The Best One Yet - 🏒 “Hockey Fight” — Canada’s electric weapon. MrBeast’s chocolate surprise. Southwest’s Godfather fee.

Episode Date: March 12, 2025

The US stock market began dropping after losing to Canada in hockey… b/c the trade war is a hockey fight.MrBeast’s business is worth $5B… but he makes more money on chocolate than content.Southwest just killed its famous “Bags fly free”... and it reminds us of a lesson from The Godfather.Plus, Trader Joe’s has the greatest art collection in America (and we can prove it)...$LUV $AMZN $SPYWant more business storytelling from us? Check out the latest episode of our new weekly deepdive show: The untold origin story of… Costco’s Kirkland 🌭. Subscribe to The Best Idea Yet: Wondery.fm/TheBestIdeaYetLinks to listen.“The Best Idea Yet”: The untold origin stories of the products you’re obsessed with — From the McDonald’s Happy Meal to Birkenstock’s sandal to Nintendo’s Susper Mario Brothers to Sriracha. New 45-minute episodes drop weekly.—-----------------------------------------------------Subscribe to our new (2nd) show… The Best Idea Yet: Wondery.fm/TheBestIdeaYetLinksEpisodes drop weekly. It’s The Best Idea Yet.GET ON THE POD: Submit a shoutout or fact: https://tboypod.com/shoutouts FOR MORE NICK & JACK: Newsletter: https://tboypod.com/newsletter Connect with Nick: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolas-martell/ Connect with Jack: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-crivici-kramer/ SOCIALS:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tboypod TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tboypodYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tboypod Anything else: https://tboypod.com/ Subscribe to our new (2nd) show… The Best Idea Yet: Wondery.fm/TheBestIdeaYetLinksEpisodes drop weekly. It’s The Best Idea Yet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Wednesday, March 12. And today's pod is the best one yet. This is a T-boy. The top three stories at the intersection of business and pop culture. All right, the last two episodes, Jack, you revealed you're a Maxinista. And he told us you only eat Costco Kirkland food. What are you going to reel in this episode? I know. I'm such a retail diva these days. Jack's a tar-shade girlie. All right, three stories for today's show. What have we got on the project? For our first story, Canada just hit the United States with a new thing, a 25% fee on Canadian electricity. Trade wars, they follow the same pattern as hockey fights. When one side drops the gloves, the other side drops the gloves. For our second story, we just got the financials on the business of Mr. Beast. It's actually a $5 billion company.

And the world's greatest creator surprisingly makes more money on candy than he does on content. And our third and final story. Southwest Airlines just deleted its most beloved perk. It's gone. No more free checked bags. Besties, can you put a price on love? Yes. Actually, yes, you can.

We calculated it. There is a price. We actually calculated the price on lost love for this story, which is the worst kind of love. You don't want to lose that love. But yet,ies, we're going to pivot back to love. Because the greatest art collection in the country isn't an art gallery at all. No, the greatest art collection in the country is actually

at Trader Joe's. Get this. According to the New York Times, Trader Joe's grocery stores are America's best art galleries. Jack, you're going to have to sprinkle on more context for it, please. The art critic Julie Averbach just published a book, The Art of Trader Joe's. She also wrote her thesis at Yale

on the Trader Joe's art style. That's right. She's an Ivy League trained Trader Joe's enthusiast. You like the Renaissance painters? Nah, I really like the Trader Joe's chalkboardist. Why is she so into T.J's? because Trader Joe's actually fills each location with unique and locally relevant art. Jack, let's just look at the East Village, Trader Joe's back in New York City.

It's the busiest Trader Joe's in the country. We live two blocks away. We shopped there all the time. And when you wander into Isle 6 of that Trader Joe's, what are you going to see, Jack? Their salad sign is inspired by a 19th century Augustus Caesar sculpture because of Caesar salad. And Trader Joe's coffee section sign was inspired by a Rodan drawing. Vincent Van Gogh, Edward Hopper, Leonardo da Vinci. Each artist's style is subtly referenced on Trader Joe's chalkboards and wall mural. In fact, there are over 150 permanent pieces of art at that one Trader Joe's location.

