🏦 “Mergers & Athletes” — Goldman’s sports agency. Burberry’s british pivot. Sonder’s hotel drama. +RIP Penny

0:28This is Nick. Stop singing Baby Shark, do you, Jack? You just can't stop. So Jack, three stories for today's team boy. What do we got on the pod? For our first story, Goldman Sachs just acquired a sports talent agency. And it now owns part of Skims. And it recently received the largest investment banking fee ever. Besties, Goldman stock is at an all-time high because it likes tiny little pieces of enormous things. For our second story, Burberry, the British fashion icon, just rebounded to its best quarter in years. Because Burberry's brand is leaning into the worst part of England, Loewether. And our third and final story.

1:07On Monday, 10 ,000 hotel guests got kicked out of their hotel rooms. Like, you have to leave immediately. Because Sonder, the Airbnb rival, just shut down. So we'll break down how this thing got shut down. But yetis, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories, no better mix to go into a weekend with. No one else is doing that mix. A moment of silence, please, for the penny. Because besties, the penny died on Wednesday, November 13th in Philadelphia. It was 232 years old. The American penny is survived by its cousins, the quarter, the dime, and the nickel. And the penny will always be remembered by wishing wells nationwide.

1:45That's the obituary, Yetis, because here's the news. Yep, President Trump announced it last February, but the very last penny was finally minted this week. because the penny candy doesn't exist anymore. No, it doesn't. And the penny itself, yeah, it costs four pennies to make. But the penny's cultural impact was far greater than its financial value. I mean, Jack, I'm looking at it right now. Penny loafers, penny lane, penny stocks. JCPenney, a penny for your thoughts, please. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled pennies. Jack, the first penny was actually minted back in 1793. The idea of your idol, Alexander Hamilton.

2:20My idol? Yeah. I've never said that, but okay. Just run with it. But originally, though, on the penny was Lady Liberty. It was a woman on the front. But on Abraham Lincoln's 100th birthday, Theodore Roosevelt changed the face on the penny to Abe Lincoln's. But Jack, even though we've killed the penny today, this isn't the first time we've actually killed the penny. Get this. There was a half penny coin back in the day. And in 1857, the U.S. stopped making those half cents. The penny sibling, the half cent, it was done. But Yetis, we all know what you're asking. What about the 250 billion pennies in circulation?

2:54Yes, there's still legal tender. Although 7-Eleven is pretty annoyed about this situation, no stores really know what to do right now. Well, to take a penny, leave a penny jars, people are only taking them. Nobody's leaving them. Which of course leaves the final question, what's happening to the final penny jack? The very last one minted in Philadelphia, it's actually being auctioned off to the highest bidder. So yetis, we gather here today to honor the most unprofitable product in American history. The penny will live forever in couch cushions, cup holders, and Coinstar machines nationwide. The penny spent its life getting stepped on, passed over, rounded up, or used as a makeshift flathead screwdriver, the most relatable coin of them all.

3:32But to the penny, this isn't goodbye. It's just keep the change. May the penny rest in penny. Jack, let's hit our three stories.

3:55First,

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6:40For our first story, Goldman Sachs is all over the news. Buying everything as its stock hits all-time highs, including a sports talent agency. The one through line to all this Goldman Sachs news, it's the one bank that regular people like us will never be able to open an account at. Now, Yetis, we're about to present to you a list of headlines that you would not expect from a Wall Street bank. But they're all from the last 30 days, and they all come from the most famous Wall Street bank, Goldman Sachs. Jack, you were a backup, starting backup high school versus varsity college football quarterback.

7:20Why don't you kick us off with the first headline for Goldman Sachs? Goldman Sachs just acquired the majority stake in Excel Sports Management, a talent agency that represents Tiger Woods for$1 billion. All right, second, Goldman Sachs got the biggest fee ever from a single merger acquisition deal, $110 million for advising electronic arts. Third, Goldman acquired a venture capital firm that has$7 billion worth of startup investments. Also, Jack, Goldman just promoted 638 bankers to managing director, the financial equivalent of getting knighted. Oh, and that Skims fundraise we mentioned yesterday on the pod?

7:57Goldman Sachs was the lead investor. Of course. Yetis, every one of those headlines was about things that Goldman Sachs has entered in the last 30 days. Jack, let me just whip out the whiteboard and add this up. Goldman Sachs just entered venture capital, the business of talent agencies, and hired 600 more managing directors to win big-time investment banking deals? But Yetis, for every yin, there is a yang. Goldman has also exited a lot of businesses. That's right. In the last 30 months, Goldman has exited their credit card business, which you might remember from the Apple card. They also shut down Marcus, their big bet on consumer banking.

