The Best One Yet - 🎓 “Ivy League fast-pass” — Crimson’s venture-backed tutor. Louis Vuitton’s tariff pain. Butterfinger’s 101-year streak.

Episode Date: October 17, 2024

A college tutor startup is now worth $500M… Because it gets you into Harvard (for $200K).Louis Vuitton sales fell last quarter… because the trade war is firing up again.Butterfinger just launched its 1st new flavor in 101 years… and we think that’s a mistake.Plus, Crocs just launched clogs for dogs… Because we spend more on pets than shoes.$CROX $LVMUY $NSRGYSubscribe 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/  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Thursday, the new Friday, October 17th. 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. Oh, Jack, goodbye to your car. I'm sad to see her go, man. After three years, we just returned her Volkswagen electric car to the dealership. Although you did name her Yeti, and I always thought that was really cool. Yeah. Yetty, she did us well. In the meantime, Jack, we got three fantastic stories for today's show. What are we got on the T-boy, man? our first story, one college tutor startup just hit a shocking $500 million valuation. Because this startup will get you into Harvard for $200,000. For our second story, it's Louis Vuitton. Their fashion sales shrank for the first time since the pandemic. LVMH is the perfect case study on tariffs, because for every tit, there is a painful tariff tat.

And our third and final story is Butterfinger. They just broke the greatest streak in food history. After 101 years, Butterfinger is launching their first new flavor. And we think it's a huge mistake. Huge mistake. Huge mistake. But yeties, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories, no one else is doing this mix. Love the mix today, Jack. Great next. Have you ever been walking your dog in the morning and thought to yourself, ah, hey, I wish my puppy and I could be wearing matching shoes. You know, I wish. I did that this morning with remember. You did? Oh, did you really? Well, great news. Again, because Crox just launched dog shoes. We repeat, Crox is expanding from human feet into pet feet.

Pet feet, they're called paws. Okay, paws, feet, whatever. Either way, you can now wear the same clogs as your dogs. The same gibbets as your Jack Russell Terrier. The same souls as your St. Bernard. Hey, Jimmy Chew. Crox is coming for your shih suit. Now, the reason Crox is doing this is because pet spending, it has doubled in just the last decade.

Because puppy. P-U-P-P-E-Y. People ultimately prioritize puppies. In fact, Americans spent $150 billion on pets last year, which is nearly double what we spent on shoes. We repeat, we spend nearly twice as much on pets as we do on our own paws. But the biggest question here for the Croc's new dog shoe is the price. Because dogs have four feet, humans only have two feet. So that's why dog clogs are going to be more expensive than human clogs.

True story, dog clogs, they're five bucks more than a typical. typical men's pair. You gotta get twice as many if you're a little poosky over there. Oh, and by the way, they also glow in the dark for some reason. Your move, hugs. Your move. P-U-P-P-U-I. 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 to cause a cultural storm. It's the best one yet, but the best is a norm. Jack Nick, that's it. 50% that's a fat tip. Tea Boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, because we're rare to go. We can't wait to go. no more, so just start the show. Start the show.

First, a quick word from our sponsor. For our first story, one college tutoring startup says they're 98% sure they can get you accepted to your top number one school. And venture capitalists just valued this tutoring business at $500 million. Half a billion bucks, but yeties, let's start our story like this. Every month, 11-year-old kids fly across the world to New York City to visit a tutor. Not just a tutor, the tutor. A college tutor.

And that tutor is an outrageously educated 29-year-old from New Zealand. Jamie Beaton is a founder of a company called Crimson Education Consulting, and we've never heard about someone so well-educated. Oh, no, we have not. His business, he cracked the code on getting you into an Ivy League school. Harvard? Yeah, no problem, you got this. He knows how to get into Harvard because he's done it.

In fact, he applied to 25 schools when he was 18 years old and got into all 25 of them. Jack, could you whip up the resume on this one, please? He went to Harvard for his bachelor's degree. Then he got master's degrees from Stanford and Penn. Then he got a PhD at Oxford while also getting a JD from Yale. And running this college startup the entire time. I think he's like Hermione. He's got that time shifting machine that lets him be in two places.