It's insane. And guess what? It's not just that one 14th Street Trader Joe's. No, get this. Each Trader Joe's employs an in-house artist to make that location unique art. That's right. They have a bunch of cashiers, a bunch of stockers, and an artist at every Trader Joe. I mean, the sad part here, Jack, we both shopped at that Epic Trader Joe's in New York City about a million times. And we never noticed all the amazing artwork that's apparently all over the place. Which leads to our takeaway on the Trader Joe's art collection. Don't just look at the price tags and the nutrition facts when you're shopping at Trader Joe's.

Next time you're in line, look around at the artwork around you. You don't need to go to the Louvre to find beautiful things. Just look over there at that lettuce sign. Because Trader Joe's Art Gallery is the new Guggenheim. You're a move, Whole Foods. It's... magnificent. Jack, let's hit our 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 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 ready 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, Canada has added a 25% electricity fee and is threatening to cut off juice to New York, Michigan, and Minnesota. Stocks dropped again on Tuesday because Trade War II has turned into a hockey fight. Literally. Speaking of literally, we can actually pinpoint the moment that U.S. stocks started falling in the Trump presidency. And that date is February 20th. And why is that date significant, Nick?

It's because that's the day after the United States lost to Canada in overtime of the NHL All-Star hockey tournament. Connor McDavid scored a goal in overtime. America lost the game. And our stock market has fallen every day since then. You've heard of hockey stick growth? This was a hockey stick decline since then. It's wild.

Now, Monday was the worst day on Wall Street since 2022. And on Tuesday, the S&P 500 officially fell into correction territory. It's down 10% from its highs. The reason? We have real economic pain now being felt on both sides of the U.S. and Canada border. And in the meantime, Trump's tariffs have united Canadians like a Maple Leafs Cup win. They elected a new prime minister, and suddenly, Canada has Mark Messier Mojo. Here's the latest news. The province of Ontario just added a 25% fee to all electricity exports going to America.

And Canada exports a lot of electricity to America. 1.5 million people in New York, Michigan, and Minnesota are going to have to have. have a 25% more expensive electricity bill at the end of the month. And then Canada went further. Ontario's premier even said he would shut off all electricity to the United States if Trump escalates the trade war further. Scary stuff. It is. Now, yet he's, here's what Jack and I found fascinating about this story. It actually follows the same pattern as a hockey fight. If one guy drops the gloves, the other inevitably drops the gloves too. Trade War II is straight out of the first scene and happy Gilmore is what we're saying.

Here's the story. Trump started this fight by imposing 25% tariffs on all made-in-Canada goods. And Canada's new prime minister said this about Trump dropping the gloves. After getting elected prime minister, he said, we didn't ask for a fight, but we're ready when someone else drops the gloves. He's literally talking about dropping the gloves in this situation. And the latest, latest news? Yesterday, Trump punched back. He retaliated to Canada's retaliation with yet another new terrorist. basically doubling the tax on Made and Canada Steel up to 50%.

And the result of Trump's new steel tax, the price of aluminum and steel in America have doubled in just one month. Yes, we'll buy more American made steel, but we're going to end up paying nearly double for it. And Canada's probably planning their next retaliation in this trade war. Which would be the equivalent of pulling the jersey over the helmet like this, Jack. Thank you for bringing levity to the situation. But Nick, this is a shocking.

state of affairs we have right now. It really is, Jack, because when you add it all up, our neighbor, our friendly rink rival, and our biggest trading partner is now our enemy. Canada is our enemy? And investors, they don't love that idea either. Trade War II, it's been hit in the markets for three weeks. Since the day, the U.S. lost to Canada and the NHL's All-Star game, stocks are down by 10%. Oh, breaking news, by the way. This is a big one. As we were recording this podcast, the Canadian Premier actually paused the 25% electricity. fee, we just mentioned a second ago. Apparently, he's in talks with the Trump administration to de-escalate the trade war,

although tomorrow he may just bring the electricity fee back. We're relieved by the de-escalation, but tomorrow's going to be another story. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over in North America? Nobody wins with tariffs, because both sides get punched. Or Jack, I guess we could say both sides lose some teeth. Yeties, funny thing, Jack, and I noticed, everything that's played out with this trade war, is taught in Econ 101. This is a textbook trade war. We could have predicted every sequence of events. Well, we pretty much did, Jack. Like, if one country imposes tariffs on another

