's someday over the holidays. We still don't know when. And today's bonus pod is honestly just the best one. yet. Santa's done for the year. We're not done yet. Uh-uh, yet. He's hoping you had a Merry Christmas and a Happy Hanukkah. Actually, this is our fourth annual predictions podcast, Jack. Yes, it is. This is the fourth time. We've made three big business wishes, and this time's for 2023. Jack, I'm getting a vision right now, and it's

you're about to tell us the three predictions for this year. Our first big wish for 2020, Budweiser should launch the first ever zero alcohol bar chain. We're envisioning the first ever, the first First, alcohol-free chain of bars. Our second big wish for 2023 is that Amazon opens a theme park. Take a ride on the Kindle roller coaster only at Amazon land. And our third and final big business wish for 2023. This one's wild. Nike should acquire Major League pickleball.

Nike, why sponsor a player when you could buy the whole league? This is a wild mix. Jack and I sat down, stood up, and then we were. realized gravity will bring us back down again. But yet he's, everyone knows the biggest rule when it comes to prediction podcasts. Biggest rule of prediction podcast. Jack, we got to check how we did last year. Uh-oh.

Oh, boy. Uh-oh. Okay, let's whip out the whiteboard. Last year, Nick and I went, eh, one for three. One for three. We went one for three, allegedly. One for three-ish. Okay, last year's first prediction, what was it, Jack?

We predicted before all this Elon nonsense. Yeah, true. that Twitter would become the first American super app. Well, Twitter got super attention, but it didn't become a super app. Elon did say he wants to make Twitter the first American super app. But then Elon did fire the entire super app team. Still, we're rounding up. We're going to give ourselves one point for this first prediction we made about Twitter.

Jack and I get one point-ish. Our second prediction we made last year about 2022. Yeah, we wished for the first ever robot. run fast food restaurant. All right, we're jumped in T-Boy style. White Castle did hire a burger flipping robot. Name flippy. And Chipotle did hire a chip dipping robot. Name chippy. But we didn't see robots take over an entire restaurant. Nah, we didn't. Brenda, she's still rolling those Chipotle burritos. Dalian, she's still pumping two pumps a hazel. But Jack, our third big prediction of last year, what was it? We predicted the number one show, movie, and schmovie in the United States in

2022 would be foreign language. And how did we do on that wish, Jack? Flat out wrong. Yeah, we didn't get that one right. We straight up missed that one. We crashed like Quibi on that one. So yeties, let's get to this year's three big business wishes. Besties, let's get to this year's three big predictions for 2020.

Now, before we jump into the rest of the pod, we should mention the even bigger rule of prediction pods. The even bigger rule of prediction podcast, Jack, there's no such thing. as a wrong prediction. It just hasn't happened. Yet. Jack, let's in our three predictions. 18 years before this song, two boys from the Northeast met in the dawn

that had an idea to cause a cultural storm. It's the best one yet, but the best is a norm. That's it. I don't even think they need to practice. 50% that's a fat tip. T-boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, because we're ready to go.

We can't wait no more, so just start the show. Start the show. For our first wish for 2023, Budweiser should launch a chain of bars, but not just any bars. What kind of bars, Jack? The first bars with only zero alcohol drinks. Because innovation isn't a product, innovation should be an experience. Okay, Yeties, Nick and I jumped into the numbers, and the future of beer appears to be the opposite of beer. Jack and I were at a New York Rangers hockey game together.

We were drinking a non-beer beer, and then we were like, this should be our prediction. Because the sneaky growing trend isn't snacks, sneals or pretzels. It's non-alcoholic alcohol. Non-alcoholic wine, beer, and spirits. Their sales are up 31% in the last year. They just hit $500 million. And over half of the non-alcoholic drinks is non-alcoholic beer.

And Budweiser is currently selling the largest non-alcoholic. beer in the world, Bud Zero. Bud Zero, besides Lionel Messi, was the hero of the World Cup because it was the only beer allowed at the World Cup. It was pretty nice, actually. Every beer was not allowed to attend the World Cup. So Bud Zero got to be the hero. But outside of soccer, you got Mulsin.

You got Coors. You got Hearnikin. They all have non-alcoholic beers. You got athletic brewing company, Best Day Brewing Company, Rescue Club Brewing Company. All of those are non-alcoholic microbrews. 10 years from now, the non-alcoholic industry is going to look a lot like the alcohol industry, we know. It's going to be a bunch of similar tasting, similar-looking beer brands. So the big question today, how can non-alcoholic beer separate from the rest of the six-pack?

