Hey Snackers,
Sparky can finally jam out to his go-to pup stars — Spotify launched personalized playlists for your dog.
The Dow popped 91 points Wednesday as the US and China inked "Phase One" of the trade deal (details below)...
Phase 1... Complete. After 2 years of trade-war-ing that shook up global markets, the US and China signed an agreement that de-escalates the situation. It looks like China's making (almost) all the policy changes and concessions:
Another thing China gets (but not part of the actual agreement)... The US will cancel planned tariffs on Made in China consumer goods that would've made Apple and Nike products 25% more expensive for Americans. Plus, it cut existing tariffs on another $120B of Chinese goods in half. Boom.
The goal of the Trump tariffs... was to get Americans to buy less Made in China goods, hurting China's economy and pressuring it to change. US imports of Chinese goods actually rose in 2018, but are now down 17% from 2017. Meanwhile, PBS estimates the average American household will pay $800 per year in higher costs thanks to tariffs — that's a total $102B annually in costs for Americans (those tariffs haven't gone away).
"We now will have 'The Child'"... AKA, Baby Yoda. Your go-to elementary school bday venue, Build-A-Bear is debuting a Baby Yoda stuffed toy to satisfy the unquenchable thirst for Baby Yoda-anything (aka the Yodaconomy). The adorable Star Wars character should be available within the next few months.
"Trending higher than all the presidential candidates combined..." That's what Build-A-Bear's CEO thinks of Baby Yoda. She's not wrong. Because Disney kept Baby Yoda a secret, Hasbro missed a huge opportunity (and millions of $$$) by showing up late to the yoda-bae party. Here's the deal:
Timing and partnerships are key... But monetization is endless. When a character is as popular (and memeable) as Baby Yoda comes out, Disney's money-making possibilities hit galactic proportions. Licensing deals with companies like Disney are critical to Build-a-Bear's success — Almost 1/2 its sales are now from toys meant for tweens, teens, and (Star Wars-loving) adults.
Got Plant?... Califia Farms does, and it wants to take over the nut-based dairy market. The alt-milk maker just got a $225M check in its latest funding round (led by a Qatar's state-owned fund). Califia makes Vanilla Almondmilk Creamer, Unsweetened Oatmilk, and even Nitro Cold Brew Latte (with oat milk, duh).
Feel-good mission + aesthetic packaging... But can that beat alt-dairy rivals like hipster Oatly, lactose-legend Chobani, or pea-based Ripple? We know plant-based milks have disrupted the dairy industry (US consumption of cow milk keeps dropping). So Califia is trying to stand out with its brand, but...
Does brand matter?... Customers will often pay more for a premium brand they know/trust/love. And brands matter for plant-based meat: Impossible Whopper and Beyond Breakfast Sandwich. But alt-milk... might just be alt-milk. Starbucks offers almond milk, but doesn't advertise the brand in your latte. Califia's using its fresh cash to build a brand to beat that.
Disclosure: Authors of this Snacks own shares of Beyond Meat and Amazon
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