country, the tariffing country does not benefit because the tariffed country retaliates. It's logic we learned in elementary school. When one side gets hit, the other side hits back. In economics, you call it tit for tat. And that's why we think this looks just like a hockey fight. If one drops the gloves, the other inevitably always drops the gloves. And it's why we've been saying for years, nobody wins with tariffs. In a trade war, both sides end up getting less and paying more in taxes. Americans may not get Canadian electricity. Canadians may not get Jack Daniels whiskey. And the prices of everything we trade with each other go up. Yeties, nobody wins with tariffs. Both sides lose a few teeth. For our second story, we just got the numbers.

on Mr. Beasts' business, and they are not what you'd expect. Because Mr. Beast actually makes more money on candy than he does on content. Yeties Jimmy Donaldson. Jimmy is the most watched entertainer on earth, but you know him by his stage name, Mr. Beast. But Mr. Beast, the way we see it is really like Brad Pitt, Stephen Spielberg, and Vanna White, all rolled up into one celebrity. He's an A-lister of Genzi, the second most first. followed person on earth. Jack, let's talk some numbers here. Mr. Beast has 350 million YouTube

subscribers. That's more than Netflix, twice as many as Disney Plus, and 10 times as much as Peacock. And Mr. Beast happens to also be a venture capital-backed business. Mr. Beast has raised $400 million from venture capital, pegging his valuation, his company's valuation, at $5 billion. Which is more than one single left. And rumors have it, he may IPO that company, which would make Mr. Beast, Inc., the first human-based IPO since Martha Stewart. The only time the IPO paperwork has health information is when we're IPOing a human, Jack. His ticker symbol would be smash, as in smash that subscribe button. But get this yeties.

Mr. Beast actually makes more money on chocolate than he does on YouTube. And that's wild, because you think of him as the YouTube guy. He's actually more of a candy connoisseur. Jack, let's dive in T-boy style to the numbers here. According to Bloomberg reporting, Feastables, his chocolate bar business generates $250 million in annual sales, netting a profit of $20 million. Now, this, again, is a chocolate bar business. It's not like a disruptive app technology business, right, Jack? No, Mr. Beast basically took a Hershey's bar and smothered it in Mr. Beast branding.

And he's getting a nice 10% margin on that business for selling chocolate. But Mr. Beast isn't known for candy bars. He's known for videos. And how did those videos perform compared to the candy? His YouTube and Amazon videos produced $250 million in ad sales and licensing, but he lost $80 million. So Mr. Beast's videos got 74 billion total views. They are the most watched thing in history since the sky.

And yet he lost $80 million on him? Here's the reason. Mr. Beast spends $4 million to produce each of those YouTube videos that he publishes. Basically, he's doing Hollywood budgets for his social media views. Again, it's Mr. Beast. He has 200 people on staff down in North Carolina working on each production. He's got to feed those people and he gives them health insurance too. They're getting full perks.

That's expensive. His most recent video he published on YouTube was a challenge. It let people compete against Ronaldo, the soccer star, in soccer, to win their chance at $1 million. $1 million was just the prize money. That didn't include paying anyone, getting them to travel there, or the whole set design of the place. For his show on Amazon, which is called Beast Games, he built a thousand

towers for the challenge in episode one. And how much did that cost? $15 million. It's all right. It's a right off. So he gets crazy views, but his expenses are crazy big for those views. So besties, after looking at these numbers, yeah, we think of Mr. Beast is the king of content, but really? He's more like Willie Wonka. Because his video business lost $80 million, but his candy business made a $20 million profit. And overall, Mr. Beast is still in his loss-making era, which is why he needs all that venture capital money. It's actually a lot like Amazon. They never made money for like 20 years

and then started making a lot of money. As we said before, Mr. Beast should be the next CEO of Amazon. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies following Mr. Beast? Transparency is now an asset on the balance sheet. Yet he's wild story. But on the set of Mr. Beast's new Amazon show, he actually used up the entire $100 million budget almost instantly. So he was out of money.

