The Best One Yet - 🤡 “Forced Fun!” — Target’s Smile Rule. Trump’s $2k Tariff Dividend. OneSkin’s dude beauty. +Starbucks’ Bear-ista.

Episode Date: November 11, 2025

Target’s making workers smile if a customer is within 10 ft… but it’s not the only “Forced Fun biz.President Trump wants to send you … but we found 5 huge economic plot holes.OneSkin has biohacked the skin’s aging process… as Millennials trade “clean” for “clinical”Starbucks is saying “I’m sorry” for selling out of Bearistas. Not baristas, bear-istas.$TGT $SBUX $SPYNEWSLETTER:https://tboypod.com/newsletter OUR 2ND SHOW:Want more business storytelling from us? Check our weekly deepdive show, The Best Idea Yet: The untold origin story of the products you're obsessed with. Listen for free to The Best Idea Yet: https://wondery.com/links/the-best-idea-yet/NEW LISTENERSFill out our 2 minute survey: https://qualtricsxm88y5r986q.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dp1FDYiJgt6lHy6GET ON THE POD: Submit a shoutout or fact: https://tboypod.com/shoutouts SOCIALS:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tboypod TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tboypodYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tboypod Linkedin (Nick): https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolas-martell/Linkedin (Jack): https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-crivici-kramer/Anything else: https://tboypod.com/ About Us: The daily pop-biz news show making today’s top stories your business. Formerly known as Robinhood Snacks, The Best One Yet is hosted by Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Tuesday, T-Boy, Tuesday, November 11th Veterans Day. And today's pod is the best one yet. This is a T-boy. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. Yetis, welcome back to the mecca of markets. Jack, you missed the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center by one day. You were right there. Newman! But stocks are up nonetheless, and it's because of our first story. Jack, what do we got on the pot? For our first story, it's President Trump's tariff dividends. He said on Sunday, that $2,000 checks are coming to most Americans. But these $2,000 checks actually have just a 12% chance of happening. And yet, they've already achieved their goal.

For our second story, Target is requiring their store workers to smile at anyone who comes within 10 feet of them. That's right, it's forced fun, and it's taken over corporate America. We'll explain why. And our third and final story, there is a viral skin care product targeting dudes who work in tech. One Skin Cosmetics is showing how the millennial age of clean everything is over. But yetis, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories.

Fantastic mix of stories. Love the Tea Boy Tuesday Mix, Jack. Horters' Almanac week 294. Oh, things we're running out in the economy. Jack and I, and I, keep a track for you. This week, we're running out of Starbucks bearista cups. That is bear Easter cups, as in coffee cups shaped like bears. Because Yeties, last week I was in Sanford. Francisco, and I witnessed something very strange at 5 a.m. when I was getting my coffee.

Yeah, Jack stays on East Coast time when he's visiting me in SF, and Jack, what did you discover at the Starbucks? I was at Starbucks, and right as it opened, I expected to be the only one there, but there were dozens of people there. But Jack, they weren't there for the early morning lattes, were they? They were there for the Barista Cup. Ah, Bearista, not Barista cups. It's a double entendre to hold your double espresso. Starbucks CEO even name dropped this Bear Easter Cup on the last earnings call. It's a honey bear bottle, but with a Starbucks green beanie hat on top. There's a straw sticking out. It's kind of like a hipster glassware situation. It's adorable. But here's the drama. That holiday merch sold out instantly. And the situation's

gotten so bad, Starbucks just issued a public apology. Mayacopa on the Bear Cup. Because besties, the Bear Cup demand was so high, they're now selling for 500 bucks on eBay. $500 for a glass cup that looks like Yogi Bear's Now, Starbucks said they're sorry, but it was probably a shortage on purpose, wasn't it, Jack? Because they have a track record of causing pandemonium for their limited edition plastic mugs. Remember the 2019 cup craze? They got a pink mug from Starbucks now going for a thousand bucks on eBay. I mean, it was studied with crystals, Nick. And the Stanley Cup Starbucks collab, it broke the internet. It's now in a museum somewhere.