Well, Yeties, here's how Jack and I think one winner can emerge in the non-alcohol industry. Don't compete to be better non-alcoholic beer. Compete to be different. Yeah, don't launch another non-alcoholic beer. launch the first non-alcoholic bar. The first bar with only non-alcoholic drinks. We're talking about a non-alcoholic bar chain that has like the characteristics of a bar, but it's kicking the alcohol to the curb. If you're trying to picture this, it could be a sports non-alcoholic bar.

Yeah, what would that look like, Jack? What are we envisioning for that kind of a bar? You'd have an NFL ticket. You'd have a wooden table, a sticky floor, dartboard, and pilliards in the back. Maybe some random neon sign that looks a little obscure, but you kind of like the way it's going Z-ZZZZZ. It's making noises. Or maybe it's a trendy Tribeca non-alcoholic speak-easy. I kind of like the look of this, Jack. Are we talking like, I don't know, designer sconces, maybe a chandelier from the center? That's exactly what we're talking about. Can I put my butt on a velvet bar stool? What do I got to do, Jack?

Here's the key. The menu is packed with beer, whining cocktails. And here's the key key. Those are non-alcoholic zero-proof beers and wines and mocktails. Everybody's a designated driver. And this bar is packed with the sober curious. And here's the best part. This is way cheaper and easier to scale because Budweiser doesn't need a liquor license. And the lawyers over at Anheiser Bush are going to love it. Because you could do body shots for breakfast and you're not breaking any local liquor laws. Bring the kids.

It's got the same regulations as a Chuckie cheese, Jack. I'll tell you, the CEO's going to love it too because you can still charge 14 bucks for that zero proof poloma. Jack, I'm wafting the non-alcoholic business model and it smells like a profit puppy. We've said that Bud isn't the king of beer. Bud is the emperor of ads. Well, Jack, this is the ultimate ad for a non-alcoholic beer. So what's the takeaway for our buddies over in the beer industry? A non-alcoholic bar turns a product into an experience.

Yeties, the biggest challenge we've said to a new product is the initial hump, the trial, getting people just to taste it. We need a familiar setting if we're going to try out an unfamiliar concept. Well, the way Jack and I see it, a bar scene is the comfortable experience you know for the non-alcoholic product that you don't. Turning the product into an experience is the magic ingredient that non-alcoholic drinks is missing.

Every shot of innovation needs a chaser of comfort. For our second wish for 2023, Amazon should make streaming go physical by launching a theme park. Amazon land would be the next frontier of experiential retail. Hey, Jeff Bezos, what do I got to do to get a turkey leg around here? Oh, Jack. Walt Disney, though, let's go to Disney. Walt Disney's best assets are its TV, it's movie characters that we've all come to love.

Well, Walt took it one step further in 1955 when he turned those characters into rides, mascots, attractions, and an entire world. Disney World is now like a quarter of Disney's revenues, but they face some competition from your Universal Studios out there. But in 2023, one company is primed to challenge Disney World like it's never faced competition before. It's not Six Flags. It's not Netflix and it's not Taylor Swift either.

Who is it, Jack? Amazon. We think that company is really Amazon. And unlike Disney World, Amazon land would be about both rides and, robots. Yes, it would. By the way, name check, Jack, are we going with Amazon land or can we go with Amazonia? Amazonia could work. It can work. It's got a nice little ring to it. That's a good idea. We'll stick with Amazon land because that's what we discussed. We'll table the Amazonia for now. Deal. Deal. Ready, break. Now, yeties, Jack and I were whiteboarding this whole Amazon land

theme park idea and we decided to start with one particular thing, rides. If you look at Amazon Prime Video, you see very clearly there's three assets ripe to amusement parkify into rides. For example, first, there's Lord of the Rings. Amazon paid the token estate for the rights to create a video series based on Lord of the Rings. So the way Jack and I see it, why not capitalize by building Middle Earth on planet Earth in real life? I would love to live for a few hours as a hobbit with huge hairy feet. I know you would. All right, do you want to drop your Smeagle impression on us right here?

Can we get a gallon? You know I need a minute to warm up. This isn't a cookie crisp. What do you got? Can you give me a minute? I can give you a minute. Where is my precious? Oh, well, Jack just got hired over at Amazon Land.