But then, in the middle of the production of episode one, without telling anybody, he decided to double the prize. No one of Amazon knew this. He didn't clear this with like, you know, Frank from finance or Carolyn accounting. He said the winner of this challenge isn't going to win $5 million. You're going to win $10 million. And I'm paying for that extra money out of my own pocket. Now, here's what Jack and I found fascinating about that. Five years ago, Mr. Bees told his audience that he would put every dollar he makes an ad sales back into the production of more YouTube videos. He has pledged not to profit on his YouTube videos. This is why he has the biggest YouTube audience.

The more you like his videos, the more money he'll make on them, and then the more epic, he'll make the new videos. Because he reinvests every dollar back into future videos. Basically, video is Mr. Beast's loss leader. It allows him to make a profit on his side businesses instead. These $5 million videos lose money on purpose, because that pledge not to make money drives future audiences to be easy. even bigger. Because audiences love that pledge, they are happy to buy Mr. Beast chocolate bars

when he asks them to. Which he does in every YouTube video. It's a reminder that in business today, transparency is now on the balance sheet. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, Southwest Airlines is deleting the most important part of its distinctive brand. Free checked bags are gone. Southwest is adding a bag fee, and it reminds us of a lesson from the godfather. But yet is Jack and I study industries on your behalf. And we noticed it is tough for airlines out there these days, ain't it, Jack? On Monday, the stocks of the four biggest U.S. airlines lost a combined $24 billion in value.

Let's start with our two go-toes. I got Delta, you got United, what's going on with both of them? Apparently, we're all booking less travel right now due to the economic uncertainty. Yeah, like you'll go to Cabo if you get the bonus. And then American Airlines came out and said that their bookings are down too, partly because of that plane crash that happened in the river in Washington, D.C. Sadly, we are all still kind of thinking about it. Now, Yeties, there's four airlines in America that make up 80% of the industry.

And the last one of those four to speak was Southwest. And here's what Southwest basically did. This is your captain's CEO speaking. And we've decided we've reached 30,000 feet, and we're going to get rid of free bags. They are going to start charging for checked bags. This is blasphemy for Southwest Airlines. It begins May 28th, and the price is TBD. Basically, we just described the worst rundown of airline news since snakes on a plane.

For Southwest, this wasn't just a betrayal. It was a brand betrayal. I mean, Jack, no checked bags. That was core to the entire Southwest brand. Southwest literally trademarked the term bags fly free, and it was front and center on their website. Arguably, that is their greatest IP bags fly free. But Southwest stock is down 50% in the last four years, putting pressure on their no-fee position. Jack, remember the great Christmas outage of 2022?

When Southwest canceled two out of three flights in one day? Over the course of nine days during Christmas time, they canceled two-thirds of their flights. Well, Southwest business and its stock had been limping along ever since then. That's why a hedge fund acquired 10% of Southwest stock, earning themselves five seats on the company's board of directors, and they were able to make some changes to the company that put pros before cos. They started putting profits before customers. For example, that hedge fund just canceled the number one ranked airplane perk of all the perks. They killed the thing customers loved to boost short-term profits.

Turning Southwest into a feocry. Just like all the other airlines. Now, interestingly, we should point out, Southwest stock rose 9% on Tuesday on this new profit-first move. But hearts are a little heavier at Dallas Love Field. So Jack and I were looking at the situation. Yeah, that's a short-term win for the stock. But Jack, what about the long term? We're not to speak to the pilot again.

So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Southwest? To quote Vito Corleone, loyalty is the thread that holds society together. Without loyalty, there's chaos. Yeties, in business, without loyalty, there is a price war. And that is why airlines focus so much on loyalty. Frequent flyer loyalty. is what allows an airline to raise prices by 50 bucks,

but you'll still pay for that ticket. Well, the wildest part about this Southwest story, the airline actually did a survey last year that determined they would lose $300 million every year if they took away free bags. In other words, making you pay for check bags would get a loyal Southwest customer to start considering other airlines.