Forget the Frappuccino, Starbucks. Make more merch. Seems to sell really well. Hey Starbucks, we're bullish on the bullshaped barista cups. Let's make them happen. Wilder wrote his first letter to Santa yesterday. What do you ask for? This cup. I thought he was a standard guy. Jack, let's sit at our three stores.

Fifteen years before this song. Two boys from the Northeast met in the dorm. They had an idea that caused a cultural storm. It's the best one yet, but the best is an norm. Jack Nick, that's it. I don't even think they need to practice. 50% that's a fat tip. Tea Boy City on your at list.

If you know, you know, because we're rich. To go, we can't wait no more, so just start the show. Start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor. For our first story, would you like to receive a $2,000 check from the government? Yeah. Oh, you probably would. Of course you would.

So we're looking at Trump's latest policy idea, the tariff dividend. The tariff dividend. It probably won't happen, but it's already had the intended effect. Yeties, here was a post from the president on Sunday. Jack, read it off to us. A dividend of at least $2,000 per person, not including high-income people, will be paid to everyone. Besties, that was a post on President Trump's social media platform, talking about the tariff dividend. Now, there were some major factual errors in this post, but it's still a really exciting idea.

And it's also like a really simple concept, right, Jack? Take the revenue that Americans are collecting from tariffs and pay them out to Americans. Basically, we're tariff and French champagne 15% already. why not send some of that wine tax over to us everyday beer-drinking Americans? Good call. Are stimulus checks back? Oh, should I be buying GameStop right now, Jack? Is Bitcoin going to the moon again, baby?

But besties, before you get too excited about a $2,000 stimulus check known as the tariff dividend, we should sprinkle on some context. About those errors. Error number one, President Trump said that we're collecting trillions of dollars in tariffs, but we're actually collecting $30 billion a month. Yeah, by this calculus, we're... we won't actually get to $1 trillion in tariff revenue for another three years. Which leads to error number two. He said that with the money left over after this tariff dividend, he would pay down the nation's debt.

But a $2,000 check to 266 million Americans who qualify as low or mid-income, that would cost $600 billion. So it would take two years of tariff collection just to pay for one round of these tariff dividends. Now let's move on to error number three. This one is a bit more economic, right, Jack? The president said that the tariffs are being paid by foreign countries. But according to Goldman Sachs, 82% are paid by American businesses and us consumers. And the fourth and final error that we should point out to you is the one about the Godzilla monster of the economy the last few years, inflation.

Trump's post boasted that there is, quote-unquote, almost no inflation in the economy. But there is inflation. Inflation is about 3% right now, and American consumers remain pretty unhappy. with price levels these days. And any economist will tell you that a $2,000 handout to 200 million Americans will almost certainly cause inflation to rise. You're going to buy a lot of eggs over there. But finally, we should also point out this isn't an error, but this is just a clarification that is about the logistics. $2,000 tariff dividends would require congressional approval. The president can't do this solo. So we're all up. And Jack, what do prediction markets think

of the new tariff dividend opportunity? Prediction markets think there's just a $1,000. 12% chance they actually happen. It seems more likely that the New York Jets are going to win the Super Bowl this year than you actually get a $2,000 dividend check. But I got some leftover stimulus check from 2021. Now I'm putting it all in on that 12% baby. There you go. I said, yeah, what's the takeaway for all our buddies waiting on a tariff dividend check?

