The Best One Yet - ⛷️ “Gnarly Numbers” — Vail’s ski-pocalypse. Robinhood’s VC IPO. Stanley’s manly pivot. +$700K Girl Scout Cookie

Episode Date: February 19, 2026

Robinhood revealed the companies their VC fund invested in… because it’s IPOing this month.Stanley’s Quencher sales are dropping… so it’s pivoting to guys, gym bags, and protein #ManlyHow do you save Colorado’s worst ski season?… With one innovative fence. And a trick from Fenway park.Plus, forget Olympic gold… because a Girl Scout just set the record for most cookies ever sold: $700K$HOOD $MTN $BTCBuy tickets to The IPO Tour (our In-Person Offering) TODAYAustin, TX (2/25): SOLD OUTArlington, VA (3/11): https://www.arlingtondrafthouse.com/shows/341317 New York, NY (4/8): https://www.ticketmaster.com/event/0000637AE43ED0C2Los Angeles, CA (6/3): SOLD OUTGet your TBOY Yeti Doll gift here: https://tboypod.com/shop/product/economic-support-yeti-doll NEWSLETTER: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 Thursday, the new Friday. February 19th, and today's the best one yet. This is a T-Boy. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. I'm sorry, Jack, February, shortest month of the year, but also biggest month of the year? Started with the Super Bowl. Then the Winter Olympics. Then the four-game NBA All-Star game tournament. Okay, but it's also Black History Month, Lunar New Year, Marty Grau, and we just started Ramadan yesterday? Happy fast to all our Yetis fasting right now. But Nick, Lent started yesterday. So I'm actually withholding sugar for 40 days. Well, I'm eating twice as much sugar.

February. Keep looking fantastic. Jack, let's set our three stories. What do we got? For our first story. Colorado is having its worst ski season ever. The situation in the Rockies is Rocky. Your skis are going to get dinged up.

So how do we save the ski industry yeties? It's with fences and Fenway. For our second story, Robin Hood is turning Silicon Valley's most exclusive. VIP room into a $25 stock. It's the People's Venture Capital Fund, and we just found out what's in it? SpaceX? Question mark? And our third and final story is the Stanley

Tumblr. It's no longer the it accessory for the Cup Girlies. So Stanley is making the biggest pivot yet. Can Stanley get manly? Again. If you know, you know. But Yeties, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. Oh, I mean, what a mix of stories. Love the mix of stories for the New Friday, Jack. Everyone's talking about

the Olympics medal count. Okay, but Jack, we talk about the most important podium out there right now. Girl Scout cookies. Yeah, it's the cookies. Because six-year-old Pymneill of Pennsylvania just set a record for most boxes of cookies sold in one single selling season. Get this, this kindergarteners sold over 100,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies. Yeah, real number. A hundred thousand boxes. That's $700,000 in revenue, and she's only been selling for six weeks. Hi, Jack, could you sprinkle on some calendar contacts, Please. Girl Scout cookie selling season is January through April. So we're not even halfway through this thing yet. Which means Pim is on pace to sell 200,000 boxes. Which would break the career record of sales in just one single season. Pim is a thin mint mogul. Jack, she's a wolf of Main Street.

I love her name, but she's the Jamie Diamond of dosi does, isn't she? Hey, Andreessen, we got the Carnegie of Samoa's. Yes, she does sell door to door like all Girl Scouts do. And And yes, her family posts her links on Facebook to scale it. But Little Pim, who has disabilities, is winning on TikTok especially with her honest authenticity. Link in bio, that's a CTA. You just can't resist after seeing one of her selfies. Nick, with these numbers, she'll graduate from Daisy to Brownie this year, I guarantee you. Hey, Jack, the girls' towns don't do a bonus, but they do give a reward to girls who sell

2,00026 boxes in the year 2026. A trip to Niagara Falls, that's the reward. But what if you beat that goal by 50x and counting, Nick? Well, the cookie queen, probably going to have her parents tag along, Jack. I see what you did there, and I approve. Not that for a guy cutting out sugar. Jack, let's sit there three stories. 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 a known. 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 ready to go. We can't wait no more, so just start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor.

