🥤 “Yes to drinks” — Coca-Cola’s restaurant bailout. Whoop’s Aussie ban. Iran targets Nvidia. +Instagram Exes

0:28This is Nick. in the episode description Wednesday night in New York City. See you there. Jack, I'll see you at Grand Central. But in the meantime, we got three fantastic stories for today's pod. What do we got on the T-Boy? For our first story, Coca-Cola's newest message is to save the restaurant by buying a Coke. Because the biggest profit puppy that you eat is actually what you drink. For our second story, Iran's Revolutionary Guard, aka the IRGC, threatened big tech companies last week. And they're building the world's biggest toll booth, taking a 20 % tax on all the world's oil. And our third and final story is Whoop.

1:02Whoop just hit a$10 billion valuation for their health tracking wristbands. But Whoop hit 10 billion bucks because they got banned from tennis. But Yetis, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. Oh, I mean, what a cliffhanger to end that with. Love the mix, Jack. Welcome back from the weekend. Are you still getting over him? Welcome back, Yetis. Can you just not stop thinking about her? Brutal breakups. They're messing with your day. We feel you. Well, good news. Instagram wants to make moving on a whole lot harder this Monday. I don't know if that's good news, but get this. Instagram is testing a new feature to let you snoop on someone's stories.

1:35Without revealing it's you. For$1 a month, you can go into stealth mode on Instagram. And view someone's stories incognito. It's called Instagram Plus. It's being tested in Mexico, Japan, and the Philippines right now. But it should be called Instagram X because you just became a level five clinger. Did your ex end up taking that vacation to Tahiti they always said they wanted to do? Of course my ex cut his hair. Wow. I can't believe she ended up with him. Classic her. In order to access your purse strings. $1 a month for snooping on exes. Although knowing Zuck, next thing he's going to launch is Instagram Shield.

2:09$1 a month to block your ex. Yeah, if you know, you know. Yeti's at it all up and there is no more powerful economic force out there than jealousy. Envy. It's a profit puppy. Especially for Zuck. He's keeping the dog? 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 one yet, but the best is the norm. Jack Nick, that's it. I don't even think they need to practice. 50%, that's a fat tip. T-Boy City on your at list. If you know, you know, cause we ready to go. We can't wait no more, so just start the show.

2:49Start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor.

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5:10For our first story, Coca-Cola is throwing a bone to America's restaurants, which are struggling right now. By telling Americans to buy fountain soda, buy it, which is the secret profit puppy of your restaurant, Bill. Now, Yetis, this story actually begins in aisle 12 of your local theater. Because if you went to the movies this weekend, you saw a preview for the King of Pop. The King of Soda Pop. Good point, Jack. Because Coca-Cola had three commercials running at your local AMC in the previews. That's right, your Sunday Maddenay, that is now Coca-Cola Super Bowl. But for the first time, Coke was celebrating a bunch of different brands, not just Coca-Cola.

5:44Surprisingly, we haven't seen this before. Coke showcased restaurants that offer Coca-Cola, not just about Coca-Cola. 13 different chains co-starred in this Coca-Cola ad campaign. Arby's, Domino's, Five Guys, Jimmy John's, Popeye's, all were in the ads. Wendy's, Whataburger, White Castle, Wingstop. It was a double Mount Rushmore of fast food, Nick. And it showed very different customers at very different restaurants all ordered the same thing at the end of the commercial. They all said a Coke. Because the first thing a restaurant must decide is, are we a Coke establishment or are we a Pepsi establishment?

6:17That's the first business question you gotta decide, because exclusive distribution deals in soda are why you'll never be able to mix a Mountain Dew with a Fanta. My brother used to ask the waiter, is this a Pepsi product, or are we doing Coke products? Important distinction. Because Taco Bell is team Pepsi, but Chipotle is team Coke. The real red-blue divide in this country? Coke versus Pepsi. Except for Dr. Pepper, which is kind of bi. They're like swinging with both of these dudes. It's the purple state. Yeah, it is, it is. But the second thing you must decide as a restaurant in this country is, how are we going to survive?

