The Best One Yet - 📓 “Work Homework?” — The Take-Home Assignment job trend. GameStop’s Chief Stonk Officer. McDonald’s new CosMc Spinoff.

Episode Date: December 8, 2023

The newest restaurant chain in America is “CosMc,” a McDonald’s spin off — It’s taking on Starbucks… and it looks like McDonald’s cousin.GameStop just authorized their CEO to use company money to buy stocks — They turned their CEO into their Chief Investment Officer (and gave him a whole lotta cash).And the # of job applications with take-home assignments is up 87% since 2019 — More companies are making you work… before you start work.$GME $SBUX $MCDSubscribe to our newsletter: 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 Friday, the real Friday, December 8th. And today's pod, it is the best one yet, Jack. We are going into the weekend with a tea boy, my friend. We got the top three pop business news stories you need to know today. First story for today's show, what do we got, man? For our first story, this month, a new restaurant chain opens up in America based off a 1980s robot alien.

It's called Cosmic. It's taking on Starbucks, but it's owned. Buy McDonald's. For our second story, it's GameStop. GameStop just sneakily changed the job description of their CEO in a way we've never seen before. GameStop just turned their CEO into their chief stock buyer. And our third and final story. If you're applying for a job right now, you may notice a take-home assignment.

Yet these more companies are making you work before you actually start work. More companies are giving you homework. More companies are making you homework. More companies are making you do homework. But Yetis, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. A wild mix of stories. By the way, Jack, walking into the studio, I just ran into a Yeti. She was listening to the show.

Her name is Claire. Was she wearing T-Boy merch? She wasn't wearing the merch yet, but I was wearing three types of merch from us. But Nick, it's Hanukkah right now. It is Hanukkah right now. Good point, Jack. Which actually is not the most important Jewish holiday. That would be Yom Kippur.

But Yetis, this year, Hanukkah really is the most. Most important Jewish holiday. Because this holiday is all about light. And yet this moment right now, it feels kind of dark. That's why Nick and I want to talk about an unsung hero of the Hanukkah holiday. Because the unsung hero of the Hanukkah celebration isn't really the menor. It's not a dreidel or a lacca either. No, no, no, no, no.

The way we see it, the unsung hero of the Hanukkah holiday is the donut. In fact, from all the evidence we've seen, it appears that Hanukkah invented the donut. Specifically, Hanukh invented the jelly donut. In Hebrew, it's referred to as the Sufganyote. Jack, the recipe? Can you whip up the ingredients for us over there? Deep fried down. Injected with jelly.

Insconced in powdered sugar. That is the opposite of matza. Yet is that is a donut. Hey, Krispy Cream, why aren't you serving me a Sufganyote? Krispy Cream, let's get them hot off the tray, please. And Sufgano isn't just a Jewish donut. It's also the first donut. ever documented. Jack and I jumped in T-boy style the Hebrew Hanukkah donut was cited in a cookbook

back in 1485. Because Hanukkah celebrates the eight days of candlelight from one tiny jar of oil. And what food cooks better in oil than a deep-fried jelly donut, Jack? Nothing does, Nick. That is the cream of the crop, literally. So, Yetis, tell your friend Veronica. It's time to celebrate Hanukkah. I hope I get a harmonica on this happy, happy, happy, happy, happy, Happy Hanukkah. Let's at our three stores. 15 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 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. For our first story, a brand new restaurant chain,

inspired by robot aliens, is opening up next week. And it's called Cosmic. Cosmic is actually owned by McDonald's, but it's inspired by Instagram. That is a weird thing just landed in the middle of Illinois. Just outside Chicago. An orange robot from outer space landed. He's like stuck in some metal spaceship.

He's wearing purple pants. It's like a weird thing that's happening, Jack. And the name of this robot? It's Cosmic. What is it? It's an alien robot. What is it really? What this really is is a restaurant.

Cosmic is a fast food restaurant based off of an old mascot that McDonald's used to use. The first one opens up next week in Illinois, and ten more are planned for next year. It's galaxy-themed and it's space-branded, and it's owned by McDonald's. McDonald's owns this spaceship restaurant. It looks like a McDonald's that dressed up like Darth Vader's bionic arm. You're walking to this thing and you feel like you're in the fifth season of Stranger Things, Jack. But here's the interesting business twist to this McDonald's. Spinoff Restaurant. This brand new McDonald's spin-off isn't fast food, it's fast drink.

