The Best One Yet - 🤝 “The #1 trick to get hired” — Job Referrals’ Renaissance. The Gap’s Anne Hathaway comeback. The wildest Air Conditioner stock.

Episode Date: June 3, 2024

For TBOY Hotline Ep 3: Email your wedding/finance questions to [e-mail] to AI-written resumes, there’s a Networking Renaissance — The data shows that the #1 way to get hired is to have a referral within the company.The Gap’s stock has surged 240% in the past year — And it’s all thanks to Anne Hathaway, the dessert chef from The Bear, and a former Mattel exec who oversaw Barbie.And a heat wave hit Miami last week, and hits the American West this week — So we’re looking at the air conditioner brand that wins whether the weather it’s hot or cold.Plus, we’re flying to LA this week to record our 3rd ever “TBOY Hotline” episode — The theme? Wedding finances… so send us your wedding money questions at [e-mail]$GPS $CARR $MSFTWatch us on YouTubeTheGet the Saturday Newsletter: tboypod.com/newsletter  Submit Facts & Shoutouts: hereShoutout Requests Submit The Best Fact YetSocial: Follow us: on Instagram, TikTok, And connect with us on Nick’s LinkedIn & Jack’s LinkedInAbout Us: The daily pop-biz news show making today’s top stories your business. 15 minutes on the 3 biz stories you need, with fresh takes you can pretend you came up with — Pairs perfectly with your morning oatmeal ritual. Hosted by Jack Crivici-Kramer & Nick Martell. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. Welcome back. It is Monday, June 3rd. And today's pod, this is the best one yet. This is a T-Boy. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. Jack, grab your board shorts, your sunglasses, and your black denim jeans. We are heading to lovely Los Angeles, baby. I know. I actually have a colorful wardrobe.

I'm going to stand out like a Vermonter. Jack, we're not getting in anywhere. None of the cool places are going to take us. Santa Monica won't even. see us, man. Like, is that flannel, sir? I'm like, yeah, it's flannel. I'm sweating. It's not going to work. Jack, first story for today's team boy, what do we got on the pod, man? For our first story, the Gap. The Gap stock jumped 38% last week, and it's up 240% in the past year. And it's all thanks to Ann Hathaway, the dessert chef from the bear and a guy who used to work at Barbie.

For our second story, according to the data, we're in the middle of a networking renaissance. Because the data shows that the number one new way to get a job in this economy is you got to have a referral. And our third and final start. Last week, Miami got hit by a major heat wave. This week, the American West gets hit by a heat wave. So Jack and I found the one air conditioner brand that wins whether the weather is hot or the weather is cold. But yet is, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. Fantastic mix to start the week, Jack, wonderful mix.

Like we mentioned, we're in L.A. this week. to record T-Boy Hotline episode three. T-boy Hotline, what is that exactly, Jack? It's our monthly-ish call-in show where we take your questions on work, life, money, and investing. If you got a question about a reservation at a restaurant, we can probably answer that one, too. But this week, in Los Angeles,

we're doing something different for T-Boy Hotline. Yeah, because yeties this week for T-Boy Hotline episode number three, we are focusing on one topic and one topic only. Weddings. Specifically, wedding finances. We're talking to everything, financially related to the biggest day of your life. Because it is wedding season. It's June. And the Yetis have questions about weddings. We know you do.

From the back pew, a question over here, please. For example, what's the average price of a band? Or what's the ROI on a raw bar? Do I have to go to the bachelorette party if I'm not in the wedding? And then, Jack, the biggest value question of all? Cupcakes or wedding cake? Trick question, all of the above. But there's also a surprise for this episode at Timor Hotline. That's right, because Yetis, for this third episode of T-Boy Hotline, we have got a special guest. We are bringing in a YouTube influencer who has 8 million followers, and quite frankly, is fantastic.

And she happens to have just hosted the most spectacular wedding we have ever seen. She's a big fan of this show. We're a big fan of her show, so we're coming together for T-boy Hotline. But Bessies, it's not just this incredible YouTuber who's going to be talking weddings on this pod, right, Jack? Nick and I are both hitched. We've done weddings, too. Yeah, we kind of jumped in T-Boy style a few years ago. So, Yetis, here's our question for you today. Here it is. What financial questions do you have about wedding season?

