The Best One Yet - 🐙 “The Tragic Kingdom” — EA’s FIFA breakup. Netflix’s squid game(s). Ulta Beauty’s journey.

Episode Date: October 21, 2021

EA Sports got dumped by FIFA, so it’s planning the unthinkable: FIFA without FIFA. Ulta Beauty stock dropped 12% because when you leave Ulta, you get in your car, and you go on TikTok. And Netflix��s earnings revealed that you binge on Squid Game, but the opportunity is in Squid Games (catch what we did there?).$EA $ULTA $NFLXGot a SnackFact? Tweet it @RobinhoodSnacks @JackKramer @NickOfNewYorkWant a shoutout on the pod? Fill out this form:https://forms.gle/KhUAo31xmkSdeynD9Got a SnackFact for the pod? We got a form for that too:https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe64VKtvMNDPGSncHDRF07W34cPMDO3N8Y4DpmNP_kweC58tw/viewformLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. And this is Snacks Daily. It is Thursday, the new Friday, October 21st. Nick, this pod. I know what you're going to say. It's the best one yet. This is the best episode we've ever done.

Jack, what's our first story? It appears EA Sports has been dumped by FIFA, the international lord of soccer. So now EA Sports wants to do the unthinkable. Make FIFA without FIFA. How does one FIFA without the FIFA? For our second story, Alta Beauty is the number one beauty chain among Gen Z. But Alta Beauty stock dropped.

12% this week because of just left Alta still in car. I still love that. I mean. Just left Ulta still in car. For our third and final story, Netflix just reported their first ever squid game quarter. And here's what Jack and I are thinking. We don't think it's about Squid Game.

We think it's about Squid Games. I watched the first five minutes, haven't gotten past it. Just five minutes. Jack, it's because you don't watch Squid Games. Squid Games watches you. Snackers, before you hit those three wonderful stories. This is my favorite Thursday mix we ever done. Justin Timberlake was wrong about a lot of things, but he was right when it comes to Zuck.

Yeah, Facebook needs to change its name again. First, they dropped the the part. Yeah, now Facebook is dropping the Facebook part. The Verge just reported that Facebook will literally change their name probably next week. Yeah, we're not kidding. Facebook is changing its name. The most extreme corporate makeover in modern history. They're going to need enough Botox to freeze like a volcano.

Mount Vesuvius, you're going to have to be able to handle this. Now, word is, it's going to be the parent company that changes its name, not the app. Good clarification, Jack. So like how Google changed its corporate parent name to alphabet, but Google still existed as a search engine. So Facebook's still going to exist, but just as an app, not a corporation. But Jack and I jumped in SnapStyle, and we think we know what Zuck is thinking when it comes to a new Facebook name. His first choice for the Facebook rename was probably Snapchat. He's talking to the lawyers.

Is Snapchat available? Can we just do that? Is that okay? Or is it possible that maybe Facebook is changing their name unwillingly? Yeah, maybe the algorithm is like forcing Facebook to change its own name because it can't control the algorithm. If we change our name, the regulators won't be able to find us. Oh, no one to see here. It's just not Facebook over here. Nick and I threw up the whiteboard and thought of some other highly probable rename options for Facebook. Zuck, we got your back on this. Here's a couple other options for you. How about the Facebook? Bring it back. How about not Facebook? radicalized online. How about nothing to see here? How about that's not okay to say,

Ann Karen? You can't say that. How about MySpace? Just go back in time. How about no comment? Just leave it there. Snackers, the Verge reports. The rename is probably going to be Horizon. We think it's probably anything with the word connected. If you work at Facebook, Snackers, propose all of these ideas to suck ASAP. Make it happen. If you don't work at Facebook, hit us up with your name ideas at Robin Hood Snacks at Jack Kramer at Nick of New York. Let's hit our three stories. Hoopiseth. Hoopisaf?

Facebook backwards. That's like a password. Sounds like a coffee. You're tuned in the snacks daily. We spoke to the lawyers and we got to get something legal out the way. It's snacks about to hear ain't food. It's air candy. They don't reflect the views of the Robin Hood family.

It's all informational just so. We're not recommending any securities. Nope. It's not a research report or investment advice. Not an offer or sale of a security. Snacks is digestible Business news for you Rapper Her Financial LLC

Member Fenra Slash SIPC For our first story After nearly 30 years together As the most important video game couple ever FIFA plans to break up

with EA sports EA sports just got dumped But EA sports is set to rebound big time Aggressive delivery EA sports It's in the game Dude, I think it's EA Sports.