For our first story, Colorado's ski resorts are having their worst season ever. It's peak ski, and yet over half of the trails are closed. So how can we save the ski industry right now? By adding fences and being more like Fenway Park. Fences and Fenway. But besties, before Jack and I start a ski story today, we should point out, you know, it's a bittersweet, complicated day in the entire skiing industry, right, Jack? In the Sierra Nevada's just outside of Tahoe,

eight people died in an avalanche this week, which is an absolute tragedy. And yet, on the other side of the world, Michaela Schiffran, best skier in the world in Colorado Native, finally won gold medal in the slalom yesterday. And she won it by one and a half seconds. A great moment from Kayla.

But it is a good thing that Colorado is not hosting the Winter Olympics in 2026, and Jack, what's the good reason there? There's no snow. Yeah, there's snow bankrupt right now. Arapaho Basin, the third highest ski resort in the U.S. by elevation has just 35% of its terrain open right now. On the other hand, over in Vermont,

they're having a good but bitter cold ski season, Utah's doing okay out there. But Breckenridge is snow broke right now. If you had a ski can last weekend, you know what we're talking about. The technical term for what's happening in the ski season in Colorado is gnarly, I believe. I think it's a gnarly. And it hurts financially for the resorts, the bartenders, and the Airbnb host, too. But besties, there is one publicly traded ski stock, a pure play powder stock, if you will, and that is Vale. Vail Resorts is a $5 billion company. It owns five Colorado ski resorts and like 50 more all across the world. It's worth almost one lift and they announced in January that visits are down 20% through January 4th, which is a problem. It's because of the lack

snow. But lift revenue is only down 2%. So how is that bizarre situation happening Basties? Well, it's because of non-refundable ticket sales and your classic season passes. You paid for your skiing before Thanksgiving before you had any idea how much snow there would be. More on that in the takeaway. But besties, what is happening in Colorado this season, it's going to happen to the entire ski industry with increasing frequency. Because of climate change. So we're voting our friend Charles Darwin. Chuckie Darwin. And we're looking at the ski resorts that are adapting best to a world with less snow. And the responses, the options, the creativity is wild. But Jack, let's start with the obvious one first. Let's start with the snowmaking. Vail is investing $100 million this year in

Capax so that they can turn their water ponds into man-made snow when it doesn't dump. But here's the wild part. Each one of those water-to-snow guns has a built-in weather station. It turns on when freezing and it turns off when it's to warm out. To maximize efficiency. But there's still a problem, Nick, of not being enough water to turn into snow. Yeah, you see that drought that's causing the lack of snow. It's also caused a lack of rain, which means they can't convert the rain into snow. Which leads to a shocking survivor of this snow apocalypse. It's called Monarch Mountain in Colorado. which has 100% of their terrain open right now, despite the lack of snow. And they're doing it without any man-made snow.

I'm sorry, Jack, sit down, stand up, and sit back down on the gondola again. How is that possible in the world of physics and economics? It's an all-natural mountain. And according to the Denver Post, there's 100% covered in snow because of snow fences. We repeat fences for snow. They have 80 portable fences they set up on the side of the trail that captures snow being blown by the in drifts, and then the snow machines spread them out across the whole trail. It's created a natural snow oasis at Monarch Mountain, Colorado.

Oh, another winner, by the way, Jay Peak over in Vermont. They built a water park at the resort for when the snow stinks. Jack, how about our buddies over at Breckenridge? They have an outdoor roller coaster that operates year-round, even if it's 10 degrees out. So, Jack, add it all up, and I'm seeing concerts, competitions, comedy shows, basically anything to entertain the visitors who are bummed about the snow bankruptcy situation. It's the new business model of skiing. Yeah.

Skiing is increasingly secondary. Right. Bells and whistles keep the customers coming even when the snow doesn't. That's right. It works for Disney World. It could work for Beaver Creek, too. Which reminds us of something the Yankees are doing. Oh, that sounds like our takeaway, bro.

Again, that's not a skier's talk. Oh, Jack, I did my bachelor party in Park City. I got an Oscars talk, bro. Nothing wrong with a 1 p.m. a half, pray. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Vale in the ski? industry. For ski resorts to survive, they have to be more like the Sox. Yeah, the Red Sox, commiserate in bad seasons, celebrate the good ones, but be paying customers no matter what. Two-thirds of Vail's ticket revenue is sold before the season begins, thanks to the epic

pass and non-refundable single-day tickets. Well, Jack and I noticed that is similar to the 70 to 80% of Major League Baseball ticket sales that come from season ticket holders. If the Red Sox have a bad season, you already spent your money and you hope for better luck next year. You know what? It's kind of the same with the ski resorts these days. Management's job at both baseball teams and ski resorts is to minimize the torture of a bad season by distracting customers with other stuff to do. The concerts, the competitions, the shows.