8:36I mean, Jack, looking at the situation here, basically Goldman dipped their toe in the business of regular people and kind of hated how the water felt. They're not interested in working with regular people as clients. A little too lukewarm. Instead, Goldman is doubling down on businesses that sell stuff to regular people. Basically, they went from M &A to ATMs and now back to M &A because of our takeaway. Never thought we'd cover Kim Kardashian, the New York Jets, and Goldman Sachs all in the same story while 600 managing directors get on a secret helicopter ride to Bridgehampton. Is that what Goldman MDs do?

9:12Jack, I'm not allowed to talk about it. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies? if you know, you know, at Goldman Sachs. A tiny percent of a huge number is bigger than a big percent of a small number. Yeti's Goldman Sachs stock is at an all-time high, 810 bucks a share. It's worth$245 billion. That's 27 lifts. Because Goldman's core business is advising corporate clients on enormous transactions. Like that video game acquisition we mentioned, Electronic Arts, Goldman got a fee of just 0.2 % on that deal. But 0.2 % of a$55 billion record-setting acquisition? I think you know what I'm thinking, Jack.

9:54That's a$110 million fee for just one deal. That's what I was thinking, Jack. We complain about our broker fees for an apartment in New York City. This fee was$110 million. Now, Yetis, according to Bloomberg, Goldman's bank has worked on about$1.2 trillion of transactions globally so far this year. And 0.2 % on a trillion? It adds up, baby, to nearly$5 billion in advisory fees so far in 2025. Oh, and by the way, that investment bank and advisory unit is growing seven times faster than their rival Morgan Stanley is. The closest a regular person can get to Goldman right now is to get blocked from entering the lobby at 200 West Street or owning its stock.

10:38And you know what, Jack? That's not a bad option either right now. The owning the stock part. Yes, because a tiny percent of a huge number is bigger than a big percent of a small number. For our second story, Burberry just had its best quarter in years. Burberry has finally turned around the British fashion brand. Because Burberry's new strategy is to lean into the worst part of living in Britain, the rain. The rain. The worst part of Britain is the best part of their brand. Now, Jack, to start things off, you just read the biography of Winston Churchill, and I'm getting the sense that British brands need a motivational speech from Churchill right about now.

11:19It was actually a book about FDR during World War II, but yeah, Churchill was all over the place. Yeah, because when it comes to luxury British brands Jaguar cars, they're in the middle of an identity crisis. Victoria Beckham's fashion business just got an emergency bailout loan. Oh, and last we checked, there is still no current James Bond actor. Yeah, there's a vacancy at 007. But there is one institution that is shining with a British greatness of old that would make the kings of your proud, Burberry. The 169-year-old Burberry is worth$6 billion, which is, what's that, 4 billion pounds sterling?

11:56It's the British fashion house that smells like high tea. And it's famous for their distinctive beige, black, and red checkmark pattern. And it pairs well with Rolls Royces in Notting Hill. But besties, they just announced a Burberry earnings that deserves to be knighted. For the first time in two years, sales actually grew and they returned to profitability. And that's big because Burberry have lost its mojo. You had to quote Austin Powers. From 2023 to 2025, the stock had fallen by half. But Jack, we got a story here, because Burberry stock has gained 50 % in just the last six months. The biggest turnaround in England since the Magna Carta.

12:30But yet, this is what we find fascinating about the story. In order to pull this off, one year ago, they hired a new CEO and they laid off 1 ,700 employees. Brutal but necessary. The biggest change, however, was what we're calling their brivet. Ah, brivet. And what exactly is brivet, Jack? Their British pivot. their new creative strategy to dial up the Britishness. They're dialing it up. And here's the most interesting part. Burberry is leaning into the worst thing about being in Britain as part of their Britishness. The weather. The company's turnaround is based on the fact that it rains 156 days of the year in London.

13:04Sit down, stand up, and grab a poncho again. 43 % of the calendar in England is rain. Everybody knows that. We expect rain in London, and we kind of respect Londoners for dealing with it. We do, Jack. So on a product side, Burberry is now making fewer handbags, but more rain jackets. They're actually turning their famous trench coat into its own franchise. For example, just last month, Melania Trump was on a state visit to the Broyish Royals and wore a Burberry trench coat shaped like a dress. And I could not believe this. It's actually so basic, but do you know why they call it the trench coat?

13:37It goes back to World War I and the trenches. Originally, Burberry designed the Burberry trench coat for British officers in the trenches of the war. They eventually realized that what keeps you warm and dry on the Western Front also works in Piccadilly Circus. And so by the 1920s, the Burberry trench coat had become the popular fashion for civilians in peacetime. Almost makes you feel guilty to wear it today, knowing where it came from. So yetis, when you add it up, today's brivet of Burberry is about going back to their heritage, but also going back to a very distinctive British experience. Being wet, or specifically trying to stay dry.