When stocks fall, the president acts. Yet he's in the first Trump presidency, there was an interesting trend. You see, if a policy hurt the stock markets, President Trump would reverse it. And then we saw it again this past eight. April when he blinked on his Liberation Day tariffs because they caused markets to tank. Now, the Wall Street Journal calls this the Trump put. And you know what? We just saw it again with this tariff dividend announcement. Because the S&P 500 fell last week by 2.5% and the NASDAQ fell by 4% last week. It was a really bad week for the stock market. And that's important because we've

said President Trump's favorite measuring stick of success is the stock market. So on Sunday, he sparked the stock market's animal spirits again by bringing back memory. of stimulus checks. Because each of the three times we got stimmies back in 2020 and 2021, uh, yeah, you bought stocks. So on Monday, the stock market rebounded, erasing most of last week's losses. Because when stocks fall, the president acts. For our second story, put on that smile, because Target has a new rule for your staff, mandatory smiling. That's right. But it's not just Target. Forced fun is taking over corporate America at At the same time that workers are having the least fun.

But Yetis, let's start with some context. Jack, the Target Tumble. What's going on? Target stock is off 65% from its 2021 all-time highs. Sales are flat and you're doing your target runs at Costco these days. So this holiday season is critical if the new CEO of Target wants to turn the company around. Which leads to the news, Bloomberg reporters got their hands on Target's new strategy, the 10-4 rule. what the heck is it? If a customer comes within 10 feet of a store employee, they must smile,

make eye contact, and or wave at them. Okay, Jack, what if a customer comes within four feet of a target employee? Then they must ask, how's your day going? And can I help you? That scares me. Mandatory smiles, compulsory courtesy, be friendly or you will be fired? Nick, if the store associate was already the friendly type? Oh, yeah. He's basically clearance to hug anybody who comes into the store. You're going to break a rib in aisle six, Jack. And now, of course, Bessie's the first thing Jack and I thought of what the story was office space, right? Remember the flare? 18 pieces.

Little Johnny over there has 26. Push and play. We need to talk. Do you know what this is about? My, uh, flare? Yeah. Or, uh, your lack of flare because, uh, I'm counting and I only see 15 pieces. Well, the Midwest Yeties, it is famous for its kindness.

And Target is trying to scale the smile nationwide. They want to go from Targey to. Chitare, yay. But besties here's what Jack and I find fascinating about this story. We call this kind of policy forced fun, but HR teams are doing it nationwide. Over at Starbucks, their turnaround plan depends on baristas acting like your besties. Yeah, remember we did a story last year around how Starbucks bought 200,000 Sharpies for their cup messages? Well, the CEO wrote in a memo to baristas to write things on the cups like, quote unquote,

you're amazing and quote unquote, seize the day. Apparently there's a J-O-Y-KPI. Oh, and it's not just chains doing the forced fun. It's luxury brands, too. Tiffany's jewelry launched an internal app to boost company morale and called it Tiffany Joy. But Tiffany's is requiring employees to post in the app to make the joy happen. Nick, look at Google. Google.

They told Googlers that mandatory return to office wasn't about boosting productivity. It's also about boosting fun. I'm so grateful I get to come into work and have fun with you guys. But the most extreme case of Forrest Fun is a grocery store we found in Japan. Get this. This Japanese grocery store is using AI to enforce smiles. It's a full-on black mirror episode. The AI analyzes workers to ensure consistent grins across the aisles. I mean, Jay, wait, have you seen Severance yet?

I have not. There's a scene in season two where the macro data refinement team has a mandatory dance party. I mean, mandatory dance party sounds fun as a joke. Uh-huh. Not as a company HR policy. Again, it's a horror show, not a comedy. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies who are smiling in the Forrest Fun Corporate America? Customers can tell a real smile from a fake one.

Yeah, it's actually a wild moment for this rise in Forced Fun at work because work happiness is actually at a low. Gallup did a poll of employees that found The Great Detachment. Employee engagement with their jobs in America is at a 10-year low. And there's even a technical term for this Forced Fun requirement. It's called Emotion. labor. Smiling when you're not feeling smiling, that's emotionally laborious. It's costly. And now it's become part of the job, doing the job. 50% of companies are actually guilty of this emotional labor.