at one time. Well, now he has hired former admissions officers from all of those schools to consult applicants on getting in to all of those schools. Jamie Beaton is known as the Steve Jobs of college consulting. And he has the first tutor business we've ever seen that is venture-backed

and as big as it is, Jack, let's jump in T-Boy style. He's raised $75 million from the VC community, which values the company at $500 million. This college consulting startup has 26 offices in 21 countries and they've acquired five different competitors. And what's the cost to be a customer of this

college consulting business? Jack, it's up to $200,000, which is why this startup is generating 200 million bucks in revenue every single year. I am overwhelmed by the academia of this story so far. We'll start taking notes, Jack, because there's a test at the end. Yet is, that was all wild. But the wildest part about this company is actually the results. Because Crimson students now make up two percent of all Ivy League freshman year admissions. We repeat whether you're at Brown, Penn, Cornell, Harvard, one out of every 50 Ivy League kids are graduates of this program. That's a huge number. So, Nick, how is Crimson winning the Ivy admissions game? What is the code they have cracked? Well, Jack, the first part of the formula is this. Jamie Beaton told the Wall Street Journal in an interview

that if you want to get into an Ivy League school, you must have 10 activities you do. connected to two central themes. And one of those themes should have a social justice component. That's key. All right, that's part one. Part two of the getting into Ivy's formula, you must have two forms of leadership.

One must be institutional. Like be the captain of a sports team. And one must be entrepreneurial. Like you started a newsletter side hustle while you're in high school. Now, those are the first two parts of the formula. The rest is a secret, you know, you got to pay $200,000 to actually get.

But the underlying advice from this company is that you should only pursue things in high school, if you can be the best at those things. Yeah, it's like little Jimmy. It's great that you love pottery. But unless you can win, like, the pottery championships, then you're gonna have to give up pottery. I'm sorry, son. Yeah, you're wasting your time. It's actually the same advice

as Ricky Bobby got from his dad. Good point, Jack. If you ain't first, you're last, apparently. So, besties, add it all up, and as you can imagine, this article was the number one most shared piece on the Wall Street Journal all of yesterday. Because it's controversial. Not just because that Ricky Bobby advice about being first or not being anything. Also a good point, Jack, because it highlights that if you got

200,000 bucks, you can buy your kid a fast pass into the Ivy Leaks. How do you say that in Latin, Harvard? Well, except Dartmouth, because Dartmouth will take anyone these days. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies? Just kidding. Over! We're going to get some beet, green hate mail today. Everywhere. The most fundamental rule of economics is scarcity. Yeties, the fundamental rule of economics underlies everything in our world. And that idea is that resources are scarce. Because there's a limited amount of the things we want, the forces of supply and demand dictate who gets it.

Well, for example, in the last 30 years, the number of students applying to Ivy League schools is up 400%. That's the demand side. But in the same time, the number of slots has barely budged at these schools. So the admissions rate has fallen by the same proportion down to just 5%.

That's the supply side. So the way we see it, the emergence of a $500 million college consulting startup, it reflects the underlying rule of economics. The more scarce the resource, the more intense the market. For our second story, LVMH's luxury fashion business just shrank for the first time since the pandemic. The reason? Tariffs. Because for every tariff tit, there's a painful tat. Now, Jack, I don't want to bring you back down memory lane to your trip to.

know, France. But last time we covered LVMH, I believe it was the Paris Olympics. I was basking in Aprol sprits is all week, man. You were living your best life over in the Arondis small, whatever. I was. Well, during those Paris games, LVMH was basically the event planner the whole thing. France's most valuable company was determined to make Paris the most fashionable Olympics ever. But that $160 million investment in Olympics marketing by LVMH, it did not pay off. it did not. Louis Vuitton's House of Luxury Brands just announced that revenue shrank 2%

last quarter. Get off the podium. Get off the podium. Their stock is now off 15% from its high that was set just two weeks ago. Erasing $60 billion of stock market value. That was not on their list of this fall's seasonal goals. Pour out the

MoA, unpop the Hennessee. Paris Fashion Week is canceled. That was dramatic? That was so dramatic. LV, you still look fantastic. Keep doing what you're doing. But the reason sales actually fell at LVMH, it's got nothing to do with LVMH. To quote Robin Williams, it's not your fault. Okay, so Jack, let's sprinkle on some context to this fascinating situation.

Sales in China make up 20% of LVMH's business. Newly minted Chinese billionaires, they want status symbols like, you know, a nice little LV logo on anything. Like the $87,000 Fuzball table with the Louis Vuitton logo? That's a real product yet. Real thing, we found it. But here's the funny thing, Yetis. This summer, a trade war began between China and the European Union. To protect the European carmakers from unfair competition coming from China,

the EU passed 45% tariffs on Chinese-made EVs. And Jack, what did China do when the European Union did that? They retaliated. Yes, they did. With targeted tariffs where it hurts the most. Okay, here's what they did. First, to inflict pain on German car companies, China is now taxing, German-made cars. Next, to inflict pain on LVMH, China is now taxing French brandy. As the LVMH CFO

said in their earnings yesterday, Louis Vuitton has become collateral damage to the electric car trade war. Those are her words. And the result? LVMH's sales in Asia fell by 16% last quarter. Sit down, stand up, and put the bag away. LVMH's biggest market is shrinking because LVMH has become a target in the trade war. And no amount of $87,000 Louis Vuitton foosball tables can get them out of it right now. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Louis Vuitton Moe-Henesee. For every tariff tit, there is a painful tat. Yeties, on Tuesday, Trump said that tariffs were, quote, the most beautiful word in the dictionary.