6:47especially in this economy. In this economy, because besties in February traffic at American restaurants fell 2%. And with high gas prices in March, this month is gonna be certainly worse. So 38 % of Americans said they spend less money in restaurants this year than they did last year. So Coke is not just telling theater goaders to hit up Domino's after watching the drama. Because we're now doing Taco Tuesday at Mi Casa. Coke is telling you to order a Coke when you do it. Because get this, Yetis, restaurants and bars are 69 % of Coca-Cola's revenues, two thirds. Grocery store Coca-Cola is just 30 % of what Coke sells.

7:22Coke depends on your Jack and Coke order when you're at the bar. But Nick, restaurants depend on that order way more than Coca-Cola does. Most importantly, Eddie's restaurants make more profit on soda than they do on sliders. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Coca-Cola? Would you like a drink with that? Say yes, or restaurants won't exist. Eddie's here's the situation. In restaurants, Rent is high. Wages are high. Food costs are up. Those are like the core drivers of inflation right there. The only way the math works at restaurants is with drinks. And we're not just talking about alcoholic drinks.

7:53Basically, no beverage order, no break even. We told you last year that gin martinis have a shocking 90 % profit margin. That$20 cocktail includes$18 of profit for the restaurant. But if found in Coke, it beats even that, Jack. We're talking 15 cents to make, three bucks to sell. My buddy's dad used to own a Subway restaurant. Yeah, what would he say? Nick, it's just a cup, a tiny bit of syrup, and soda water. It costs like 15 cents, but they can sell it for three bucks. That's a 95 % profit margin. The food scientists at Coca-Cola are going to be not fans in the comment section today. This is something they try to keep a secret, actually.

8:26Besties, the steak, that's your loss leader, your loss llama. But the drink, Patron or Pepsi, is the only way a restaurant survives. So the next time you're at a restaurant, if the waiter says, would you like a drink with that? You could say no. But if everyone says no, this restaurant's going out of business. At least order a tea, guys. For our second story, it's the Iran War, week six. American big tech companies have now become the target. And we're looking at the group controlling the Strait of Hormuz because they're turning it into Iran's toll booth. But yet, this latest update really begins on Wednesday when President Trump said on a primetime address that the war in Iran was nearing completion, direct quote.

9:06But Wall Street wasn't buying it. No, they weren't. Because on March 9th, four full weeks ago, Trump said that the war is very complete, pretty much. So the result? Well, oil surged 13 % the morning after President Trump's speech because there's no sign that the war is actually ending. To quote the other side of the war, Iran's president said in a letter to Americans last week this. He said the Strait of Hormuz will remain decisively and dominantly under the control of the IRGC Navy. The IRGC, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. These are the guys you gotta know, the Revolutionary Guard of Iran.

9:38They're the powerful military force running the country's war effort. The IRGC, it's the same organization that just threatened to attack NVIDIA, Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Meta. And why exactly did they say that, Jack, and get into the corporate game? As we said last week, Iran's strategy since the war has begun has been to make it as costly as possible for the West to continue. So when President Trump threatened to attack Iran's power plants, the Revolutionary Guard threatened to attack American tech. By shooting missiles and drones at the Middle East headquarters of America's tech giants.

10:10And the Revolutionary Guard's threat, it called out 18 tech companies in particular, including six of our$1 trillion companies. So engineers and PMs who are working at these companies, they were told not to come into the office in order to protect their safety. But besties, this is what Jack and I find fascinating. This also highlights the role of the Revolutionary Guard in Iran, because what exactly is that role, Jack? Well, it runs deep, not just across the military, across the economy, in a way that's totally foreign to us Americans. You've never seen anything like this. You see, the Revolutionary Guard has 785 ,000 members in its armed forces who are loyal to the status quo regime.

