The Best One Yet - 🚁 “Kidney Transfer to the Hamptons” — Blade’s helicopter organ biz. The End of the Non-Compete Agreement. Viking Cruises’ Boomer IPO.

Episode Date: April 30, 2024

Viking River Cruises is about to IPO at a $10B valuation — It’s not just a pure-play cruise stock, it’s a pure-player Boomer stock.Blade isn’t just a private helicopter that takes you to the Hamptons anymore — Blade’s new business is organ transport, and it’s moved more kidneys than any business ever.And the Non-Compete Agreement is officially dead — The FTC will no longer let your boss be your boss after you quit working for your boss.Plus, ever notice that McDonald’s Coca-Cola tastes better than regular canned Coke? Science proves it… And we found the reasons why.$VIK $BLDE $SPYSubscribe to the best newsletter yet: tboypod.com/newsletterWant merch, a shoutout, or got TheBestFactYet? Go to: www.tboypod.comFollow The Best One Yet on Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok: @tboypodAnd now watch us on YouTube Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Tuesday, too boy, Tuesday, April 30th. And today's pod is the best one yet. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. I'm sorry, Jack, pause the pod. So today is April 30th. Correct.

Which means it's the last day of April. Exactly. Which means that tomorrow. See on this thing. Or... Whichever one you prefer. If you know, you know, Jack. Three stories for today's show.

What have we got, man? For our first story. Viking Cruises is about to IPO at a $10 billion valuation. But Viking isn't a pure play cruise stock. No, Viking is a pure play boomer stock. For our second story, congratulations to everyone who works for a living because the non-compete clause is officially dead.

Don, your boss can no longer be your boss after you quit working for your boss. And our third and final story, Blade became famous as the private helicopter app that will hail you to the Hampton. But you are never going to guess Blades' shocking new business. What is it, Jack? Organs.

Organs. Blades, helicopters aren't transporting Kevins. They're transporting kidneys. But Yeties, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. No one else is doing this mix of stories. Love this mix today, Jack. We're going to kick out the show with a controversial opinion. The best thing at McDonald's isn't even a McDonald's product.

The best-tasted thing at McDonald's is not the Big Mac. It's not the McNuggets and it's not even the McRib. What is it, Jack? It's the Coca-Cola. The McDonald's soda fountain Coca-Cola is simply superior to all other soda out there. What kind of feels are you getting with that McDonald's soda, Jack? It's sweeter, it's juicier, it's coquier. It does taste coquier.

You're right, man. I couldn't label it. Is Ronald McDonald remixing the recipe? It was like grimace messing with the machines over there. What is happening with McDonald's Coca-Cola? It turns out that McDonald's Coca-Cola served from a soda fountain is different from every other Coca-Cola you can find. If it jumped in T-Boy style, it turns out. McDonald's actually uses a different recipe of Coca-Cola.

According to Delish, McDonald's Fountain Soda has a higher syrup to liquid ratio to account for the ice in your cup. McDonald's, they know your cup has ice, which dilutes the Coke. So Ronald adds some extra high fructose corn syrup to compensate for that extra melted H2L. And that is why your first sip at the McDonald's Soda Fountain tastes so good. And your last sip isn't a watery disappointment. But that's not all. Get this, Yetis, about the McDonald's Coca-Cola.

McDonald's also has extra wide straws, which, like, blast the flavor in your mouth. Apparently, there's an engineering Marvel, Jack, because the super-wide straws optimize the syrup across your taste buds. So the hamburger is playing chess while Burger King's playing checkers. I mean, it's not rocket science, but kind of tastes like rocket science, man. So for Tea Boy Tuesday, Yiddies, we want to know from you. What is the best way to have a Coca-Cola?

Is it a half-frozen two-liter you left in the? the freezer? Is it a Mexican Coke with actual cane sugar? Or is it my favorite? A free refill Pepsi paired with a free refill bucket of popcorn at the movie theater. Yeah, you know what my parents used to do? They used to give us some a soda. You know what's that? I've heard of this before. It's not milk soda. It's not milk, it's half soda and it kind of tastes delicious. That sounds appalling. That is what is the best way to have a Coca-Cola? Is it a McDonald's Soda Fountain Coke? Or is it something else? Leave a comment right here on Spotify or on YouTube or on Instagram.