What queries do you have about wedding spending? Non-financial wedding questions? Yeah, we'll take those two. We and our surprised YouTube star guest want to know your questions. So email us your cues at Nick and Jack at T-boypod.com. You can type us a question, or even better, send us a voicemail. Email us your wedding questions to Nick and Jack at T-boypod.com, and we'll get your voice on the pod. Speak now or forever hold your peace. Jack, to having to hold, these three stories

let's hit. 38% last week, thanks to Anne Hathaway and a white t-shirt. The Gap's turnaround all comes down to one former toy guy. It all comes down to a Barbie dude. But Jack, before we start, can you grab some Tomogachi, Celine Dion, and a little Carson Daly, please? Because the Gap just brought Nick and me back to 1998. Yes, it did.

Hit me, baby, one more time. Now, Jack, before you go full Alanis Morissette on us over there, can you just Up in T-boy style to the Gap numbers, please. The Gap stock jumped 38% last week on its best financial quarter in years. Get this, besties. All four of Gap's brands had positive sales growth last quarter. That's right. The Gap has four brands.

They have the Gap, Old Navy, Athleta, and Banana Republic. And all four of those brands grew last quarter. And Jack, when was the last time that all four of Gap's brands enjoyed growth in a single quarter? Well, the Gap CEO is a relatively new guy there, and he looked at the... like the annual reports, he couldn't find the last time that this happened. No one actually knows the last time this happened. That's how unprecedented this quarter was for the gap. That all four of their brands were growing at the same time. Yadies, the gap swung from a loss last year to a huge profit this year. That's why, in just the last 12 months, the gap stock has

surged by 240%. 240% surge. And Jack, what is the key reason, my friend? The gap managed to end their discounting death spiral of death. Ah, the discounting death spiral of death, because once you start discounting, usually you can't stop discounting. Last quarter, the Gap stopped relying on 40% off sales to get stuff off their shelves, and instead, they managed to charge customers full price.

And apparently you paid full price for those size 16 Husky Gap jeans when you wouldn't have done that in the past, Jack. 16 Husky, bringing me back to my Gap Kids days, Nick. If you know, you know. But yet is here's what Jack and I found. fascinating about the story. Why was everyone willing to suddenly pay full price for the Gap? Because the Gap did something other brands won't. The Gap used celebrities instead of influencers.

Besties, most brands today, they want TikTok or influencers post and picks wearing their gear. But instead of influencer marketing, the Gap went an old school route over the past year. The Gap got Hollywood celebrities to wear their clothes instead. For example, Oscar-winning actress Deveen Joi Randolph from the Holdovers, she wore a Gap denim gown to the Met Gala this year. Or Lionel Boyce, the dessert chef from the TV show, The Bear, he is the Gap's new male model. Or Anne Hathaway, she wore a stunning white Gap dress to a red carpet event in Rome this year. And Jack, what was the result when Anne Hathaway whipped into that Gap dress on the red carpet? Sales of that dress sold out instantly on the Gap.com.

The right note, Hathahe hate when you're wearing the Gap, baby. Yeah, he's added all up, and The Gap is zagging when others are zinging. Instead of new school TikTok marketing, The Gap went old school with red carpet marketing. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies over at The Gap? Leave the audience while they're still laughing. Yeties, there's a great Seinfeld episode. Jack and I just love it,

where George leaves a meeting after he tells a really good joke. Let's let George take it away. Yeah, you got it, George. And it gets worse. The team working on the statue Lafayette Square kind of over-smoothed that they ground the head down to about the size of a softball. And that spells trouble. All right, well, why don't we smooth the head down to nothing?

Stick a pumpkin under its arm and change the nameplate to Iqabod Crane. All right. That's it for me. It's a comedian's trick that George actually learned from Jared. Yeah, it is. It's a comedian's trick. Leave when the audience is at a high. Well, the way Jack and I see it, the CEO of the Gap basically did exactly that.

And his name is Richard Dixon. A little over a year ago, Richard Dixon was the C.O. at Mattel, the toy company behind Barbie. He had just enjoyed a summer of Barbie mania. It was a huge win for the company. The Barbie movie was huge, and he was on top of the world because he was on top of Mattel. But Richard Dixon left Mattel on a high. He took that win. from the Barbie movie to create a new opportunity for himself.