This spin-off restaurant's brand is more like Starbucks than it is McDonald's. Right, because you don't just look at the menu, you don't just order off the menu, you drink the menu. And that menu is wild. Oh, Jack, can you jump in T-Boy Styles for us over here? There's no regular drinks. Like, you're going to see a Smoors cold brew, a blackberry ginger burst, a hibiscus sourade blast. Like, what is that? Is that a candy? Like, Jack, you love pineapple smoothies, don't you? Not particularly. I thought you did. They probably have a pineapple smoothie to make you happy on this thing, Jack.

The 13 beverages at Cosmic sound like a barista's nightmare. They are so hard to prepare. You have to like mix a starburst in just to make this whole thing happen. But that's inspired by Starbucks. Because three out of four Starbucks sales these days are cold beverages. Yeah. And the more customized those cold beverages at Starbucks, the more profitable that beverages for Starbucks. So McDonald's is stealing like an artist. They're taking the most profitable part of Starbucks menu and making it the entire menu of this new Cosmic restaurant. And if you tip the waiter at Cosmic, they'll probably throw a Churros in for you. And like Starbucks, there's fewer food options at Cosmic than there are drink options. But here's the key. At Cosmic,

those food options are designed for TikTok. Yeah, just like the drinks, the food looks wild. All right, Jack, you already described the drinks to us. Can you tell us the food menu over? Cosmic, too. The McPop is a peanut butter-filled donut hole, and the made ingredient is sugar-topped virality. Yeah, this is actually kind of like a soup-gayote that we were talking about before with you, but it was designed to get a lot of likes. It's not just a space-themed spin-off restaurant. It's the first one made for Instagram.

You don't just taste the menu. You look at the menu. Oh, and just in case you bring your boomer dad with you, they sell egg McMuffins too. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Don't worry. They have ketchup packages. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies at the brand new restaurant chain, Cosmic? The secret to a successful spinoff? Cousins, not siblings.

Yet, he's a funny thing about this story. McDonald's already had a spinoff chain. It's called McAfee. It's McDonald's coffee chain, and they've had it for years. But McAfee hasn't grown for years, partially because McAfee seemed so similar to the coffee served at McDonald's. The way Jack and I see it, the secret to a successful spinoff, is to be a little bit similar, but mostly different. You want your spin-off to be like a cousin, not like a sibling.

Yeah, it is. A sibling looks more like you and is just a little bit different. But a cousin looks just a little like you and is mostly different. And that's the key. A spin-off brand needs a balance that's more different than the parent company than a like. And frankly, that's what Cosmic is doing here. It's different enough to not feel redundant, but it's familiar enough to feel like it's part of the McDonald's family. McDonald's's's's approach with this cosmic spinoff, cousins, not siblings. For our second story, GameStop, the original meme stock just did something that, honestly, Jack and I have never seen before. GameStop just told their CEO to start buying stocks for the

company. Oh, Jack, trigger warning nearly three years ago. GameStop broke the entire U.S. stock market. What do we call it, Jack? Nick and I were covering it. It was called the Game GameStop stock pop. We were at Robin Hood while we were covering it, man. That's why I said trigger warning for you. That was crazy. I know, Nick. If you don't know about GameStop,

the best explanation is in the movie, Dumb Money. Yeah, he's grabbed some popcorn, buy like a pineapple smoothie, Jack, and then watch Dumb Money over the weekend. You're going to enjoy it. You're going to discover how GameStop became the first game stunk. All those small, cheering retail investors

who pumped up GameStop looked to one man, and who was that man, Jack? Their leader was Ryan Cohen. Ryan Cohen, the lord of the meme stock investing who loved the stock game stop. Ryan Cohen is now the CEO of the original meme stock. He runs GameStop, but their stock has come down to Earth in the past three years. Yeti's GameStop just announced earnings this week. And, shocker.

They suffered declining revenues and a huge loss. We actually got a tip from a Yeti in our Instagram DMs about something else. GameStop announced. Something else GameStop announced that analysts are calling alarming. Buried in their poor quarterly earnings report was a bizarre announcement from GameStop in the fine print. And Jack, what was that strange, secretive small announcement that Gamestock kind of buried? GameStop just authorized their CEO, the meme lord Ryan Cohen, to buy stocks with company money. To buy stocks with company money. Let's say it a different way. The board, which is the boss of the CEO just ordered the CEO to do two things.

Two shocking things that have no precedent. And what are they, Jack? One, open up a stock trading brokerage account in the company's name. And two, take the company's cash and invest that cash however he wants. The CEO of GameStop just got a carte blanche to use the company money however he wants in the stock market. Eddie's Jack and I started working on Wall Street right after college. We've been in the financial industry. for a while. We have never seen this before in our entire history covering the markets.