It's in the game. That was good. That was good. Madden for football, FIFA for soccer. EA Sports has video games for the PGA tour, the NBA, the NHL, and F1 racing. Why not all of those legendary sports video games? They are all done by EA sports. But EA Sports is soccer video game called FIFA was its best-selling game of all time.

And that was just a lovely, lovely relationship until, Last week, this happened. FIFA announced that the greatest sports and video game relationship ever is likely over. Get this, Snackers, according to Mori, after the World Cup, EA Sports may no longer use FIFA or the World Cup in its video games. Is that a reference to Mori, that like relationship reality talk show guy? It was a daytime show. I feel like it's on every doctor's office. Snackers, FIFA told Mori after nearly three decades of marriage, FIFA now wants an open relationship.

And we're not editorializing. That's what FIFA said. No, we're not. We're not. Can you share the quote, Jack? Like, this was quite an aggressive breakup letter. Here are FIFA's words. It is clear that this needs to be a space that is occupied by more than one party controlling all the rights.

Emphasis on need space to party with more than one. But there's also money issues here. Relationship drama comes down to money all the time. Electronic Arts, the publicly traded company, they depend on the Federation of International. football association. A.k.a. FIFA. FIFA controls all the world soccer, basically, and EA Sports just does the video games. EA Sports has sold 325 million copies of the FIFA video game in 50 countries translated to

18 languages. Okay, add all those video game soccer sales up, and that is $20 billion worth of sales at about $700 million a year. It's a profit puppy. And EA doesn't keep all that money for themselves. They give FIFA $150 million a year. for letting them use the FIFA name. But FIFA wanted double that in the extension, according to the New York Times.

So FIFA, the soccer legend, is breaking up. They're on corporate Tinder these days, and they could swing their soccer rights over to, like, Nintendo or Epic or some other video game company. Or Activision or Roblox or even like Facebook. Now, here's the kind of crazy part, Snackers. You'd think that EA video game shareholders got a box of tissues, two pints of Ben and Jerry's, and are swiping through old picks of the best times together, They're sobbing about this breakup.

EA stock was up 2,500% since their first date with FIFA. So you think EA is devastated, just a complete mess. But here's the shocker. EA stock is up 3% since the news of the epic breakup. It's not a mess of tears, tissues, and Ben and Jerry's. It's love and single life, apparently. EA sports is single and loving it. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at EA sports?

FIFA broke up with electronic arts, but electronic arts has 300 rebound relationships already in the bag. Snackers, we notice picks of EA sports in a bikini on a yacht with Ben Affleck. Get this, Snackers. EA announced last week, right after FIFA made that brutal quote, that they have signed 300 separate deals, basically to prepare for life post-Fifa. They've got video game deals lined up with multiple leagues and players unions representing 17,000 players to be in their video games. So EA doesn't have FIFA anymore, but they have deals with FIFA's 17,000 children. So what's the difference?

Jack and I are not giving a relationship advice here. But EA seemed to have a slew of backups just in case FIFA ended things on them. Nick, they also trademarked the name EA Sports FC. It did. Which is reportedly going to be the name of the video game they launched next year post FIFA. Jack, you're telling me they changed the keys to the house while the relationship was still going on. Snackers, we'll see if they're at 20. 28-year video game track record can survive without those iconic four letters, F-I-F-A.

For our second story, Jack, hold my toner. Ulta Beauty just appeared to finally rebound from the pandemic. Perfect timing. Then the stock plummeted 12% on their huge investor debt. Snackers, remember that Gen Z spending study? We told you about it like two weeks ago. Big deal, all Gen Z. Right.

An investment bank interviewed like 40,000 teens. Alta Beauty, they were number one for beauty. the number one beauty brand among Gen Z. Well, Alta just tossed on some revenge blush because sales have finally surpassed 2019 pre-pandemic levels. Impressive since Alta Beauty has 1,300 physical stores and mask wearing not that conducive to lip liner.

So they're on a high, and then they have their investor day where they reveal their vision for the future. There were its vision for the future, 50 new stores a year, stores within stores, stores within other stores. It's going to be exciting. Even cooler, they're launching their own video network

for QVC style like pitching of beauty products. Add all that up and Alta Beauty is expecting to grow 6% a year twice the rate of the rest of the beauty industry. That may be twice the rate of the rest of the beauty industry, but 6% per year is not that good growth. No, no. For any company. Wall Street didn't like it. They weren't impressed. So they punished Ulta Beauty stock down 12%.