When everyone think he would enjoy the wins being at Barbie, instead he left to go to the Gap, which was badly in need of fresh ideas. And since he took over the Gap one year ago, the Gap Stock has more than tripled. We repeat, he left Barbie at a high, joined the Gap at a low, and since then, the Gap Stock is up 3x, baby. He brought in a new strategy and a new mindset,

and it's all circled around this marketing strategy. And that is why Mr. Dixon, the CEO of the Gapeson, the CEO of the Gap is a nice lesson in leaving while you're on top. For our second story, the number one way to get a job in this economy? Get referred by someone who's already working at the company. Ironically, technology is making the process of getting a job go old school. Yet there is a strange phenomenon happening to HR departments these days, isn't there, Jack? They're getting 30 resumes for a job application from 30 different people.

but the same language is used in all 30 of those resumes. Get this, according to the Wall Street Journal, hiring managers are seeing cover letters and resumes with eerily similar language. The reason? Candidates are letting ChatGPT write 10 cover letters for 10 applications and applying for all 10 with one click. Dear Mr. or Mrs. I am a results-driven, goal-oriented problem solver who works hard and plays hard. AI, it's created a digital surplus of candidates who all live. look the same on their applications. Plus, Jack, the internet is lowering the barriers to applying to a whole lot of jobs. It's like the standard application for college.

It's resulted in just tons of applications that the companies can't handle. Yeah, one-click button, boom, you've submitted an application on LinkedIn to 10,000 jobs at once. Hiring managers are receiving so many resumes, they're blinded by the bullet points. And how they want to give each of these candidates a shot, of course, but it is just not humanly possible to read so many. resumes. HR departments can't scale the humans needed to keep up with the pace of applications they're getting. And that fascinating story leads to the news. Instead of a thousand cold applications submitted online, HR departments just want 10 warm referrals. Instead of 1,000 cold applications, they want 10 warm referrals. Because the pendulum in hiring has swung from quantity to quality.

Now, here was some interesting research from the Wall Street Journal. They notice that companies are in increasing their cash rewards for employee recommendations that lead to new job hires. When Carolyn accounting refers her college roommate, if that college roommate gets hired, Carol gets a $2,500 referral bonus. Jack, when Bob refers a buddy of his buddy, buddy, Timmy, and that buddy gets hired, then Bob is getting a referral bonus. One healthcare company in Florida pays $3,000 for a referral bonus. Google pays $4,000 for a referral bonus. And Zuck's META pays $5,000. if you refer someone who ends up getting hired.

We repeat, Yetis, if you refer one person who gets hired at Instagram every quarter, you're walking away with 20 grand at the end of the year. It's a nice little side hustle, your own little hiring agency. A little HR on the side, baby. Finally, your Facebook friends are doing something for you. Now, of course, Yetis, for all of this excitement and positivity, there is a downside to the focus on job referrals. And that downside is diversity.

Yeah, because online job applications, they were supposed to democratize the entire hiring process. They were supposed to give unconnected people from lower-income communities a shot at the top job. But it's harder to generate diversity if all the employees are coming from the same networks at the same colleges and the same New England small college athletic conference, Jack. But this story about referrals, it's not just having a dad who plays at the same Connecticut Country Club as the VP who's hiring. That's not the only way you can get a referral for a job.

And that's what we found fascinating about this story. These days, referrals could come from a variety of connections that have nothing to do with your current network. A referral could come from a hacky connection that you made on LinkedIn by sliding into someone's DM. In fact, that happens to be exactly how our creative director here at the T-Boy podcast happened to get hired by us. Her hiring all started with the DM. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies who are anyone looking for a job? Networking leads to job referrals, and job referrals lead to jobs. Yet it is, the new data on who's getting hired shows a very clear trend.

Referrals get results. Here's the data from the hiring software company, Glass Door. It turns out there is a 50% chance of referrals getting past the resume review and getting an interview, but just a 12% chance for non-referrals. And at large companies, referrals make up just 5% of applicants for a job, but 30% of hires. We repeat 5% of the applicants are referrals, but they make up 30% of those finally hired. Now remember, a referral could be a close personal connection, like your college roommate who just loves you. But a referral could also be a loose tie. It could be finding someone on social media who works at your dream company, you send them a DM and then boom, you have one single chat.