Nick, the reason it's so bizarre is because companies usually invest company money into the company with like an acquisition or a new factory or a hiring spree. But, Jack, it appears that GameStop is taking their money and not investing into the company, but investing in other stocks? Yeah, into meme stocks, probably. Yeah, it is, we never seen this before and we had to think of a takeaway. So, Jack, trigger warning, time. for the takeaway. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at GameStop? GameStop just became an underground hedge fund.

Yeties, you may be asking, in the age of Amazon, how is a physical video game retailer like GameStop even still in business? Nick, the answer? It barely is. That's why they're making this desperate pivot to stock picking. Besties, here's how you have to think about GameStop. It appears that video games is just their front now. GameStop really is a hedge fund. Upstairs at the GameStop retail store, they're sell a Mario card. That's their front and they're losing money doing it. But downstairs, that, that is where GameStop is buying stocks and trade and trading naps. Downstairs, they're acting like the retail investors who pushed GameStop to the moon three years ago.

Heady's Jack and I have never seen a board authorized their CEO to do something so unrelated to the business as buying other company's stocks. But that's, That's just it. It seems like GameStop is telling us their core business is not video games anymore. So Yeties, that is why we just witnessed GameStop's pivot from video games to buying stocks. For our third and final story, the next time you apply for a job, Yetis, it will probably include a take-home assignment. Employers are making applicants do homework and the numbers are out of control. Jack, there is no sweat like job interviews. you sweat. It's a different level of sweat. My armpits have never been as sweaty as during that

junior analyst job interview. Take me back. But yet, he's according to Bloomberg data, the job interview is no longer the toughest part of the job application. Yeah, because if you've applied recently to a software engineering job, then you have to complete a complex coding project as part of the application. If you're trying to become a copy editor and apply to a position. You're going to have to write a six-page term paper as part of the application. Oh, and the consulting firms? You're going to have to deliver, write craft, and in some way animate a 12-minute PowerPoint analysis as part of the application.

Projects, papers, presentations, yetties. Today's job interview sounds like yesterday's homework. I'm sorry, call us old-fashioned over here, but is a resume and a cover letter not good enough these days, man? Yeah, to be a Morgan Stanley analyst, you need to build a diorama of the New York Stock Exchange. Jack, you're like applying to a job at an architecture firm. They make you chisel a Corinthian column now. Yeties, get this. A Corinthian column, Jack.

Not even doric. According to Glass Door, the number of job applications would take home assignments like these are up 87% since 2019. 87%. We repeat Yeties, the number of jobs asking you to do homework has nearly doubled in the last few years. That's right. They're making you work before you start working. The quote rapper Tay Money, I understood the assignments. And it's not just more take-home assignments that are happening.

It's also longer and harder and more complex take-home assignments. Yeah, these Bloomberg spoke to one applicant who spent a whole business day creating a video for a job application. Yeah, they probably called in sick that day to complete this application. Okay, here was the assignment. She had to roleplay a day in the life of the CEO and then film herself doing that for the entire day. That's not a job interview. That's an audition. Also, she wasn't applying to be the CEO. Why ask her to do a day in the life as the CEO? Oh, and also, she didn't even end up getting the job. Which leads to our pro tip for those who are in hiring positions. If you're going to assign a huge project like you're some professor at a university. But then you don't hire the person who filled out the application and did that project. Then pay that rejected candidate for the work they did. Yeah. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our? our buddies who are anyone applying to a job. The number one trick to hiring for work is homework.

Yeties, Jack and I actually learned this in business school. There's also a great Harvard Business Review article about it. The assignments that employers give are actually a very effective interview tool for both the company and the applicant. There are plenty of studies that reveal the flaws of interviews and the limits of just reviewing someone's resume. But by doing a sample of actual work, the employer best understanding. if you can actually do that work.

And on the applicant side, by doing a sample of the actual work, you can tell if you like the company and you see what the position is really about. And frankly, it fits with the number one rule of hiring that Jack and I mentioned earlier this year. Fire fast. Hire slow. Adding one more step in the interview process, like an assignment, is worth the extra time and effort. Of course, we should point out that the problem is when a simple assignment turns into a huge unpaid work project. Yeah, make sure the assignment is a reasonable length of process.