The biggest issue with forced fun or emotional labor isn't the cost on employees, actually? It's that it doesn't work. It doesn't work. Customers, they can see right through a fake smile. Starbucks customers in the past couple years, they say those messages on the cups, they're meaningless because they know the bosses are telling them to be written. But besties, if you really You really want employees to have fun, then you need to make the job fun. Or pay more. It's that simple. Trader Joe's, Costco, Shake Shack, In-N-Out Burger, Chick-fil-A.

They all do this famously well. Their associates are known to smile, too, but those are real smiles. You can't mandate a smile. You can't manufacture a laugh. But you can design a better place to work. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, the newest viral skin care brand is one skin. because it's winning over dudes and tech CEOs.

But one skin reveals a bigger shift with millennial consumers, from clean to clinical. Speaking of clean, Nick, I think you have a few examples to share. Oh, Jack, I got a menu here. Welcome to the T-Boy spot. Jack, can I please hook you up with a salmon sperm facial? That's not a real thing. We also offer a snail slime serum.

No, thank you. Okay, how about a pulsing Korean hair removal mask? Jack, I'm sorry to you. I'm going to tell you this, all of those three things are real spa treatments in real places. Unfortunately, because beauty trends have gone to the extremes. And if you want the latest, you have to fly to France or fly to South Korea. So, Besties, Jack and I were kind of shocked when we found the most viral skin care brand right now is actually based in San Francisco. And they're targeting techies.

Now, we don't know a lot of engineers with a 42-step nighttime skin care routine, not a judgment, just an observation and a fact. But one skin, this startup we're covering right now, is betting that they exist. Yeah, one skin was found in 2016 by four Brazilian women in the city of San Francisco. And they combined the anti-aging appeal of the beauty industry with the live-foreever desire of Silicon Valley. Interestingly, they found this rare combo of customers who are tech, beauty, and celebrity, right, Jack? Kevin Rose, the founder of Dig, is a customer. Tony Robbins, the motivational speaker is a customer.

And Matthew McConaughey, the motivational stud muffin, is a customer. Festi's added all up, and if Mark Andresen starts looking like a 21-year-old, it's probably because he invested in this company, OneSkin. Now, OneSkin describes their product as a topical supplement to avoid FDA regulations. It gets very scientific from there, and we're not scientists, but we should sprinkle on this context, Jack. Well, as us humans age, our damaged skin cells stop dividing like they used to, leaving behind zombie cells that cause inflammation and the appearance of aging. But One Skin claims to target that natural process.

and stop it with a customized peptide they've created a type of protein. Basically, a biohacking sold in a bottle. But besties, while Jack and I are not scientists, we are business guys, and we know the numbers here. Sales are up 50% compared to last year. Actually, sales for one skin are up 50% each of the last three years, and now they've gone viral and got a Bloomberg article. And they just raised $20 million from Unilever Ventures. But here's what we find fascinating, Yeties.

It's the strategy of the company, according to Bloomberg. Most of the industry markets beauty to women, but one skin markets science to men. Remember all those customers that they highlighted earlier on when we were telling the story at the beginning? Kevin, Tony McConae, they're all dudes. And the pitch to these dudes, what is it, Jack? It's not about looks or aging. It's a different type of vanity.

Living forever. So one skin has created a new cosmetics category for guys to shamelessly compete over. Not lifespan, not wingspan. Skin span. I know. You're beating me on skin. Jack, it's that 42-step. Don't look at the space in between my eyebrows.

Don't. Now I'm looking at it. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at one skin? The millennial obsession with clean is out. Clinical is in. Yet, it is the theme of everything we millennials consumed in the last decade was all about clean, natural, organic. It was purity core, clean branding, clean ingredients, clean and transparent supply chains. But Gen Z, they've driven a shift to chemistry core.