So if you're looking for a job right now, or if you're happy with your job, but eventually they're going to need another one, the data shows that it pays to network right now. Because in the age of an AI digital application surplus, networking wins. Right now, the job referral is the greatest asset in your application arsenal. Now a quick word from our sponsor. For our third and final story, Miami hit 100 degrees last month, and the entire West is hitting 100 degrees this month. With the first summer heat wave happening this week, we're looking at the one company that's winning on both sides

of climate change. Oh, Yeties, it's like an iPhone reminder. Every summer, Mother Nature provides us with an alarm about climate change happening. The alarm is delivered in temperatures above 110 degrees, and the alarm is louder and hotter each year. Yeties, get this, last month, was the hottest May in the history of Miami. Even Pitbull was schvitzing. Jack, it got so hot, Pitbull shaved his head because of this. Is that why he shaved his head? You know why he wears sunglasses, Jack? Because it was record heat in Miami. Yet he's the National Weather Service. It's warning us now that the first half of this month, June, will be very hot for the entire west of the United States. Can't get pit bull out of your head, can you now, Jack? Speaking of heat dome, a heat dome will park itself over Arizona, Oregon, Idaho,

and California for the next five days. It is already Schfittson and San Francisco, Jack. It is going to be 10 to 20 degrees above normal starting this week. Phoenix may hit 110 degrees in June this year. And Miami's Heat Index hit 112 degrees in May this year. So Nick and I are turning again to the air conditioner industry, the duct tape of climate change. Because besties, here's what Jack and I find fascinating about the air conditioner industry. It doesn't fix the core issue, but it helps us deal with the problem in the short term. Just like duct tape. And that business of ACs, it is booming right now.

Three years ago, we covered Carrier, which is an Indiana-based company that loves air conditioners. Three years ago, we covered them on this podcast. We jumped in T-Boy style to their annual report. And Jack, how did Carrier describe climate change three years ago? They described it as a megatrend that was going to boom their air conditioner business. Because Yetis, in the last three years, people in Oregon, Washington, and other Western states bought air conditioner units for the very first time ever, brand new customers for Carrier. It was that hot.

They had no choice but to get an AC unit. In fact, we can see those new customers in Carrier Stock Price. Carrier's stock is up 70% over that three-year period, and the stock just hit an all-time high last month. In fact, Carrier's air conditioner stock is up 400% in just the last five years. When Idaho is bracing for a heat wave in June, it's good to be in the air conditioner business. Those potatoes, they're turning into French fries in the ground. But here's the business and climate irony. Yeah, the air conditioner is actually a short-term solution that exacerbates the long-term problem.

because air conditioning requires tons of electricity. It adds even more greenhouse gas emissions to the planet. It's kind of like the air conditioner is making the situation worse, which happens to be better for the air conditioner business. True. It's kind of messed up. But in our takeaway, we're going to look at the other side of Carrier's business, which does the opposite.

So, Jack, can you turn up the volume on the takeaway for our buddies over at Carrier? Carrier is winning on both sides of climate change. Hot and cold. Now, Yeti's one year ago, Carrier did something really interesting. They expanded from the cooling business to the heating business. They acquired Visemann, a 100-year-old German heating company. Specifically, they acquired Visemann's heat pump division, which heats a house without burning fossil fuels.

With a 50 to 70% smaller carbon footprint, heat pumps can also be used as air conditioners in the summer. And yetes, you're going to start hearing a lot more about heat pumps because they're like this magic appliance that is gaining popularity in the age of global. So what Carrier realized is that they could diversify their business to both ends of the thermometer. Exactly, because Carrier is kind of exacerbating climate change with their booming air conditioner business. But they're helping solve climate change with their booming heat pump business. Either way, that makes Carrier something we've never seen.

It is a very, very rare case of a company. It's winning on both sides of climate change. Hot and cold. Both sides of the thermometer. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for? takeaways for us to kick off the week. The Gap stock jumped 38% last week because its celebrity marketing is driving sales of full priced clothes. The Gap CEO left Mattel one year ago, but he's a lesson on leaving on top. For our second story, one-click applications and AI written resumes are

forcing HR teams to rely on referrals. Networking leads to job referrals and job referrals lead to jobs. The greatest asset in your app arsenal is the referral. And our third and final story is Carrier. Their air conditioner sales have boomed, and now they're selling energy efficient heat pumps too. Carrier, they're the rare company that's winning on both sides of climate change. But Yeties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, the month of May is over, so Jack and I whipped up the stock market scorecard and May is looking pretty, pretty good, Jack. Stocks rose 5% in May, which is a really good monthly growth. Yeah, after rising 24% in 2023, the stock market is on pace for another fabulous year in 2024.