14:13Yeah, we're going to guess that they're going to launch a movie next with Michael Caine about a Burberry umbrella, probably. As my dad always says, there's no such thing as bad weather. There's just being underdressed. He was an early Burberry influencer. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Burberry? Your strategy should be shaken, not stirred. Yeti's James Bond famously ordered martinis shaken, not stirred. He was different, and it became his identity. And for brands, it's easy to overlook what makes you different. But you shouldn't, because your difference is your strength.

14:44And that's what Burberry did. It wasn't just trench coats for miserable London weather. Burberry leaned into everything about being British. Recently, their marketing has showed up at British music festivals. And they also brought back and emphasized that old British horse rider logo. Burberry hired Olivia Colman as their top model. The lady who played the queen in Netflix's The Crown. Because the rest of the fashion industry, it's based in France and Italy. Yeah. And England just can't compete with France and Italy. You can't compete with those guys. The Thames is not the same as the Mediterranean.

15:15But Burberry is the biggest of the few remaining British luxury fashion brands. So they're leaning into their differentiator and it's working. Burberry is shaken, not stirred. Now a quick word from our sponsor. Upwork. Yeah, it is. Before we had a podcast, we had a newsletter. And the moment that newsletter began growing, it's not when we came up with the clever subject lines with the emojis. It's when we found the right freelancer. Freelancer built a referral program that grew our newsletter, which helped launch this podcast, which helped us sell our company, which we eventually spun out, and which eventually got us to where we are today.

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17:32For our third and final story, the biggest business drama of the week is getting kicked out of your hotel right in the middle of your vacation for thousands of people. Sonder is Airbnb meets WeWork, and it filed for the worst kind of bankruptcy on Monday. All right, Yaddies, Jack and I are going to set the scene for you. You pack up the family, you fly across the country to the East Coast because you want a nice fall weekend with the kids. Over the weekend, some tourists in Boston did this and received a real email from Marriott. It said, we apologize, but you need to leave your hotel right now.

18:06Marriott's relationship with Sonder has ended. Check out immediately. This was an actual email received by a real family from Arkansas that was in Boston. They thought it was spam, so they ignored the email. So they went out for a nice day to Boston's Faneuil Hall. They got back to their hotel and discovered what, Jack? All of their belongings were boxed up in the hallway. The dirty clothes, their toothbrushes, their laptops, all the guest stuff put in plastic bags left outside, evicted. And this happened to thousands of people Monday morning because those thousands of people all stayed with Sonder.

18:38Besties, that was the beginning of our story about the end of Sonder. It's a story of venture capital money, hubris, and now bankruptcy. But it all starts in 2012. That's right. A McGill College student up in Montreal starts renting out his apartment. and he makes so much money off of it, he starts doing it for his buddies too. By 2014, he had bought and managed a bunch of full-time Airbnbs, basically. He was a short-term rental landlord. But Jack, it's more than that, right? Like, what kind of a new business model were we looking at here? This guy had ambitions. His business model was Airbnb meets WeWork.

19:14He wanted to create a brand, a curated form of Airbnb with an expectation of quality people could rely on like a WeWork. It was a unique real estate proposition. Sonder would be the quality of a hotel, but with the vibe of a home rental. Yeah, and without the neighbor upstairs who owns the place topping down and seeing what you're up to for the weekend. And like WeWork, Sonder raised a ton of money to lease a ton of properties to scale the business fast. But instead of turning them into bookable workspaces, Sonder turned them into bookable apartments. So whether you're in Paris, New York, or Los Angeles, Sonder would be an apartment you could stay at, but it would have the same shampoo, the same furniture, the same quality whatever city you're in.

19:55That was a differentiation from an Airbnb. But it didn't work. No, it didn't. Despite partnering with Marriott last year, Sonder just declared Chapter 7 bankruptcy on Monday. The stock has plummeted. It is now worth just pennies in just the last few days. On this pod, we usually cover Chapter 11 bankruptcies, where the company continues operating while they try to figure out a financing situation. Okay, but Jack, this is a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. And what does that mean, my friend? The company shuts down and all of the assets get sold. Liquidation. The end of the company. Sonder has 700 employees.

20:29And if any of you are listening, we're wishing you were the best. This is sad news to hear. It is. But we wanted to study the Sonder story to see what we could learn from it. And Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Sonder? They raised way too much money for a business that was never going to make that much money. Now, Yadies, Jack and I think the business model makes sense here, right? Like the Airbnb meets WeWork. You know, WeWork's core business model, that makes sense too. But like WeWork, Sonder simply raised too much venture capital money. Nick, they raised$680 million when their valuation was just a little bit more than that,$1.1 billion.

21:04I mean, you know about a Series A, Series A, Series B, Series C. They had a Series H fundraise at Sonder. And the result of all that fundraising, they started signing bad leases just like WeWork did to show their investors growth at any cost. And what was the business model for Sonder? Leasing real estate and then subleasing that real estate to travelers. Sorry, Masayoshi-san. Yeah, Masayoshi. But that's not a$1 trillion business. No. Sonder's expectations, just like WeWork's, were way off. Masa. Besties, you can't build a building on a faulty foundation and you can't build a business on faulty expectations.