But Southwest hedge fund-dominated board, they didn't believe that survey. And now Southwest has been changed to look like all the... other airlines. They've got bag fees. They've got pay for your seat selection fees. They've got fee fees. Southwest is now even on Expedia for the first time ever. So you don't have to search Expedia and then Southwest to figure out what's the cheapest. Yes, short term, all this may boost revenue for Southwest. But long term, being like every other airline kills loyalty.

And without loyalty, it's a price war. Or as Mr. Corleone put it, without loyalty is chaos. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us for Saviche? Wednesday. As the trade war rages, the U.S. stock market is down since we lost to Canada in hockey. It's just like a hockey fight. Nobody wins with tariffs because both sides get punched in the teeth. For our second story, Mr. Beast Inc. is worth $5 billion. It might IPO someday and they make more money on candy than content. Because transparency with his fans is Mr. Beast's best asset. And our third and final story is Southwest Airlines. They ended their beloved free checked bags, putting flyer loyalty at risk. Loyalty, it is the thread that holds society together.

What if there's chaos? But Yeties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, there might be a ceasefire in Ukraine, huge news. The U.S. announced yesterday it would continue funding the military in Ukraine if, in return, Ukraine would agree to a 30-day ceasefire. And all of this is contingent on Russia accepting the terms. And second, we finally have another eye.

IPO this year, and that IPO is Hinge. Not the dating app. Hinge, the virtual physical therapy app, is trying to go public. $390 million in revenue in 2024 with a net loss of $11.9 million. Hinge is an app that's going to tell you to squeeze that little inflatable ball between your knees. About 10 reps, three sets a day. It should launch a dating version. Like, if you have a knee injury, connect you with someone who doesn't have a knee injury, right? They just issued their IPO paperwork.

We'll cover it if they make it to the New York stock. And then finally, the Wall Street Journal reports the most annoying part of your car is the door handle. New cars have weird door handles. Yeah, according to strategic vision's latest survey, positive feelings for car door handles have fallen 50% in the last 10 years. Car companies think they're tech companies and they're making door handles door buttons. It's like roulette. It's like, will this button open my window or will it open the door?

We have a model line. Every time I look at that door handle, I don't want to get in the car. Give me my handle back. Don't need a button. And for that matter, don't need a button. Give me a knob to handle the heat. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one set in by Jack Leonard from lovely Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Over my paternity leave, it was Dr. Seuss Day. Well, Dr. Seuss, aka Theodore Geisel, wrote Green Eggs and Ham on a dare from a publisher about writing a book without using more than 50 different words. He accepted that dare, and he wrote Green Eggs and Ham, using exactly 50 different words. And yes, we will read them. A, am, and anywhere are B, boat, boat, box, goat,

could dark, do eat eggs, fox, goat, good green ham, hear house, I, if inlet, like many, me, mouse, not on, or rain. Sam say, see, so thank that. The them there, they, they train, tree, try will with wood you. I will not eat them with a mouse. I will not eat them in a house. I thought you were going to say cookie crisp, but I like that too, Jack.

Yettys, you look fantastic today. And remember, if you are in line at Trader Joe's, look around. Look around. You're surrounded. Free artwork. Michelangelo. Apparently, there's a portrait that some artist did of Mona Lisa, and it's got a name tag. Like a Trader Joe's name tag, and it says Mona L.

And then turn to the person next to you in line and say, hey, H-Y-H-T-B-O-Y. Have you had the best one yet? That is how we grow the show. It really is when you tell your buddies about T-boy. Jack, I'll see you. And before we go, a happy birthday to Yeti Brian Stewart down in lovely Conroe, Texas. And happy birthday to Alex Goh in New York, New York. And Brent Cousin B. Barron's turning 46 years old down in Santa Clarita, California.

With the whole Brady Bunch and the Los Angeles Lakers. And the legendary bestie, Tyler Rice, who was at our live show in New York City, just released a book. Tactical Disconnection. Congratulations on the publishing. And to anyone else, celebrate something today, make it a tea boy. Celebrate the wins. Oh, and check out our latest episode of The Best Idea Yet, because it's all about Costco's Kirkland brand. This is Jack.

I own stock of Amazon, and I recently bought stock in Lyft.