10:44But they're not just military, they're management. According to Yale professor Arash Azizi, the IRGC controls 50 % of Iran's GDP. Sit down, stand up, sit back down again. A paramilitary group with a near monopoly on the economy. Can you imagine if the U.S. Marines owned Verizon, AT &T, and T-Mobile, and we had to pay them to have our phones work? Can you imagine if the Coast Guard was controlling all the gas stations and entire banks? Like you were getting a mortgage from the Coast Guard? That's what the IRGC does. It's almost like the mafia a little bit in the sense that they need to get paid, and there's a bunch of corruption and bribery happening there as well.

11:19The gas stations, by the way, they don't have the same kind of beef jerky. So the Council on Foreign Relations says that the IRGC has become the most powerful controller of all important economic sectors across Iran. And the IRGC, this revolutionary guard, is a big reason why Iran has not surrendered. And it's the reason oil is not passing through the Strait of Hormuz. So Jack, what's the takeaway for all our buddies wondering about this$4 per gallon gas? The IRGC controls the most lucrative toll booth in the world. It's called the Strait of Hormuz. Ah, the Strait of Hormuz. Let's go full Carmen Sandiego in this.

11:54100 miles long and 20 % of the world's traded oil used to pass through it. But not anymore because the IRGC controls this strait with military checkpoints across 19 islands in the water, according to the Wall Street Journal. You see, besties, navigation through this strait requires you follow a very particular route. You must go past 19 islands the Revolutionary Guard controls, which they call aircraft carriers. They call their islands aircraft carriers because they're military islands. Five of them have airports, and most of them have missiles, radars, submarines, and attack boats ready to go.

12:28Okay, but here's the key, Jack. Iran's not just blocking the transport oil anymore. They're now charging for safe passage through that thing. According to Bloomberg and the maritime intelligence company Lloyd's List, the going rate for a tanker to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, you have to pay$2 million to the IRGC. Two million buckers. Oh, but not dollars, right? Like you got to pay in Chinese yuan or in crypto specifically to avoid the US dollar. So Iran is actually reportedly demanding in the negotiations that the Strait of Hormuz become a permanent Suez Canal-style cash machine for Iran in any settlement of this war.

13:01Besties, add it all up, and the Revolutionary Guard of Iran controls the most lucrative toll booth in the world, the Strait of Hormuz. Now, a quick word from our sponsor. Samsara. Yetis, if you're listening to us on the road right now, hey, two hands on the wheel. If you got a third hand, toss it on the wheel, too. fender benders are bad vibes. And if your business involves putting people on the road, well, you need a wingman to make those drives safe. And your P &L statement will thank you. Samsara, it's the AI-powered dashboard camera for fleets. Not just a dashboard camera neck. True. A complete connected operations platform with GPS tracking, asset visibility, maintenance, compliance tools, all in one place.

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15:00For our third and final story, whoop, just hit a$10 billion valuation with a cult following for its life tracking wearables. But the best thing to happen to this wristband is that it actually got banned. Wristband got banned. But yeah, here's the deal. You know, if you're not getting nine hours of sleep, 23 ,000 steps, and got a resting heart rate of 12. Nick, Alex just tells me about a readiness score every morning. What the heck's a readiness score? Oh, if you know, you know, and clearly you don't know, Jack. Besties, what are you doing if you don't even know you're resting semi-pulse heart rate level?

15:33Welcome to the wearable world. That's right. There's no greater flex these days than measuring every body metric down to the bowel movement. And it's like, oh, I had such an epic time with my buddies last night, but my metrics are going to be terrible tomorrow morning. And it's not just Whoop right now, is it, Jack? The Apple Watch is at all-time highs. Garmin stock is at an all-time high. And the Oura Ring just hit an$11 billion valuation. And Whoop, the screen-free wristband, is joining the Decacorn Club. They just hit a$10 billion valuation last week. It was founded by a Harvard squash guy who counted his steps from the library to the weight room to the vineyard buying store.