Tariffs are taxes on the stuff that we import from abroad. And Trump thinks that tariffs as high as 50% will force factories abroad to relocate to the United States. But the interesting thing about this LVMH story is that it shows how, for every tit, there is a painful tariff tat. For example, if we tax Chinese-made solar panels, China is going to tax American-made airplanes and agriculture. And that's why economists think a tariff-loaded trade war would be a double whammy of bad news for America. Tariffs would result in higher prices for us consumers because we'd have to pay taxes on the foreign stuff that we import. And it would lead to a recession because our exports would suffer from retaliatory tariffs. Trump thinks the economists are

wrong, but LVMH's recent earnings show it. For every tariff tit, there's also a painful tariff tat. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, Butterfinger just made its biggest move in a century, their first new flavor. Butterfinger changed the rest. And we think that's a huge mistake. Now, yannies, as a couple of guys used to work in finance, we like to keep track of great financial streaks. Johnson and Johnson, they've issued a dividend every quarter for 60 years. Domino's Pizza enjoyed 113 straight quarters of sales growth. How about this one? Butterfinger.

Butterfinger. That candy bar hasn't launched a new flavor in 101 years. Unchanged in over a century. Yet is the Butterfinger. It is peanuts. It is wafer. And it is all covered in chocolate. It's like a sophisticated Reese's.

It's like a Reesies that studied abroad but came back and like learned more. And they've had the same single flavor. No varieties beyond that one flavor since before the Simpsons. Yeah, the Butterfinger. It is actually a top 10 U.S. candy. $200 million in sales, growing 12% a year since Nestle sold the company to Ferreiro. But here's the news. For the first time in the world,

101 year history, they're introducing a new flavor. Caramel Butterfingers. Caramel. Same inside, but instead of a chocolate covered outside, it is caramel covered. It's a limited time only, and it'll only be permanent if it sells well. Now we know you candy snobs are going to point out. Butterfinger has changed their shape in the past. Heart-shaped butterfingers for Valentine's Day. Bunny-shaped butterfingers for Easter. But despite those changes in shape, a Butterfinger has never introduced a new flavor or ingredient, and that is the key. And we all remember Bart Simpson's Butterfinger Beavis. What Jack and I are saying is someone has now laid a finger on that Butterfinger.

Bart's going to kill somebody. He's not happy about the caramel. But yet he's, when Jack and I heard this wild hero stat about this 101 year streak of not changing the flavor, we had to jump in T-boy style. And we learned that Butterfinger was an early candy disruptor. Get this, Yeties. But Butterfinger was invented in 1923 in Chicago by the Curtis Candy Company. Burdle name.

So they actually employed a stunt to rename the candy bar. From the first time that we've ever seen, fans would write letters to what to rename this candy company, and then they voted on a new name. The Curtis Candy Company crowdsourced a new name and came up with Butterfinger. And Jack, did you see why they came up with the name Butterfinger? I assumed someone suggested it and fans voted for it. It was actually a new term used in baseball for players who would drop the ball. They were called Chicago White Sox Butterfingers.

Interesting. But Besties, the founders of Butterfinger didn't stop there, did they, Jack? They also pulled off one of the first airdrops to ever happen, like an epic airplane stunt with Butterfingers. Yeah, they hired airplanes across 40 different American cities and literally dropped Butterfingers from the air on top of like unsuspecting cities. What an incredible marketing stunt. We actually found proof of this stunt in a newspaper article from 1926. This is 100 years before Red Bull ever did a fluke walk in or whatever that thing's called. Fluke talk. Exactly. But yeties, 101 years later, Butterfinger finally has a new flavor. We love caramel, but we hate this idea. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Butterfinger?

Butterfinger is giving up a competitive advantage. Timelessness. Yeties, Jack and I have said before to focus on being different, not on being better, because different is better. Well, there are plenty of caramel and chocolate candies out there, but none of them had Butterfingers record. Butterfinger's streak of no new flavors in 101 years? That was a major marketing opportunity. That's what they should have done.

No other candy has gone so long without introducing a new variety, not even M&Ms. The Hershey's Kiss, they were doing vanilla versions like three years after them. launched. Instead of a caramel butterfinger, Butterfinger could have focused their brand on their differentiator. Their unique streak of not changing. Butterfinger, the only candy is so good, we haven't changed the

flavor in over a century. If that was on the label, I'd be more likely to buy one. Jack, caramel butterfingers, they're intriguing. But being the only unchanged candy in over a century? More intriguing. Jack, could you whip up the takeoes for us for the new Friday?