You book summer weddings to help offset the lost revenue from people who canceled the ski trips. Half the time, being a Sox fan is torture. Increasingly, it feels the same with skiing. But Red Sox Nation pays up no matter what. And for ski resorts to survive, yeah, they need to do the same. They need to adopt baseball's business model. For our second story, Robin Hood is IPOing again. This time, though, it's for their first ever venture fund.

We call it the People's VC, because anyone can invest. And now we finally know what unicorn stocks you can get a piece of. Now, Basties, it's not deja vu. We did cover this when it was breaking news, Robin Hood's first ever venture fund back in September. They announced it back then, and it was consistent with their mission to democratize finance for all. Jack, could you use an analogy here with, I don't know, uh... With my dad's favorite band? Yeah, I'll say your dad's favorite Irish band, Jack. Okay, Bono made more money investing in Facebook pre-IPO than he did with his music. That's the power of pre-IPO investing.

The lead singer of you, too, made more money with one Facebook investment than he did on Vertigo. Well, now, with this publicly traded venture capital fund that Robinson's building, you can be like Bono, invest in top startups through this fund. But Jack, I got to pause the pod for a sec. Back in September, we warned the Yetis that the devil is in the deals. In other words, what companies will this VC fund get you access to? Is it going to be SpaceX or is it going to be Space Y? Yeah, you don't want Space Y.

Well, Robin Hood told us this this week. Yes, they did. The fund has already taken stakes in Databricks or a ring, Stripe. Even Robin Hood's rival Revolut, Robin Hood now owns shares of it. It also owns stock in Boom Supersonic, which is a jet company and Ramp, a FinTech company, and a couple other startups who probably haven't heard of yet. Shipping out, there's no SpaceX, there's no Anthropic, and there's no investment in OpenAI. Yet.

But Nick and I jumped in T-Boy style to the prospectus for this new stock, and it did say the word space 19 times and AI 77 times. So Robin Hood is hoping to get their hands on some of those red-hot private companies before they IPO, probably later this year. Once this thing launches next week, this new fund will invest in at least 10 private companies and no single name will represent more than 20% of the assets. Add it all up, and basically Robin Hood has created a stock of startups.

Now, Nick and I were very interested in how this VC would be packaged and sold to us retail investors. And now we know through an IPO. So, Jack, let me just clarify this for a second. Publicly traded Robin Hood is now creating a new company and using that company to buy stocks in private companies and then IPOing that fund to be a publicly traded stock. Which you can buy on Robin Hood. I feel like Christopher Nolan, it's finance inception. What is going on, Jack? You just said what's going on. So next week, they're going to sell 35 million shares of this new Robin Hood Venture Fund to

Robin Hood users at $25 per share. And then on February 26, it will begin trading like any other stock. And how is Robin Hood going to make money on this new publicly traded venture capital fund? By charging a 2% fee on the holdings. Yeah, interestingly, Robin Hood is not taking a 20% share of the profits of the fund, which a venture capitalist would typically do. But this does represent a big jump in maturity for Robin Hood. Yes, it does. From purely transaction-based revenue to recurring fee revenue. Basically, from dating-style revenue to marriage-quality revenue. And that is why we think it's a mature move for Robin Hood. So the stock is going to be RVI, that's the ticker symbol, trading on New York Stock Exchange starting February 26th. Okay, but Jack, what will this stock of startups actually be worth at the end of the day? It should be the sum of the valuations of the private companies that it's invested in.

The ad up data bricks, or a stock, Stripe stock, Revolut stock, that should be the value. of this new venture capital stock. But what it should be worth, that kind of doesn't compute to the retail investor crowd is trading meme stocks on Robin Hood. Yeah, could this thing go to the moon? And what does that mean?

So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Robin Hood? The private stock market is the most exclusive VIP section in finance, but a door just opened for meme traders. Yeah, they just got bottle surface. Besties, let's talk valuation numbers here. If Robin Hood's venture capital fund

own stocks in 10 private companies and each is worth $1 billion, the sum of the shares should be $10 billion. That's what the valuation should be. But as a publicly traded stock, there's no telling how Robin Hood's VC will trade and at what price.