21:40But that's what WeWork did. And so did Sonder. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us heading into the weekend? Goldman Sachs is done with consumer banking. Instead, it's entering venture capital, talent management, and buying a piece of Kim's skims. Goldman's launching a podcast next. The stock's at an all-time high because of 90 % of gigantic numbers. For our second story, Burberry is staging a comeback by leaning into what England is known for, bad weather. The strategy is distinctive, just like James Bond's martini order, shaken, not stirred. And our third and final story is Sonder. It went out of business in a chaotic Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

22:19People got evicted from their hotels on Monday. It's a nice problem to have, but like WeWork, Sonder raised too much money and they could never deliver on the expectations. But besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. First, Blue Origin successfully landed a rocket booster off the coast of Florida. Jeff Bezos got a rocket up in the sky and got it right back down to the water. They landed it on a barge so that they can reuse it for future space launches. This is key to competing with SpaceX. Jack, I actually watched this, and you may remember SpaceX pulled off a similar thing years ago, but now SpaceX has competition.

22:54Yeah, the Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk ship measuring contest just hit a new level. And second, Steph, the chef curry, is breaking up with Under Armour, his sneaker brand since back in 2012. The breakup is also with immediate effect. So Steph can wear whatever sneaker he wants in his next game. After 13 years, the three-point shoot in Chef Curry, is a sneaker-free agent. And Under Armour has some soul-searching to do. The stock's down about $200 million in value, Jack, so I think that says it all. And finally, the newest flex in life is having a phone that's orange. Get this, 40 % of the new iPhone 17 Pro sold are the orange iPhones.

23:32So if you see someone with an orange phone, that means I have an iPhone 17 Pro. Yeah. I went with the light gray, Jack. I went with the light gray, and I'm basic bro-ing it over here. I'm not proud. I'm not proud. Just like your white Tesla. You know, honestly, it would have paired well, the orange with a Burberry coat. I'm just pointing that out. Now time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Dan and Paula Hauer, who are celebrating 30 years of marriage in lovely Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Custard, the dessert, was born in New York City, but raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Get this. Today, Milwaukee has more frozen custard shops per capita than anywhere else on the planet.

24:10But Jack, I know what you're thinking, because I'm wondering it too. What is custard? Frozen custard was invented in New York to prevent ice cream from melting too fast. Genius chemistry here. They added egg yolks, creating a creamier texture that also conveniently is higher in protein. Yetis, you look fantastic over there. If you're enjoying one of your last weekends for Vestvember, you know, you can't wear that vest much longer. Enjoy it, soak it up. Dude, you keep pushing this. I've never seen you wear a vest. Oh, and by the way, besties, remember Jack and I did a whole interview with the CEO of Lyft.

24:45We gave you a little clip of it just last week. Well, we're publishing the full episode next Friday, not today, next Friday, and it's going to be the best one yet. So mark your calendars. Next Friday, you're going to enjoy the best interview yet in a Lyft. It's worth one Lyft. Have a fantastic weekend and Jack and I will see you Monday.

25:06And before we go, congratulations to Yeti's Alma and Jonathan getting married today just outside lovely Los Angeles. And congratulations to Stephen Shapiro and Tess Kohan, who are getting married tomorrow in Cincinnati, Ohio. Sin City and the king of true fruit, Taz from Provo, Utah, has got the best birthday yet. And happy birthday to Lindsay Ransom in St. Paul, Minnesota. And Brittany Queens turning 38 years old on sabbatical in Bozeman, Montana, but celebrating the best one yet. Happy birthday to Tom Malero from Atlanta, Georgia, who we understand is listening to us from the shower right now.

25:41We see you, Tom. We see you. And a legendary shout out to the bestie of all, Rachel Hauer from Team T-Boy. How are you doing? Well, every day, Rachel's doing phenomenal. If you're loving what we're putting out on social media, you can thank Rachel. She's a triathlete with three sports, but number one on the gram. Jon Snow was part Targaryen, part Stark. Rachel Hauer is part static, part reels.

26:08Congratulations, Rachel. This is Jack. I own stock of Lyft, and Nick and I both own stock of Airbnb, Apple, and Robin Hood. And I also own stock in Shake Shack. Your team just added its 67th AI tool. and also your 67th security blind spot. The good news? The Vanta agent works like a GRC engineer in the background, finding every app your team uses, scoring the risk, and drafting fixes for you. Vanta is the platform used by over 16 ,000 fast-moving companies like Ramp, Cursor, and Harvey, who are shaping the future with AI and staying ahead of AI risk. Get started at Vanta.com.