time. But Yeties, if a small take-home assignment is done right, then it's the perfect tool for hiring. Jack, can you whip up the takeaways for us to head into the weekend? McDonald's spin-off coffee chain opens this month. It's very TikToky, and it's called Cosmic. Yeties, the secret to a successful spin-off strategy? Cousins, not siblings. For our second story, GameStop just authorized their CEO to buy stocks with company money. GameStop, they're going from video game company to undergrad. Hedge fund. And our third and final story. The number of job applications with take-home assignments is up 87% since 2019. Because the number one trick to hiring for work is homework. Just don't make

them do a diorama. No finger painting. No Corinthian columns. But Yeties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, Google stock jumped 5% after announcing their answer to chat GPT. Google's rolling out Gemini AI. It can understand text, images, videos, and audio. And second, it is Friday. Jobs Report Friday. Today, the first Friday of the month, we get the jobs report for November. Analysts expect another cooldown, which would be good for our fight against inflation. And finally, the woman who threw food at a Chipotle worker at a Chipotle restaurant was just found guilty. Her punishment, two months of working at Chipotle.

We know what you're thinking. How can someone be punished to work at a fast food restaurant? The judge gave this mother of four two options. Jail time or work at a fast food restaurant. It sounds like Judge Judy, but apparently this is a real thing. I can't believe it's real. Now, time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Khaled over in Kuwait.

Turtles can breathe through their butts. Yeah, that's it. That's the fact. Jack, you want to repeat it just in case it wasn't clear? Yeah, turtles can breathe through their butts. Apparently, Yetis, it's because turtles have a special structure called a cloaca. It lets them pass waste, reproduce, and breathe through their butts. But to sprinkle on more context, turtles are not the only butt breathers in the animal kingdom.

But they're our favorite butt breathers. Yes, you are turtles. Yeties, you look fantastic all week. And Jack, we have so many wins to celebrate this week. Last week we had the live show. This week, we had the merch drop. That's a win to celebrate. Every day this week, we've worn our new T-Boy merch,

and we've yet to wear the same color. I know. Did you wash, by the way? Cousins, not siblings. Yeties, Jack would wake up, and I would just, because I'm on the West Coast, I just would wait to see what shirt he was wearing, but sometimes I didn't know, so I would just guess.

And, you know, we got lucky. I wore cream, you wore dusty pink. Yeties, if you've got a win to celebrate, hit us up at T-Boy pod. We want to see it. And if you want some merch, check out T-Boypod.com slash shop. You're going to look fantastic. So shoppy, shoppy, tell you dropy, dropy.

Nick and I, we'll see you a Monday. If you know, you know. And before we go, a shout out to all the Yetis enjoying this year's Army Navy game. Especially Tony Nash. Go Army beat Navy. And La Salvin. Go Navy beat Army.

And Sana and Wesley are a couple of Yeties who are getting married this weekend. Congratulations, guys. it is a Pakistani-American fusion way. And congratulations to Heavy Dombrowick and Tristan Henry, who are getting married in Sacco, Maine. And Hamant and Ankita are celebrating their first anniversary, celebrating the wins in the Bay Area. Copy seven years together to Kathy Lee and Gary Adelkoff in Silver Spring, Maryland.

It's all about the takeaways. And Jack, we have a special HR message for one bestie named Kaley Wang. Kaley, we are thrilled. to announce that you are getting promoted to senior consultant at your job in New York City. And you didn't even have to do a take-home assignment. Congratulations. Congratulations, Kaylee. And a happy 21st birthday to Yeti Nadia, who's celebrating at the University of Florida. Happy 25th birthday to Haley Eblen, who's celebrating on the slopes of Whistler. And a happy birthday to Selvin Dubois celebrating in Puerto Barrios, Guatemala.

Happy 30th birthday to Carlos Gavara, a Mexican living in Milan. And Romy Maples is turning nine years old in Jacksonville, Florida. He loves our stories on superheroes and basketball jacks. So we got to tee up more of those. All right. And happy 24th birthday to Than in Tampa, Florida. And Amanda Alvizo is celebrating 30 in Kansas City with some barbecue. And happy birthday to Ruska Chama Kiddzy, the Georgian and ballet dancer at Brooklyn, who's turning seven.

And Noah Connor, enjoy that birthday down in Denver. Happy birthday to Melissa Chang, who's celebrating with a ski weekend, up here in Vermont, where we have a decent amount of snow. Not too shabby. Enjoy the slopes. And Renee Kieselchatch survived their first year as a parent and is turned in 34 in Ithaca, New York. Happy 26th birthday to Megan Dake, who's popping bottles of Dr. P. And Tina Zoo, a saw brand of birthday in Brighton Mass. Just outside, boss.

Actually, just inside, boss. And happy birthday to Moose the Dog, who's turning seven in Omaha, Nebraska. This is Jack. I own stock of Krispy Kreme and Amazon, and Nick and I both own stock of Robin Hood.