Like Jack, Robin Hood's venture capital fund could trade like Tesla. It could be given a way higher price than the underlying profits justify. Or it could be treated like GameStop, a price completely divorced from the underlying businesses it owns. Basically what we're saying is, it would be interesting to see if Robin Hood's venture capital stock trades at a huge premium to its actual book value. And if Robin Hood's

VC becomes a meme stock? Oh boy, mooting over here. I mean, I don't know how that could mess with the whole private capital valuation market. I honestly don't know. This is Pandora's box. So it tells me people will be pretty happy though. Bestie, this stock of startups, it is a first of its kind and we hope it succeeds and honestly, we hope Robin Hood launches more of them. Because Nick and I getting a piece of Robin Hood stock pre-Robinhood That was a life-changing moment for the two of us. Yes, it was. And now Robin Hood's opening a new door into finance's most private VIP room. Now a quick word from our sponsor.

For our third and final story, Stanley Quenture, the most viral drinking product the last five years. It isn't viral anymore. So Stanley's not just pivoting from women to men. Stanley is pivoting to black gym bags for guys who are protein maxing. Besties, of the last three years, the ultimate female Zillennial status symbol was a 40-ounce can that could survive getting run over by a tank. Well, I think you're talking about the Stanley Tumblr. Yes, I am, Jack. Good point.

Saturday Night Live called it the Big Dumb Cup, and I was a little offended because I do have two of them. Yeah, and it's kind of part of like the Zillennial brand trilogy. You know, it pairs well with a Sephora Hall and an SUV. And a big dumb hat. But let's talk numbers, Yeties. Because when we covered Stanley back in 2021, the revenues had jumped 275%. In 2024, they were doing $750 million in revenue.

The Rosecourt Stanley Quencher basically ran your Pilate Studio. But here's the problem, besties. Despite their beautiful, new color innovations and collabs with Wicked, Stanley stopped sharing their revenue numbers just last year. Our guess? Everyone who wanted a Stanley Tumblr got a Stanley Tumblr. And according to Piper Stanler's famous survey of teen spending habits, O'Wala is the new Stanley.

So Stanley's decided to pivot to dudes. Their new product lineup launched this week, and it clearly targets guys. Oh, it clearly does. Here's the question. Can Stanley become manly? Last week, Nick and I noticed the colors of the tumblers were changing.

Jack, is that cup tiger lily red? I'm sorry, is that what that is? No, it's Atlanta Falcons red, Nick. Ah, that was interesting, but more fascinating is that Stanley has pivoted their whole product lineup. The product that launched this week is a waterproof tote backpack,

a gym bag, and a giant protein shaker. Each come in a classically female Stanley color, but also come in black, Matt Black, and that's what they're advertising. Each bag has a special pocket to hold your new Stanley protein shaker from when you leave the gym. They're heavy, they're edgy. And it's not just the dark design here, Yetis.

It's also, interestingly, the partnerships. A couple years ago, they did a floral collaborative cup with Love Shack Fancy. Instead, though, now Stanley's sponsoring Lienel Messi and Paris's top soccer club. So from style to product to partners, Stanley has injected their product with testosterone. But Bessie's the most ironic part of this entire story. it's that Stanley launched 113 years ago for working men. And now they're pivoting to working out men.

So if you add it up, this is really Stanley's second pivot. Women made Stanley relevant again, but they need guys to keep it alive. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Stanley? If everyone's a member of the club, Nick, then no one lines up to get in. Now, yet, it is possible that Stanley's taking a lesson here from Apple.

If you find the right hero product, then just sell accessories for it. Stanley's hero product is the 40-ounce tumbler. And these gym bags, they help you take it on the go. Okay, but what we think is missing is the club element. Can Stanley convince guys that it's exclusive? Stanley became a status symbol, not because the mug is so expensive, but because that mug was exclusive.

Totally having the latest color style, the crystal-coded quencher, you could only get a target that signaled you were on the inside. But once every woman had a Stanley and they could be bought anywhere, it didn't feel as special anymore. So, Basties, the real challenge here is in selling protein mugs and backers, back backs to that guy on the go. It's how do you make men feel like Stanley as a club that they would line up to get into? Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us for the new Friday? Colorado is having its worst ski season ever, but snow fences are helping it do more with less snow.

