Hey Snackers,
Worst day for stocks since January.
Only 23 companies in the S&P 500 rose Tuesday as investors remain in worry mode following America's trade war escalation — Fresh new tariffs are scheduled to hit China Friday morning.
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We're decidedly pro-carpooling... and pro-Snacks story-pooling. Yesterday, one old school company, one new-ish school company, and one brand new company updated investors and customers on auto industry-changing moves:
Uber's IPO is Friday... That adds another publicly traded company to the fight over your transit dollars. With the taxi and car industries nudged aside by West Coast tech, Uber/Lyft drivers in at least 10 US cities are protesting today. LA's Uberers will turn off their apps for 24 hours, while NYC's are skipping the 7am-9am rush hour.
Love has no boundaries... Neither does Match, the dating company that powers dating apps — Tinder, OKCupid, OurTime, and any other warm-blooded potential connection. It enjoyed a 14% revenue jump last quarter driven by 23% growth outside the US. Dating biz abroad will likely surpass North America next quarter thanks to international love trends. Here's what it highlighted:
Tinder gets all the love... The swipe-right legend now has 4.7M users, with growth fueled by this fall's TinderU launch for college kids, and a few other changes.
"Hasn't seen any impact"... Match's CEO boldly said that about Facebook's dating feature, which had rolled out in some of Tinder's markets already. Zuck's "Secret Crush" is brand new, and dating hits 14 more countries this year. Match is confident.
Koi fish-painted clogs... That's the gem of a shoe featured on page #1 of Crocs' earnings report. The polarizing fashion icon's stock is up 75% over the last year. And even though quarterly sales only rose 4% (which dropped shares Tuesday), the CEO is still enthused about a "great start to 2019." He's into its "norm-core" marketing moves...
Millennials are out... Gen-Z is in. Crocs used strategic marketing to boost its brand rep among Americans under 24. It became the #13 most popular footwear brand for the post-Millennial crowd, up from #38 two years ago. Here's how:
Crocs' comeback strategy: Do less... The brand was close to bankruptcy in ‘09, so it streamlined everything. It shut down locations, ended non-core product lines, and outsourced shoe production to 3rd parties. Going back to “Crocs' DNA” — Clogs and sandals — started its recovery. Now it's comfortable enough for fanny Crocs.
FYI, shaving cream in Crocs is now a thing.