16:06He actually read 500 medical papers in college. He says he read 500 medical papers. We'll have to double check his work. And that's how he said he started the company. And now LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo, the Qatari Investment Fund, they're all in on this company. But besties, here's what Jack and I found fascinating. A big reason for Aura and Whoop suddenly being on everyone's bodies. What is it, Jack? Premium credit card perks. It's the Perk Wars. Amex Platinum costs$895 a year, but includes a$200 credit to buy an Aura ring. Cheese Sapphire Reserve, a$795 annual fee. but that includes a$359 credit to buy a Whoop band.

16:42The result, every 28-year-old Boston investment banker is Whooping it up these days, tracking their heart rate on the band and then opening up the app and checking their digits. What's your spreadsheet score again, Jack? Ah, a story for another pod. But now Yeti's Whoop has hit 2.5 million users. Not too shabby. Half as many as Oura Ring, but more than Peloton. So everything seems to be going well for Whoop until January. Whoop got banned. Get this. the number two tennis player on earth, Carlos Alcaraz, was about to play on the Australian Open when he was told to remove his Whoop. Yannick Skinner was too.

17:16You see, the Whoop band is approved by the International Tennis Federation to be worn by players, but it's illegal in the eyes of the Australian Open. Which is weird because it's not a performance enhancer. Players are just trying to track their pulse in between sets. The CEO of Whoop tweeted out, uh, data isn't steroids, Australian Open. McEnroe was still playing. He would have smashed a racket on that umpire's head for taking off the Whoop. But every crisis is an opportunity. So here's how Whoop responded. Not with a lawyer, but with a marketer. And with designers. Because Whoop developed underwear and sports bras within a few days that had the same sensor as in its wristbands.

17:52And then they sent those new garments to the tennis pros so that they could wear them during the Australian Open without the ref noticing. And now they should just make those a real thing. I think it is a real thing, Nick. They're 29 bucks. You're replacing your Allbirds underwear now, Jacko, is a quick change, man. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Whoop? Sometimes the best thing for a business, believe it or not, is to get banned. It's a ban. You see, Yetis, in our weekly show, The Best Idea Yet, we've gone deep on the most viral products of all time. Turns out bans, they ain't all that bad.

18:27In the 1960s, American mayors across the country were banning skateboards, but it backfired. Sales rose as skateboards became a symbol of rebellion. In the 1990s, Dungeons and Dragons was banned by religious parents on fears it was poisoning their children's minds. That backfired too. Drove more awareness because kids wanted it that badly. Of course they wanted it badly once it got banned. And Jack, what happened to Red Bull over in France? It got banned in 1996, which was huge for the sales numbers here in the States. And for Whoop, the Aussie open ban wasn't just a publicity moment. It implied that their data was too powerful.

19:02And Whoop's thoughtful response to put their athlete customers first amplified that message. Vesties, sometimes the best thing to happen to a business is a ban. Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us to kick off the week? Coca-Cola was glazing 13 of their restaurant partners in their latest ad campaign. Because without drink orders or restaurant math, just don't math. For our second story, it looks like oil will remain high, Very high, since there's no sign of the war ending. Because the world's got a new toll booth. Want to get an oil tanker past the Strait of Hormuz? You got to pay the IRGC 2 million bucks in Bitcoin.

19:37And our third and final story is Whoop. It hit a$10 billion valuation in the wake of their Australian open banning. If your product gets banned, honestly, probably a good thing. But besties, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know today. Another day go here. If mama don't like it, your CFO like it. Just throwing that out there, Jack. First, MLB's opening day on Netflix a couple weeks back was the most watched baseball game by young people in 10 years. Get this, 3 million humans watched Yankees versus Giants on Netflix, but a huge percentage were people 18 to 49. It shows that staying off of the streaming networks was a huge mistake for sports.