It's a snow bankruptcy, so resorts are realizing they need to be more like baseball. Good season or bad season, fans will pay either way. For our second story, Robin Hood's second IPO is for the People's VC Fund. It's already got Oro-ring and Revolut in there, but no SpaceX or Either way, it's a door into finance's VIP section that anyone can now walk through. And our third and final story, Stanley's 40-ounce mug is no longer viral, so they're pivoting to men with black gym gear. From Wellness Girl is to Jim Guys, but remember that no one lines up for a club if everyone is already inside. But besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, James Dolan, who inherited Madison Square Garden from his dad,

owns and controls both the New York Knicks and the New York Rangers. And he announced yesterday that he's considering spinning off the Knicks and the Rangers into two separate publicly traded companies. I mean, Jack, my chats are blown up on this. We might have a Knicks Inc. and a Rangers Inc. publicly traded stocks. What kind of ticker symbol are you thinking here? Puck. Dunk for the Knicks.

And I don't know, hockey. That's your department. Now we should clarify, MSGE is already a publicly traded company, Madison Square Garden, the publicly traded company. and it already owns both teams. Second, rent control laws are gaining traction across America's biggest cities. The news is that Boston's mayor endorsed a statewide cap on rent increases to match inflation. Washington, D.C. passed a rent cap in the law last year, and New York and L.A. are moving to do the same.

Now, Econ theory says that the true solution is to build more homes, but with that not happening right now, rent caps are gained in popularity even if they don't solve the root problem. And finally, Arawan, the trendy, pricey grocery store in L.A. just launched the world's healthiest smoothie. That is their terms. Their lawyers actually let them say that. Can't believe their lawyers approved it. Arawan is famous for the Haley Bieber smoothie,

which Jack and I have indulged in. It was right off, but this one is not backed by a celebrity. It's backed by 160 scientists. According to Arawna has no filler, no aesthetic-only superfoods looking at you, Cal, and no shortcuts in the recipe either. Yeah, but like the Haley Bieber smoothie, it costs $25 because, like Jack and I have said,

when it comes to branding, opportunity in the extremes. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Catherine Caldwell from lovely Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and it's one of the many facts that got sent in after we did a story on the profits of martinis. Shaken or stirred? Yeah.

In a poll on Spotify, four times more people said they ordered their martini shaken, not stirred. Okay, but the correct way to order a martini is actually stirred because it takes longer but tastes smoother as a final product. Several bartenders commented that we got that wrong in our stories. Okay, which leads to the big question. Why does James Bond, the legendary 007, order his martinis shaken instead of stirred? According to the original Ian Fleming novels, it's because he was in a rush.

Yeah, you know, someone could kill him. He didn't have time to have a martini stirred. But he did have time for a martini. Besties, remember to buy your Girl Scout cookies right now. Load up on those Samoas. And if you haven't yet, tell a buddy H-Y-H-H-H. T-B-L-Y. That's how we grow the show. Nick and I, we'll see you tomorrow. Have you heard the best one yet?

Before we go, a happy sixth birthday to legendary Yetty, Ellington Millinder, the kindergartner, CEO in Burlingame, California. Happy birthday to Kurt Peters, turning 26 in Pella, Iowa, and celebrating with the legendary fiancé Laura. And Peter Collins, enjoy the best birthday yet. Over on the Upper West Side, enjoy Sylvan Cookies. Happy birthday to Cydra Smith in Denver, Colorado. And Ashley Lundgren celebrating the big day over in Vegas. And to Austin Alfaro, you are looking fantastic running into your 31st year over in California. MLV Camara! Enjoy that 23rd birthday in Mumbai, India.

Thanks for celebrating with us all the way across the world. Happy anniversary to Melissa and Guberto Cheides in Aurora, Illinois. And Emily Harrison and Adam Goldblum are closing on a condo in White Plains. The cats are pumped, and we are too. Congrats, guys. Good luck and congratulations to Sean Little and Nick DeFrancesco, who are leading the Pennsylvania D.E.C.A. State Career. Career Development Conference. Have a great competition in Hershey. You got this, guys. And thanks

for all the HYH, TBOWs. And congrats to Kavey Mystery, the 14-year-old who's launching a side hustle in the United Kingdom on Etsy. It's called the printed craft, 3D printed objects that look incredible. Congrats, Kavi. We love the side hustle. This is Jack, Nick and I both on stock of Airbnb, Apple, and Robin Hood.