All right, another ride Jack and I are thinking about for Amazon Land. How about James Bond? Did we forget the Amazon acquired MGM Studios for $8 billion? If so facto, Amazon owns the rights to James Bond. Amazon is MI6. Yeah, like what adobe? wouldn't want to be a spy for a day and run around in a casino royale world. Finally, let's turn the page over to Thursday night because Amazon has the rights for 10 years

to Thursday night football. Yeah, and since Amazon owns Thursday night football, they could do to football what Topgolf already did to golf. We're picturing interactive football amusements, like a Hail Mary competition. You could have someone come out dressed like Peyton Manning and like me signing Peyton Manning autographs. No, no, no, no. Target practice, you try to throw the ball at that huge forehead.

Practice. Practice. Nice football reference. I didn't have that in you. I thought I would drop that one too. Yeties, that is just three worlds right there based on Amazon's video assets. But there's so much more to Amazon. A Kindle roller coaster?

A prime popcorn, Jack? The list goes on. So what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Amazon? Amazon land isn't just Amazon land. It's Amazon Lab. Okay, Yetis, this is kind of the exciting part. It's possible that Amazon Land loses money on a standalone basis. It's just a lost llama.

But Amazon could still benefit because Amazon Land would be testing ground for all Amazon's technology. Get this. When guests arrive, an Amazon Echo device is handed to you to ask any questions. Alexa would be everywhere. Your personal virtual assistant and your hotel room would have all Alexa optimized products. Make us a reservation at 8. Bring Ghalm. You don't even need a credit card to that dinner with Ghalm. There's no payments needed whatsoever because of Amazon Go technology.

That cashierless technology would track your spending, link it to your account, and you'd never have to whip out the plastic. This would be a real-life, fully controlled, opt-in petri dish for Amazon's futuristic technology. Besties, even if Amazon land isn't profitable, it still prepares the public for future prime perks. land. It's not just a shot at Disney World. It's the ultimate real world R&D lab. Welcome to Amazonia. Now a word about our sponsor, Robin Hood. You can do just about anything from your phone, but some industries, they've just been slow to move.

The finance industry was slow to move from phone to computer and then from computer to app. Robin Hood wasn't. It's the Silicon Valley-based brokerage that's been updating app since it was born in 2015. Using the Robin Hood app for your stocks and crypto is almost as easy as downloading it. So you can invest to your pace on your terms by downloading the Robin Hood app. If you're not investing on Robin Hood yet, to get started, go to robinhood.com slash t-boy and choose your free stock. That's Robinhood.com slash T-B-O-Y limitation supply. Stocks are offered by Robin Hood Financial LLC, member SIPC. Crypto offered through Robin Hood crypto. All investments involve risk. By the way, this podcast is not owned by or part

of Robin Hood and we are not employees of Robin Hood. For our third and final wish for 2020, This was the year sports got disrupted. So here's what Jack and I are wishing for next. Nike should acquire major league pickleball. Yeah, it is, put down the putters, bench that basketball shoe, and forget about your footballs. And he can't pass! Boom, the sports industry has seen more disruption in 2022 than tax he saw in 2012.

Tiger Woods and Rory McElroy announced this year an alternative golf league. They're playing golf in a stadium with screens. And that was only after Saudi Arabia launched an alternative to the PGA tour, Live Golf. Oh, by the way, the actor The Rock, bought the XFL Football League. By the way, by the way, overtime elite launched professional high school basketball last year. I'm sorry, Yetis and Bessie. Should we continue? Putshack raised $150 million for mini golf. They're doing mini golf with venture-backed martinis, baby.

But the biggest disruption, the biggest sports trend for the second. straight year. It's pickleball. Pickleball. Tennis, but with no athletic expectations. It's badminton, but without the shuttlecock. It's ping pong, but on a court, not in your parents' baseball. Everyone's got an aunt named Edna who's

calling them right now to complain about the match that they just lost in a controversial finish. The pickleball courts, they're always booked. I know, Mom. You're playing twice in the middle of day on Thursday. It's not just your mom's and aunts, though. LeBron James, Tom Brady, Bray Brown,

some hedge funds have bought or launched professional pickleball teams. Yetis, we could soon see youth pickleball leagues, high school pickleball teams, and maybe one day Olympic pickleball tournaments. That is why Nike should buy right now Major League pickleball. Nike should buy the entire Major League pickleball league. Nike, the worldwide leader in sports apparel could own the fastest growing sports league. Now, Yeties, we know what you're thinking.