One sec, Jack, I got to press the machine. I can't believe you drank me soda. Oh, 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 better 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. The next big IPO on Wall Street, get this. It's Viking, the River Cruise Company. And Viking Cruises is doing something that we've been waiting to see for a while.

They're targeting old people. Yeties, if you have ever fallen asleep on the couch and woken up at one in the morning with PBS on, what do you see, Jack? A Viking River Cruises infomercial. Yes, you do. Viking Cruises. They're like the Carnival Cruises for your art history. Major Aunt Deborah.

Sail the Danube River. Discover Renaissance fresco paintings all from the safety of the deck. Viking cruises. It's like less Aruba, more Adriatic. You're coming out with a Ph.D. degree. Viking owns a majority of the culturally immersive river cruise market. Jack, how would you describe the culturally immersive river cruise market exactly? You're taking notes.

You're not taking shots. That poop tech is a fancy poop tech. But here's the news yet is after 27 years. Viking Cruises wants to go public. Viking Cruises is going to IPO. They're raising a billion dollars by selling fresh stock on the stock exchange and they're hoping to hit a $10 billion market cap. Yeah, and hold on to your bifocals. Viking Cruises is docking at the New York Stock Exchange. Now, Yetis, this isn't the first cruise company Nick and I have covered on the pod. We've covered Carnival, Royal Caribbean. We covered Margaritaville. And Jack, remember you used to own Carnival

Cruises stock for like six months. Remember that? I know. It was my most embarrassing stock ship. Yeah. But yet he's Jack and I jumped in T-Boy style to this Viking cruise IPO paperwork. And we noticed they're the most different cruise company we've ever seen. Here's the main difference. Unlike other cruise lines, each Viking vessel is identical to the other. They've got three styles of boats, one ship for oceans, one ship for rivers, and one ship for expeditions. They're consistent. And that consistency lowers cost. Because they can buy in bulk and it's cheaper to fix the boat if it's the exact same as the other boats they have. It's way more efficient. The mechanics know each Viking boat really well because there's 58 of them that are exactly the same. And we've actually seen airlines do this

too, like Southwest Airlines. It makes it much more flexible for the airline and for this cruise company. Viking can send the same crew of workers from one ship to another with no need for retraining. Because their ships are identical. What's another difference for Viking Jack? Vikings are a lot smaller than the other major cruise lines. Carnival cruises have served at six million guests a year, Viking is serving 600,000 guests the year. It's one-tenth the size. But Viking tickets are way more expensive. That's the key.

Vikings' average revenue per passenger is a whopping 7,000 bucks because they're not serving shrimp on that thing. They're serving lobsters. That's more than three times the revenue that Carnival makes per passenger. But Jack and I also noticed something else about Viking cruises.

That was different. It's probably the only thing you've noticed about Viking cruises. The sponsorships. The sponsorships. The Viking Cruises is the only company we've ever seen that brags about their sponsorships. If you watch the end of Downton Abbey, you'll see that it was financed in part by Viking River Cruises. If you walk into the British Museum and hang the left, you're going to notice a sign for the Viking River Cruises. If you put on a tuxedo and go to the Metropolitan Opera House, Viking River Cruises was one of the donors. Jack, don't go gray on me over there, but I'm getting AARP vibes when it comes to Viking Cruises, man.

I think it's because of our takeover, right now. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies on a Viking cruise? It's time for the tech industry to respect their elders. Yeties, that's actually a takeaway Jack and I did last year on a story about big tech. We noticed that the tech industry is obsessed with young people under 30, but the bigger business opportunity is for people over 60. And Viking Cruises is the first time we've seen a company explicitly obsessed with boomers, and we're loving it.