College Consulting is worth half a billion dollars because their grads make up 2% of the Ivy League. And that reflects the fundamental rule of economics. The more scarce the resource, the more intense the market. For our second story, it's LVMH. Their earnings suffered from the electric car trade war. Sales to China fell by 16%. As Louis Vuitton has taught us, for every tariff tit, there is a painful tariff tat. And our third and final story is Butterfinger. They're offering their first new variety in 101 years. Caramel Butterfinger. But Butterfinger, in doing so, you have given up a key competitive advantage. Timelessness. Bart Simpson is pissed. But Yeties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, Signet, the owner of the Kaye, Zales, and Jared jewelry chains

just announced a brand new diamond marketing campaign. Here it is. Worth the weight. That's how they're promoting natural diamonds in the face of lab-grown diamonds. And Jack, who happens to be behind Cygnett's new diamond slogan? De Beers, the international diamond empire. So yetis, if you want to hear about lab-grown versus natural diamonds or your boyfriend is just dragging his feet these days, check out our episode from yesterday. You're going to love it. Second, we've got another nuclear power update. Amazon is investing $500 million in a bunch of mini-nuclear facilities, which is just a week after Microsoft also made a deal to get nuclear energy. Big tech is betting on AI, and AI needs a ton of energy. And nuclear delivers a ton of energy. Carbon-free energy. So prepare to see more tech-funded

nukes across America. And finally, the Las Vegas sphere is about to get a sibling. We're getting a second sphere, and it's coming to Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi. Yeah. The Middle East will be the home to the second giant entertainment sphere. Interestingly, the government. The government of the United Arab Emirates will pay to build the sphere and pay a fee to the sphere company for the rights to operate the sphere. So you can finally say, I saw OAR at the sphere in the UAE. There was a lot of air conditioning. Now time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Jonathan Marston from lovely New Jersey.

The Tampa Bay Rays baseball team had its stadium roof torn off during Hurricane Milton last week. And according to Major League Baseball, the Rays will not. have that stadium ready to start next season, which is six months away. So the Tampa Bay Rays are looking for another city to host their baseball team temporarily. Like a temporary city. Like they could become the Montreal Rays for next season. Or they could be the Nashville raise for a day or a week. Or Jack and I were thinking, what if they became the Puerto Rico raise, which works so well? I mean, they got so many Puerto Rican players. The old San Juan raise? I mean, Jack, I would buy that hat. I would buy that hat. I would buy that hat, too, man.

We would buy that hat. We hope they fix the stadium soon. But, it's an exciting opportunity for a city that's always wanted to host a baseball team. Ladies, you look fantastic for the new Friday. And remember, if you would buy crocs for your dogs, then bark twice. We're listening. Bark, bark twice. Oh, bark, bark, Nick. I've already done it.

Maybe now I should clarify, this is Jack. I have stock a crox. And bestie is the best way you can help grow this show, T-Boy, is to drop down and give us five stars and a review. We love reading them. We love every review, and we love you. That's why we're bringing the best one yet tomorrow to. Bark, bark, if you know, you know. And before we go, a happy birthday to Yeti Stephen Shapiro,

turning 26 in Philadelphia. Also celebrating one year as a senior software engineer Twilio and just bought his first home. Happy 56th birthday to Joe Malero in Lugoff, South Carolina. This long-haired and hard-working dad is quite a husband, too. And a naughty jane down the street in San Francisco is going on a date, an all-day date around SF with her boyfriend. Guys, enjoy the Presidio, check out the Marina Green.

You got to stop by the ferry building. Any other things, yeah? What's the Asai Place in the Marina we used to go to? Oh, it's planet Earth. It's fantastic. Pro tip? Toppings on the bottom. Very bold of you, Jack.

I know what actually happened when you did that. I was there. I was there. It actually didn't end well. Enjoy the city, guys. You're going to have a great time. And Alex Burns, ASAC, over in Lincoln, Massachusetts is celebrating a birthday. Just outside, boss.

And a shout out to Matt Frankie in St. Paul, Minnesota, who heard our story yesterday on the Tokyo subway, but he thinks the Santiago Chile subway is the best subway on Earth. The best one yet, if you will. And Pauline Law over in the state of Vermont, Jack has got an update for you. Okay, so I was walking to the pod studio yesterday, and I found your ski pass. So it's valid for this coming season. DM us at T-BoyPod, and I'll find a way to get it back to you. Once you get it back, celebrate the podcast. wins. This is Jack Islandstock of Crocs and Amazon.