But Nick and I jumped in snacks out to learn more. We did. And we got to ask, what's with the new stores, the new. new video network, the just extra. Well, the reason for all this is the just left Alta still in car TikTok effect. We repeat the just left Alta still in car TikTok effect. That's when someone buys, let's say, Urban Decay Foundation at their local Alta. Then they jump in their corolla and from the parking lot posts live on TikTok trying that product on. What that person just pulled off is the just left Alta still in car. Now, this sounds like a

marketers's dream come true. Alta Beauty has an organic viral meme trending on TikTok. Companies would pay billions for this. But here's what Jack and I find fascinating about this new thing. People watching these TikTok videos end up putting the makeup in their shopping carts online, but don't end up actually buying it online. Right. You put it in your cart just to remember so you can find the product you want.

But then they end up going into the stores to actually purchase the product using their online shopping carts as their reminder list of what they wanted to buy. That's the interesting offline online customer journey described by the C-O-O-O-2-W-D, Women's Wear Journey. Yeah, beauty buyers these days, they have become insanely fluid. But it's worth it because a customer who buys both online and in the store spends three times more than a customer who just does online shopping. Let that sink in. If you're splurgeoning on makeup online and buying it in store, you're spending triple anyone else. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Ulta Beauty? Some industries are journeys. And beauty is a journey. Snackers, drugstores, that's not a journey. You need more

Advil. You go to Duane Reed and you get more Advil. Cars also not a journey. You test drive it, buy it, and then you don't do anything for three years. But beauty has become the ultimate consumer journey. More and more, you discover an eye shadow on social media, then do some research about it on the company's e-commerce website, and then you finally go to the store to try it on a buyer. But here's the wild thing. That journey doesn't end there because you try on one eye shadow and a cleanser for three months. Then you try one for another five months. Then you've got a wrinkle cream graveyard and then before you know it, you've tried 50 different things. Truth. I've had the same old spiced yodern for 10 years. I've had 10 different moisturizers

in the past year. Old is future. It's about being everywhere because its buyer is on a journey. Online, offline, and atop your pores. For our third and final story, Netflix, just delivered its first squid game earnings. The name of the show is Squid Game. The name of the opportunity is Squid Games. By the way, uncomfortable week at Netflix. Uncomfortable couple weeks because Dave Chappelle made offensive jokes about trans people in his startup special on Netflix.

And the CEO of Netflix didn't exactly respond with much empathy. So yesterday, an estimated 1,000 employees walked out of work to protest the Chappelle special and the related firings of Netflix employees. who protested internally. At the same time, this was going on at Netflix. Netflix had to announce earnings, and Netflix's earnings numbers got off the couch, put on a suit, and showed up to be all business.

Four million people put in their email address and signed up for $14 a month to join Netflix. Let that sink in. Netflix isn't done there. They're expecting a whopping 8 million new subscribers next quarter. The growth just keeps on growing. They're well over 200 million subscribers now. But Reed Hastings wasn't wearing a suit.

He had on a green track suit, this earnings call. Yeah, no joke. At the earnings call, Reed Hastings shows up. He's looking like your uncle from like the 80s. He's wearing a green track suit and he happens to have some white slip on vans, Jack. I don't want to get you too excited over there. That is a joke, though, right? No, that wasn't a joke.

He was actually wearing that. No. Yeah, he was wearing that. I don't know how he got his hands on your wife slip on vans jack. Wait, the founder and Koseil of Netflix was actually wearing a squid game costume? I think he was like cosplaying this whole thing, basically. This is like ComicCon, 2021 on the Netflix. Netflix earnings call. I can't believe you embrace it. No umbrella cookie, but that's okay.

But nearly every question from the analysts was about Squid Game. We're talking like 18 questions here about Squid Game on the Netflix earnings call. People were kind of obsessed. So Reed told us that two out of every three Netflix subscriber globally has watched at least three minutes of Squid Game. Snackers, we're talking 142 million human beings watching Squid Game. That is an all-time record that destroys Bridgeton. I mean, Stephanie, we're sorry, but these are the numbers. And that is more households than the entire U.S. population. Now, Snackers, Jack and I didn't stop there.