In their IPO paperwork, Viking Cruises, cruises says they only target people who are 55 years or older. They want to be a pure play boomer stock. And Viking actually makes a wonderful case as to why they're so focused on that demo. It's where the money is. People 55 and older are the largest spenders in America by far. The wealth owned by the boomer generation is tremendous and they want to deplete that trust fund right now. Yeah, we're going to take care of the kids. But first, let's cross a few lines off our bucket list, Helen. Honey, do you want to do Florence first or should we take the ship on? All the way to India.

Nick and I think it's kind of refreshing. It's cool to see a company go after your parents and grandparents with such marketing love as Viking River Cruises. Most of the companies we talk about, they only think it's cool to focus on young people. But Viking is more realistic. They're going where the money is. They're going to the boomers.

It's time for brands to respect the elderly. Or at least to try to make money often. For our second story, last week, the Federal Trade Commission, and the non-compete clause. Big business is suing to block that ruling, but we think non-competes are done for, and here's why. All right, yeah, he's last week, Jack and I were, like,

really prepping for the New York City Live show. We were doing a lot of prep work. I know. And then we saw this huge announcement from the FTC when it was too late for us to cover it on the live show. Okay, here was the first nationwide rule that the FTC has decreed in 50 years. What was it, Jack?

The FTC banned non-compete clauses, nationwide. That's right, Yeti's starting in September after you ironically get back from Labor Day vacation, non-compete clauses in employment contracts are invalid. Unless you're a highly paid senior executive existing non-competes that might be in your contract, they're invalid, and your company has to tell you that they're now invalid starting in September. This is a huge, huge deal because it impacts an estimated 30 million employees and probably you happen to be one of them, yety's. Now, let's quickly clarify what this ban on non-competees. is not. This is not a green light for employees to steal company secrets.

Like, Bessies, if you work at a brewery with a proprietary strawberry beer recipe, you cannot steal that recipe. You can't steal it. That's theft, which is a totally different thing than non-competes. Non-competes are also not non-disclosure agreements. Those are two different things. NDAs. Those are still legal too. That's different than a non-compete. What this is is a new rule that makes it illegal for your boss to have unfair. power over where you work next. Darling and Duncan, hop on over to Starbucks if you want, sweetie. Pop on over to Starbucks. There's no one's stopping you anymore. Howard Schultz is like,

we've been waiting for you for years, darling. Now, let's break lots of context next. The non-compete started off really reasonable. Jack, what's the history of the non-compete? How did it begin, man? The non-compete began with senior executives who had valuable inside information. Besties back in the day is CFO Frank from Finance knew the secrets to the company's balance sheets, they didn't want him taking them to a competitor, so he signed a non-compete. And he got paid a million dollars to sign that non-compete because he's an executive. But eventually, non-competes got a little bit ridiculous, didn't they, Jack? Non-competes have been abused by employers to trap their employees.

And today, 30 million Americans, or one out of five workers, has a non-compete, according to the FTC. And the FTC, when they announced this ruling, they cited hairstylists who have non-competes. A hairstylists. A hairstylist is not a high-end executive, and they probably didn't have a lawyer review their contract. So they may have signed their non-compete without even knowing it. But now those hairstylists can't quit their jobs. These non-competes forbid them from cutting bangs at other salons. And if you can't go to a competitor, if you're a hairstylist, what are you going to do? You have no choice but to stay at the salon you're currently working at. You're basically an indentured salon servant, and that's just not fair. Now, Yeti, shocker, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which represents big businesses,

they immediately sued the FTC to block this ruling. But if a court strikes this FTC ruling down, we hope that Congress acts to end the non-compete. Because of our takeaway. And because we want Dahlene to get a race. Yeah, we want to hire Dahlene here at T-Boys. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies who are everyone who signed a non-compete clause? If you can't compete, then you can't get a race. are Yeti's fascinating hero stat.

Over the past 25 years, people who switch jobs get paid 1% more a year than those who stay. 1% more a year. Over a 40-year working career, that adds up to a huge difference in your income. Totally. What it means is that the best way to make more money is to pursue a new job. That hero stat is from snacks, the newsletter we found it, that still runs over at Robbman. Well, Jack and I noticed that the FTC's main argument for banning the non-compete is exactly. Exactly related to that hero stat.