20:16Oh, it was a foul. You left young people unable to watch their game. You got to meet the people where they are. And second, the most popular Easter candy over the weekend wasn't Peeps. It's Reese's, and that's caused some drama for Hershey's. Because someone with the last name Reese complained that Hershey's was putting fake chocolate on the outside of a Hershey's peanut butter cup. Because Hershey's now has announced that they're going to put real chocolate back into their Reese's chocolate and other chocolate candies. Well done, Reese grandson. Well done. You're saving your granddad's legacy.

20:47Hershey's was so embarrassed, they're reverting back to their classic recipes in 2027. Although not embarrassed enough to start doing it right now. And finally, Us Weekly scooped the date and the location of America's royal wedding. We're talking Travis Kelsey and Taylor Swift. All right, let's talk bachelor party. Where are we going? What's the deal? What's the date, Jack? Travis is doing it in the Bahamas. Classic. And Taylor's bachelorette party is a multi-city tour that stretches from Nashville to Italy. Sounds like the private jet's involved. Guest list, how many people are we talking? 150, which is the same as my wedding.

21:17Okay, wait for that RSVP to come in. And then finally, location? Watch Hill, Rhode Island. It's going to be split between Taylor's Beachside Mansion and the Ocean House Hotel. Oh, wait, but we have our live tour in June. What date is it in June, Jack? June 13th. Okay, so we can still make it. Now, time for the best fact yet, which, because it's Monday, means some T-Boy inside of Trivia Jackal. What do we got? What is so special about the zip code 10118, Nick? What is so important, so valuable, so interesting about the zip code 10118 is that it's one single building. It's the Empire State Building's zip code.

21:53Yeah, the block, the Empire State Building. It's got its own zip code. Because the Empire State Building has 1 ,000 separate businesses that call that building their home. It's got 20 ,000 humans going up those elevators every day. They need their own zip code, those people. And Nick, assuming that each of those humans has, I don't know, two dependents each, that's 60 ,000 people that depend on the Empire State Building. That's bigger than Vermont's biggest city in one building. It's not even just the Empire State Building. There are 43 different buildings in New York City that have their very own zip codes.

22:27If you know one of them, drop it in the comments. And then Nick and I are going to bring one of you up on stage at our New York show this Wednesday. So if you've got the best fact yet, send it in using the form in the episode description. That's right. Our New York Live show is in two days, but we'll bring you on stage if you've got the best New York City business fact yet. And as of this recording, 18 tickets left. Snag yours if you're free Wednesday night. Irving Plaza, 7 o 'clock. And Jack and I will see you for T-Boy Tuesday.

22:58And before we go, a happy birthday to legendary Eddie Sage Bollock over in Queens, the taekwondo teacher you don't want to mess with up. Happy birthday to Hayes Bowen, who's turning six on April 6th, listening with his parents and his two brothers in Truckee, California, on the way to hit the slopes. And Penny Chance turning 10 in Irvine, California and rapping that T-boy jingle all the way on the way to school. Happy belated birthday to Ben Garten in Augusta, Georgia, enjoying the pod with his mom. And a side of golf. And Brendan Eng and Maria Pistore just got engaged in lovely New York City.

23:31Congratulations, guys. We can't wait to see the ring because we'll see it at the live show on Wednesday. A big shout out to Gail McFarlane and Karan Reed and Kyle Thomas, who are leading the Columbia Business School inaugural study tour to Jamaica. From Grace Kennedy to Sandals Resorts, from our reporting, we have determined this was the best business school trip yet. And a big shout out to Adam Levy for pointing out the iPad wasn't launched in 2011. It was launched in 2010. And Sarah Tyler's got a new job down at the Home Depot in Atlanta. Plus, a new golden retriever puppy to take her there.

24:01And a shout out to Christina Kong, a warden student who built an entire T-boy pitch for our business plan. Christina, we love seeing the pitch. We appreciate you being a legendary Yeti, and we can't wait to see you at the live show on Wednesday. And to anyone else celebrating something today, make it a T-Boy. Celebrate the wins.

24:19This is Jack. I own stock of Netflix. And Nick and I both own stock of Chipotle and Peloton. And we both own some Bitcoin.

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