You thought sports were only owned by Indeastern. individual rich guys. But there is precedent to a company owning an entire sports league. Jack and I jumped in T-boy style, the XFL Football League was half owned by NBC. Professional bowling is still fully owned by publicly traded company, Bolero. So Yeti's, turns out there is precedent to a company owning an entire league. And in terms of affordability, it's a slam dunk for Nike. Yeah, Jack, how much is Nike worth?

$170 billion, and it has $12 billion in cash. How much is Major League Pickleball worth? We don't know, but they've raised under a billion dollars. So Jack and I are looking at the numbers here, Nike can absolutely afford to spend a billion or two bucks to buy the entire pickleball league. Pickleball is small enough to be affordable and it's growing fast enough to be attracted. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Nike? Only with great risk comes great reward.

Yeti's guack is always extra. Owning a league, it comes with serious risks and costs. Nike has no operational experience running a nationwide complex media organization like a sports league. No, it does not. And Nike does not want the responsibility of making rules and enforcing those rules. Roger Goodell, he's not very popular. But we think there are strategic benefits that outweigh all of those costs. League ownership gives Nike inseparable connections with the top growing sport.

TV rights, brand rights, uniform rights, equipment rights, shoe rights, relationships with those famous team owners we mentioned. And they can crowd out all the other competitors in apparel who want in on pickleball. Nike should buy the whole professional pickleball league. Just buy the whole Dar League, Nike. Because only with great risk comes great reward. Jack, can you, that lovely turtleneck and your fantastic Gallum impression whip up the takeaways for us over there?

Can I just say, this might be cash beer. I can't confirm it, though. Let's round up from wool to cashmere. Let's round down from alpaca, though. If you know, you know. Yet these Budweiser should launch a chain of zero alcohol bars. Because every shot of innovation needs a chaser of comfort. For our second story, Amazon should launch Amazon Land, their first theme part.

It's not just Amazon Land, it's Amazon Lab. And our third and final story is Nike. They should buy the professional pickleball league. Because only with great risk, Nike, comes great reward. Now, we should point out, these are all big, bold, expensive business wishes. What do I got to do? Whip out the wallet on that thing, Jack. But Nick and I once saw Matt Damon say in a TV commercial that fortune favors the brave.

And what Matt Damon says is right sometimes. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one whipped up by Jack and me because we just love telling you the same thing. last year too. Salt. Salt. Sodium. The stuff you put on your food. Salt is the only rock we eat. We repeat, salt is the only rock you eat. And that's about all we got to say about that. Yet is you look fantastic thing. Jack, what are you flying down to Florida? I'm flying tomorrow morning on the 27th floor. Are you going to leave the turtleneck there? Because you're going to have to check that thing otherwise. Not going to lie. It looks like a three-person job just to put on.

I'm actually working on the first level of turtleneck wetsuit. Fouts? I'm down with it. I could actually use that turtleneck in Tokyo for that Japan Japau, Jack. Oh yeah, the powder on Mount Fuji. Are you skiing, by the way? You know I'm a city skier, Jack. I like the hot chocolate at 11, I pray by 12. Yeties have a fantastic new year, and Nick and I cannot wait to see you for 2023. Celebrate the wins and keep that champagne shortage coming. Nick and I will see you next year. Tuesday, January 3rd, Jack and I will see you then.

This is Jack. I own stock of Disney, Netflix, and Amazon, and Nick and I both own stock of Chipotle and Robin Hood. Now a word about our sponsor, Robin Hood. Jack, rule number one about a kitchen renovation, tell your friends about your kitchen renovation. We know the cabinets are expensive. Well, in the pandemic, a lot of companies renovated their businesses focusing on apps and digital.

Robin Hood didn't have to. It was built digital from the start. Robin Hood's mobile first and intuitive design makes investing a little easier for every stage of your investing journey. Whether you want to trade options, ETFs, or stocks through Robinto Financial, or buy some Bitcoin on Robin Hood Crypto, you can do all that right on the Robin Hood app. If you're not investing on Robin Hood yet, to get started, go to Robinhood.com slash T-Boy and choose your free stock. That's robinood.com slash TBOI. Limitations apply. Robin Hood Financial LLC, member SIPC, all investments involved risk. By the way, this podcast is not owned by or part of Robin Hood, and we are not employees of Robin Hood.

Welcome to Amazonia.