Synthetic? Yeah, that is no longer. dirty word. In beauty, Botox chemicals have replaced honey serums. In wellness, Ozempic shots have replaced soul cycle classes. And in food, protein additives are now sprinkled into everything. Jack, remember the five ingredient RX bars we used to eat like years ago? Yeah, it's from a different era. Today, the same founder has 26 ingredient David bars. Jack, millennials, we used to buy Everlane. Gen Z, they're going with Sheehan. The age of millennial innocence is over. Clean is out, clinical is in. Purity core to chemicals.

Core. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us for T-Boy Tuesday? President Trump's $2,000 tariff dividend has just a 12% chance of happening, according to prediction markets. But announcing the tariff dividend already did the trick, because when stocks fall, the president acts. For our second story, targets 10-4 policy mandates smiles, waves, or how's your day going, depending on the distance from the customer.

It was going well until now, man. You can't mandate a smile or manufacture or laugh, but you can design it, better place to work. And our third and final story. One skin is the viral skin cream that defies aging and it targets the biohacking VC techie crowd. It's growing 50% because clean is out and clinical is in. But besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, any moment now, the government shutdown is finally expected to end today after 42 days the longest in history. Eight Democratic senators basically just have shutdown fatigue and want to get federal workers paid and working again.

Now, the Democrats did get a promise to vote on the expiring health care subsidies next month in the Senate. But the FAA is still canceling flights because it will take time to get air traffic control back to normal. And second, or I'm sorry, number two, Sesame Street, just had its birthday yesterday. Big Bird is now 56 years old. But Sesame Street also just moved from HBO Max to Netflix. Jack and I actually did a whole deep-dive history of Sesame Street's business and its content

strategy, which is inspired by a magazine. That was an episode of the best idea yet. And full disclosure, I cried when I read the script. What an amazing story. Well, on Netflix, there will now be some changes, minor changes, but changes to Sesame Street. Fewer characters, more music, and they're bringing back Elmo's Corner. Classic. And finally, Warren Buffett just published his annual Thanksgiving letter a couple weeks early. It's all about his legacy, leaving money for his kids, and the new CEO, Greg Abel. And now it's important because this is Warren's last CEO letter, after 60 years of leading Berkshire Hathaway. If you want to hear more about it, leave a comment,

and we'll make it a whole story in tomorrow's pod. Yeah, let us know what you think. We could dive into this T-boy style. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Melody Tackett from lovely Aurora, Colorado. It's actually an oldie sent to us years ago, but Jack and I wanted to whip it up for Veterans Day. Push and play.

Hello, Nick and Jack. For Veterans Day, I wanted to highlight someone you may not have known was in the military. As a matter of fact, if it wasn't for his military service, the world may never have heard of Bob Ross. Bob was a drill sergeant in the Air Force, and since his military career involved quite a bit of yelling, post-military he carefully chose not to do so,

which is why the calm, happy Bob Ross is what you remember from his PBS show. In honor of Veterans Day, I'll close with the words of Jeff Miller, the willingness of Americans' veterans to sacrifice for our country has earned them our lasting gratitude. Wow, I mean, there's just so much in that little fact.

Bob Ross, the drill sergeant? Oh, my God. Can't imagine him. I cannot. picture that. Hop down to give me 20 and then put a little cloud over here. Thank you to all the veterans listening or all the veteran families listening. We appreciate your service. Thank you for being the best ones yet. Before we go, a happy birthday to Big Time Yeti. Rico Lamar turning five years old down in Hotland of Georgia. Rico, pumped to have you listening to the show. And Varsha Bandems turning

30 years old down in lovely San Diego, commuting to work right now. We see you, Varsha. Celebrate the wins. Happy third anniversary to Cade Allen in Omaha, Nebraska. And a happy birthday to Jen Casey over in New York City. This fellow Brown Bear alarm is celebrating the best belated one yet. Get that girl a slice of Antonio's. And to anyone else, celebrate something today, make it a teapoy. Celebrate the wins.

This is Jack. I own stock of Berkshire Hathaway and Netflix. Nick owned stock of ShakeShack, and we both own ETFs of the S&P 500.