We jumped into the Squid Game numbers, and here's what we're thinking. Squid Game may be the greatest venture investment in history. It cost Netflix just $21 million to produce the entire season of Squid Game that everyone's talking about. And again, that includes all the cookies that were baked for episode three, which was a lot of cookies and a lot of stenciling. I'm not familiar with that reference because I've only gotten three minutes into the show. It's a traumatic episode. I'm glad you didn't get it, Jack. And then I hung up.

That means that the entire Squid Game season, the whole show, cost less than a single episode of Disney's Wanda Vision. And according to Bloomberg, who got documents from Netflix PFWTMs, Netflix believes that Squid Game is worth $891 million of value to Netflix. Jack, those are numbers that would make Peter Thiel thirsty. That is astonishing ROI. Netflix spent $21 million, and now they have something worth almost 900 million. And that partially explains why Netflix stock is at an all-time high.

And why Reed Hastings did cosplay for a very corporate event. So, Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for Player 247? It's not about Squid Game. It's about Squid Games. Yeah, plural. Snackers, reason number one, this show is worth nearly a billion dollars, like a unicorn show, is because Netflix is about to pluralize this thing. We expect Squid Game characters will get their own spin-off series on Netflix.

Jack, how about a prequel on those Triangle Soldier dudes and like, how they got the be behind the mask? I'm not familiar with what you're talking about because I'm only three minutes in. They scare me too. We also know that Netflix is working on video games right now for Squid Game. Yeah, Squid Game, it's made to be a video game. Also, a couple weeks ago, Netflix announced a partnership with Walmart. The perfect place to sell Squid Game costumes for Halloween. Jack, Squid Game the T-shirt, Squid Game the bedsheets, Squid Game the Chain Sun.

Finally, Squid Game the theme park. Yeah, why not? It's a little blood and gore, but Netflix could build a Squid Game themed theme park or just license the IP to Universal Studios or Disney. Jack, I'll get some wings with you up, but first you'll have to meet me at the tragic kingdom. Nick, cookies. I'll see at Deathcott Center. Boom, we're there.

Snackers, you binge on Squid Game, but Netflix is banking on Squid Games. Jack, could you rename the takeaways like Zucker for us over there? Electronic art stock is doing great, despite the impending FIFA breakup. The whole time it was married to FIFA, it was getting ready to not be married anymore with FIFA. Alt of Beauty gets your attention on TikTok, but they seal the deal on the sale in the store. Beauty is a journey and nothing gets Jack more excited when I say stuff like this on the pod. You get me every time, man. This is, it's too easy.

Netflix is back to big subscriber growth. So the stock is back to an all-time house. Squid game for you and me, Squid Games. for Netflix profits. Now, time for our snack fact of the day. This one tweeted in by James and Cheyenne Bottoloski from lovely Palmer Alaska. All right, this snack fact is about the PFD, the permanent fund dividend. Yeah, you may not have heard of this because it's special to Alaska. It's a no-strings-attached cash payment that is made from the government of Alaska to the people of Alaska every year in the fall this time of year. The amount ranges between $900 or $3,000, and it's a check as long as long as

as you're a full-time resident of Alaska. And it comes specifically from money that's made off of the oil industry in Alaska. Unique to Alaska. This goes back to the 70s and it was way of saying, thank you for living in Alaska and enduring our very long sunless winters and our very long sun-only summer. Jack, I think you're at a great point. This should be rebranded. This needs a rebrand.

In other news, Andrew Yang is moving to Alaska. Snackers, you look fantastic today. Can we make Kuba Cepa thing? It feels like we should just roll with that. What do you think? Cuba Saff. Drop the the Cubis F. Snackers, Nick and I'll see you tomorrow.

Can't wait. And before we go, welcome back from the honeymoon. Jose and Elizabeth, they got married down in Costa Rica, and they've been having a really fun honeymoon. Pure Aveda. Pure marriage. Jonah Heiser and Olivia Phelan just got engaged and a new puppy in lovely Lakewood, Colorado.

Let's see the ring. Happy anniversary to Sandy and Raheim in Vancouver, British Columbia. And happy birthday. Michael Thomas turning 30 over in the Boogie Down Bronx. And happy birthday to Matthew Waita in South San Francisco. And JP Jason Park. Happy birthday in Koreatown, Los Angeles. And happy birthday, Bahra, in Irving, Texas.

And Arav Marotti, happy first birthday down in Texas too. And whatever it is you achieve today, celebrate it. Make it a T-Bowl. Celebrate the wins. Achieve. That came out of nowhere. This is Jack. I own stock of Roblox and Netflix.

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