Stocks are up 135% from their pandemic lows reached in March of 2020. And second, into it, its stock fell last week because TurboTax is getting new competition, and the competition is free. The IRS is going big with their free tax filing program called DirectFile. Yeah, last tax season, the government tested out a pilot program, which people love. for doing their taxes. So this tax season, all 50 states plus Washington, D.C., are invited to participate in this online free tax filing service. And finally, last year, we told you that San Francisco's famous anchor brewing was sadly going out of business. America's oldest craft brewer was Anchor

and it was done last year. There was no more beer that shut down the brewery. The taps were finished until now. Anchor Brewery was just acquired by the fact. Founder of Chobani. Hamdi Ulukaya, the CEO and founder of Chobani's Greek yogurt, just saved San Francisco's Anchor Steam Brewery. Jag, and we're not getting a 2% cow milk IPA by the end of next year. I don't know what they're doing in Anchor, man. He's going to launch spiked milk.

Yeah, there's yeast in everything he touches. Now, time for the best fact yet this one sent in from Dylan Steinfeld from lovely Atlanta, Georgia. Push and play. Here we go. Nick and Jack. Raise your glasses because finding Nemo is old enough to drink. The iconic Pixar movie with a 99% score on Rotten Tomatoes was released 21 years ago this month. You may not know that Bruce, the shark in the movie who coined the phrase,

fish are friends, not food, is actually named in honor of the animatronic shark that was used in the movie Jaws, who was named after Steven Spielberg's lawyer, Bruce Ramer. Cheers. Wow. That was a lot. Perfect timing for us arriving in L.A. All of Hollywood is full circle with the rest of Hollywood, Jack. Also, perfect time for swimming in the ocean season to be talking about sharks right now.

Yeah, they said fish or friends, not food, but they didn't say anything about humans, did they, Jack? True. Yeah, they didn't. It was a little awkward. But remember, our favorite statistic, you're more likely to be bitten by a New Yorker than be bitten by a shark. Don't be worried about sharks, yeties. Be worried about us, New Yorkers. It's statistically true.

Yetis, you look fantastic out there to start the week. Jack, I can't wait to see it, but what do the besties got to do for us right now? Send us a question about weddings, finances, or both, so that we can answer it on T-Boy Hotline, episode three. Email us at Nick and Jack at T-boypod.com, and Jack and I are going to get to your wedding money questions. My big tip, don't just pay for a band. Upgrade the band by adding horns. That was the best money we spent at our wedding. And that's exactly why you should get more cakes.

Email us at Nick and Jack at T-boypod.com, and we'll see you tomorrow. Can't wait. And before we go, a happy birthday to Yeti Aditya Goquad, who is getting a tattoo to celebrate that birthday down and lovely sunny mail. Happy birthday to Amanda Nunez, who's celebrating at Universal Studios. And Joel Fernandez, congratulations. He just passed the CPA exam in Chicago doing logistics. Congratulations to Josh and Dee, who just launched together a protein-packed roadie startup. Carbs and protein, and a shout out to legendary Yeti, Rachel, from the great state of Wisconsin,

now in Arizona, who is running a half Iron Man, but we're just going to round up to a full Iron Man. Congratulations to Actors Rampage, celebrating two years in business in Los Angeles. And Willis and Mary from Richmond, Vermont, are making an offer on their first house, and it just got accepted. Not too shabby. Not too shabby. And a happy 10-year gotcha day to Cali the puppy in St. Pete's Florida. Who's a good boy? And a huge shout out to Mark in Ohio, California, who always uses butter on the waffle maker at the Hampton Inn to ensure a crisp crust. And a congratulations, a big hug and we'll miss you to our legendary T-boy producer Adam Macias,

who did a thousand episodes of this pod with us over three years and is now graduating from the T-Boy Company. We'll miss his work ethic, his attention to detail, and the best dang editing we have ever seen. The best one yet. And to anyone else who celebrates something today, make it a T-boy. Celebrate the wins. This is Jack. I own stock of Carrier and Nick and I both on ETFs of the S&P 500. Honestly, biggest day for Ann Hathaway since like she became Princess of Genovia. I thought you were going to say since the Dark Night. No, since she became Princess of Genovia. I don't even know what that's a reference to.