The FTC says that without the non-compete, American workers are going to make $300 billion more a year in income. You'll make more money because the freedom to work wherever is a form of leverage. Leverage to demand a higher wage because your boss has to compete for you compared to the other companies you could work for. And just the threat that you could leave is the very reason you'll get a raise. It doesn't matter how much your boss says he or she loves you. They're paying you to stay. So Jack and I, we are rooting for the end of the non-compete. Because if you can't compete, you can't get a race.

By the way, besties, Jack and I were curious how many of you actually have non-competes. So we've got a poll going right now on Spotify, don't we, man? If you're listening to on Spotify, scroll down and vote yes or no. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, this one's wild. Blade has always been a private helicopter company for weekends in the hands. But Blades got a surprise new business that is booming. And what is it, Jack?

Organs. Human organs. You know, your pause gets me every time you say that. When Jack and I were living in the East Village in New York, we got to know Blade because our buddy Timmy was like a power user of Blade. It's luxury helicopter ride hail. Like you can hail a helicopter to bring you from Manhattan to JFK in half the time that a cab would get you there.

Yeah, they're targeting time, poor, money rich, Malay. millennials, the kind of people who need to get to the Hampton's ASAP with a pinia collata in hand. We're out of east, baby. Who's Uber for choppers. Fancy helicopters that'll help you beat the traffic and be parting in Montauk at the sloppy tuna before you can even drink that peanut calada. But yet he's Blade went public during the SPAC frenzy of 2021. And Jack and I, we've actually covered it a couple times on this show.

But here's the shocker. Blade's biggest business isn't people anymore. It's what's inside those people. This is what Jack and I found fascinating about this story. Blade is actually the biggest transporter of organs in the entire United States. Hearts, kidneys, lungs, everything but the appendix, Blade will move that organ fast for you. We were shocked, so we jumped in T-boy style. It turns out, back in 2021, Blade acquired Trinity, a company that specializes in the air transport of organs.

And that organ transport business started small, but now it's most of Blade's business. Get this, fourth quarter blade earnings. Two-thirds of Blade's revenue came from their new medical division. So Blade's top client isn't our buddy Timmy anymore. It's Bellevue Hospital. Yeah, it's not the organ donors. It's the organs inside of the donors, Jack. Blade also transports medical teams who specialize in organ transplant procedures to the hospitals that they're needed.

In fact, yeah, if you go to Blade's website and look at their company description, it's not talking about flights to Nantucket, exactly, is it, Jack? First sentence about Blades About Us page, Blade Air Mobility provides air transportation and logistics for hospitals for human organs. They still mention transport of human passengers, like going out east of the Hamptons, but they mention it second. It's not their priority.

And now Blade is doubling down on organs. They just bought eight new planes just for this new booming hospital organ business. Blade, it's really the Uber for intestines. It's not a blade. It's a scalpel. So Jack, what's the take for our buddies apparently saving lives over Blade. Don't mistake the brand for the business. Now, Eddie's Blade branding, it's advertising, its entire external image, it screams one thing. Exclusive, sleek, luxury transport to get you

to that vacation ASAP. But when you break away from its brand, what is Blade's actual business? The fundamental business is to move expensive high priority objects from A to B fast. Yeah, that object, it could be a stock trader who's willing to pay more to get to the beach ASAP. Or, or it could be a kidney, whose recipient needs an ASEP. Blade built its business to target the stock trader, but the business opportunities are really with the kidney. Blade, it's in the air mobility business, whether that's a person or a pancreas.

So don't mistake the brand for the business. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us for T-Boy Tuesday? Apparently not. You said you like my pauses. All right, you got it, you got it. Yeah, these Viking River Cruises is IPOing on the New York Stock Exchange, targeting a $10 billion valuation. Unlike the tech industry, Viking Cruises respects their elders.

For our second story, the FTC announced a nationwide ban on non-competees. We hope that non-compete goes away because without the compete, there is no raise. And our third and final story was Blade. They started as a helicopter service for VIP Hampton's partiers. Now they're doing organ deliveries. Don't let Blade's brand distract you from Blade's business. But yeties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today.

