Hey Snackers,
As fall approaches, Starbucks’ pumpkin-spice power grows: Starbs started selling its PSL lineup last week, including a new pumpkin chai latte and a pumpkin martini at its Reserve locations. It’s the PSL’s 20th birthday: 600M of the seasonal brews have been sold since 2003.Â
Stocks were mixed last week with Nvidia’s blowout earnings boosting the techy Nasdaq. On Friday, stocks rose after Fed Chair Jay Powell’s speech in Jackson Hole. The central banker said further rate hikes are still on the table, but noted that inflation trends have been positive.
Hospitality companies expand offerings as “event-cations” become a hot travel trend
One week on a white-sand beach… snooze fest. Americans aren’t just settling for OG vacays these days. In this year’s travel boom, they’re prioritizing “event-cations” — vacations centered on a major event. Whether it’s road-tripping to a T. Swift show in Denver or jetting to Boston for a WWE brawl, folks are shelling out big bucks for action-packed getaways.Â
MGM Resorts International said that Formula One’s first-ever stop in Las Vegas is just as much a tourist attraction as its slot machines.
WWE last week sold 90K+ tickets in one day for next year’s WrestleMania in Philly, piledriving a record before even announcing a single match for the April event.Â
Live Nation said it’s on pace for a record year as concert demand soars. Swift’s recent LA shows alone boosted the city’s GDP by $320M. Beyoncé’s Renaissance tour raised Sweden’s inflation (traveling Bey fans = skyrocketing Stockholm hotel prices).Â
Hilton said that this year it’s already seen double as many loyalty points redeemed for experiences than last year’s record.Â
“GoT” tour in Dubrovnik… Tourist spending on experiences like amusement parks and nightclubs was up 65% in March from 2019. Travel companies are increasingly catering to experience-hungry consumers. MGM’s CEO said that while gambling revenues were relatively flat, dining experiences and shows (like: Cirque du Soleil) are driving growth. Airbnb has expanded its experiences offering (picture: pasta masterclass in Puglia) and recently said experiences get better reviews than rentals.Â
Hyatt rolled out an experience program featuring outings like foraging for truffles in Hungarian forests (#vibes).Â
Marriott has also doubled down on its experience offering to drive loyalty, and American Airlines started letting loyalty members rack up points on event purchases.
Time is even more priceless… After being locked down during the pandemic, consumers started revenge traveling. Now that employers are calling workers back to desks, travelers are making the most of their precious free time by centering their vacations on big experiences. Companies catering to that could benefit.
How 775,000 everyday people are beating billionaires at their own game
When incredibly rare and valuable assets come up for sale, it's typically the 1% of the wealthiest people that end up taking home an amazing investment. But not always…
One platform is taking on the billionaires at their own game, buying up and securitizing some of history’s most prized blue-chip artworks for its investors. So, instead of hanging on the walls of a $500 million yacht, these world-class assets are collectively owned by tens of thousands of everyday investors.
It's called Masterworks. Their nearly $1 billion collection includes works by greats like Banksy, Picasso, and Basquiat. You know, the same artists in their collections. Then, when Masterworks sells a painting – like the 15 it's already sold – investors reap their portion of the net proceeds.
It's easy to get started but offerings can sell out in minutes. However, as a trusted partner, Snacks readers can skip the waitlist to join with this exclusive link.*
Coming up this week
Labor Day weekend… isn’t just about BBQs and not wearing white (...it’s about labor). The US labor market remains strong with unemployment near historic lows, but hiring and job openings recently fell to a two-year low. Meanwhile, workers are winning #HotStrikeSummer: 340K Teamsters ratified a contract with UPS that gives full-timers a $15K raise over five years, while 97% of the 140K-member United Auto Workers union voted to authorize a strike against GM, Ford, and Stellantis. Over in Hollywood, negotiations between studios and talent continue.Â
404 (demand) not found… When budgets get tight, electronics are one of the first purchases to get cut (you can’t eat a PC). Apple recently reported falling Q2 hardware sales as pricey Macs stayed on shelves. Meanwhile, Best Buy missed sales estimates in Q1 and is expected to report slumping sales this week. HP and Dell are forecast to post PC declines this week too. A turnaround could be near: Best Buy’s CEO said this year’ll “be the bottom for the decline in tech demand” — and PC sellers Acer and Asus saw a sales lift last month.
Stories we’re watching
A tornado hits crypto town… The DOJ charged two developers of sanctioned crypto mixer Tornado Cash, alleging they helped facilitate $1B in money laundering (benefiting North Korean hackers). Crypto experts say the case poses a vexing question: can publishing software be criminalized? TC is a privacy-focused smart contract, and developers can’t always control what people do with their code once it’s released. FYI: the gov’t said the two knew they were helping fraudsters. Now crypto’s on edge, as smart-contract makers consider legal risk.
New school year… same backpack. Back-to-school spending is expected to hit a record $41.5B this year as prices rise. Now parents are going bargain hunting: ~70% of shoppers looked to Amazon’s Prime Day for deals. Walmart and Target have been offering deals on school supplies for months, and Crayola said discounts helped drive sales. With US household debt at a record high, 43% of school shoppers are financing their purchases.
Last week's highlights
RTO: Meta and Goldman doubled down on return-to-office pushes, with Meta saying holdouts could lose their job. As some companies stick with remote, the RTO/WFH divide has split entire industries.Â
10YR: The 10-year Treasury yield rose last week to its highest level in 16 years. As investors fear the Fed may keep rates higher for longer, people are selling off old bonds, expecting higher future rates.Â
U-turn: A CA right-to-repair bill got a big boost from Apple, a longtime antagonist of the movement. 84% of Americans support the right to repair, and legislation has been introduced in 30 states this year alone.
What else we’re Snackin’
Undecided: West Virginia University students protested after the school cut 9% of majors to fill a $45M budget gap. WVU enrollment has fallen 10% since 2015, with total US college enrollment dropping 8% from 2019 to 2022.Â
AISpy: Regulators and banks are scrambling to keep up with high-tech fraud, turbocharged by AI tools like voice cloning. Consumers lost $8.8B to scams in the US last year, up 44% from the year before.
Stalled: Driverless cars from Waymo and Cruise are freely ferrying passengers around San Francisco, but it’s been a bumpy ride (picture: crashes). Now officials including the fire chief are demanding fixes.
This Week
Monday: US Open begins
Tuesday: July job-openings report. Earnings expected from Best Buy, HP, and JM Smucker
Wednesday: Earnings expected from Five Below, Chewy, Salesforce, and Victoria’s Secret
Thursday: Jobless claims and July’s personal-consumption expenditures. Earnings expected from Broadcom, Campbell Soup, Dell, Dollar General, Hormel, Lululemon, Polestar Automotive, UBS, and VMwareÂ
Friday: August US unemployment numbers
Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Amazon, Apple, GM, Nvidia, Starbucks, and Walmart
*Advertiser’s disclosure: See important disclosures at masterworks.com/cd.