First, Tesla stock jumped 15% yesterday after Elon got Tesla's self-driving mode approved in China. To get that approval, Elon has to partner with Baidu, which is China's hand-picked electric car winner. Who said it before and we'll say it again. What president she wants, she gets. And second, Goldman Sachs warned their bankers about booking business trips to Paris during the Paris Olympics. summer. All our Goldman Vessies out there, if you work at the bank and you have a business trip planned, do you want to expense in July? Just be a little careful. Even if you have a client who's based in Paris and prefers you visit during August, you're going to need approval from the

finance department. He really likes archery. He loves archery. Any golden trip this summer to France must be approved by finance. And finally, we're officially getting a Mufasa origin story. Disney's Mufasa the Lion King just dropped its trailer. Beyonce is voicing Nala again, and Beyonce's daughter is playing Simba's daughter. But sadly, James Earl Jones will not be voicing Mufasa, which it just feels like a miss. It's a huge miss.

James Earl Jones, the greatest voice actor of all time. Besides Jack's pauses. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Patrick Meehan from lovely Bradenton, Florida. All right, it's NHL playoffs season, right? The New York Rangers, we're already clinched, man. We're going to the second round. Nick's a huge Rangers fan, Yeti.

But the hottest thing in the hockey playoffs isn't really Henrik Lindquist. It's really the Zamboni. Yeah, forget about Lamborghinis and Ferraris. The Zamboni is the vehicle we want to talk about right now. Yeties, get this. When the Zamboony does a rink resurfacing, it covers three quarters of a mile every single time. And since there's four resurfacing per game, the Zamboony travels three miles per game. And during that trip, it's a year.

uses 250 gallons of water for every ice resurfacing. So for an entire game, a Zamboani uses 1,000 gallons of water. And Nick, to be clear, what does Zamboni do actually? Well, Jack, we'll save that as the best fact yet for another pod. Yeah, it is you look fantastic today. And remember, Jack and I want to know, how do you enjoy the best Coca-Cola? Is it at a McDonald's founding machine? Or is it a free refill at a movie theater like me?

Hit us up at T-Boy Pod on Instagram YouTube response. Spotify right now. And Nick and I, we'll see you tomorrow. And before we go, a shout out to all our Yeti's celebrating the last night of Passover tonight. Hope everyone had a good Seder. And congratulations to Bestie's Haley and Sebastian, who just got engaged. He got down on one knee in Sedona, Arizona. That is beautiful. And happy anniversary to Maddie and Lindy in Denver, Colorado. And Cindy M. over in lovely Los Angeles is moving to New York City this week. Cindy, you're going to have a fantastic time. Congratulations to Connor McKenna in New York City, who just got promoted at Pronghorn. And Katie LaCosta in San Diego is working on a cure for cancer and in the meantime celebrating a birthday.

Happy 22nd birthday to Trace Wilson in Salt Lake City who's listening to the show right now on a birthday road trip. And a happy birthday to Sonny Kana is celebrating in the incredible city of Amsterdam. And happy 30th birthday to Francis Afriere in New York, New York. And a happy belated seventh birthday to Dre Bauer. Ouch celebrating in Minneapolis, Minnesota. And Liz, the Lizard Anderson, get out of the shower in Berlin. You got a birthday to celebrate. And Katie Allen, San Diego is a seal lover celebrating birthdays.

Happy birthday, Katie. Happy birthday to Jeanette Rodriguez in Hollishton, California. Get this girl, her mocha, ASAP. And Jack, we got a 31st birthday for our buddy William Chan, who's training for a marathon and listening to T-Blo. Happy birthday to Billy Arborough, who's turning 34 in San Clemente. on the same day as his collie, Mr. James. And Coleret is turning three years old in San Augustine, Florida,

celebrating in true unicorn fashion. And Kyler Vague, somewhere in the middle of Pennsylvania, just got promoted to director and we're pumped for him. I bet you he got that promotion because he hasn't signed a non-compete. This is Jack, Nick and I both on stock of Robin Hood and Spotify.