👙 “SummerHouse VC” — Paige DeSorbo’s exit. US/China trade dud. Heinz’s breakfast ketchup.
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This is Nick. This is Jack. It's Thursday, the new Friday, June 12th. And today's pod is the best one yet. This is a T-boy. The top three pop business news stories you need to know today. Well, well, well, well, well. We got a surprise tonight. Jack, we are going to the oldest restaurant in San Francisco history. We could write a whole travel guide book for San Francisco just based on the restaurants you've brought me to. All right. So this one, Jack?

This one is older than the Gold Rush. It goes back to 1849. Seriously? Yeah, it does. What's it called? They've been aging steaks since before California was a state. What?

What's it called? It's so old, they don't even have a name. Okay, it's called Tadich Grill. It's called Tadich Grill. Jack, we got three stories to hit first, though, for today's pod. What's on the show? For our first story, the U.S. and China just announced the biggest trade deal of the year. But stocks actually fell yesterday, and that tells us everything. Spoiler, it's not a trade deal. Yeah. It's a trade dud.

For our second story, Heinz just declared that ketchup is for breakfast. They're even selling ketchup out of a maple syrup jug. Because over the last 100 years, when Heinz changes their bottle, people buy more. And our third and final story is Paige DeSorbo. The reality TV star is leaving Summer House after seven years to start her own company. Because Bravo TV is the new Y Combinator. Send this episode to a giggler. Yeah, if you know, you know.

But yetis, before we hit that wonderful mix of stories... Oh, what a mix of stories for the real Friday, the new Friday, Jack. It's Thursday, the new Friday. Ask your buddy where they're going for the weekend. Hiking, biking, maybe a little bit of R&R with a 60-minute massage on the side? How about a darkness retreat? Ah, darkness retreats. A 24-hour immersion in total darkness. Get this. The trendy new thing techies are doing are darkness retreats. Because to seek enlightenment, you must eliminate darkness.

The light. According to the techies. Yetis, darkness retreats create cabins that are totally cut off from any form of light. I guess, Jack, it's kind of like an extreme blackout curtain if you have a kid. Yeah, but instead of a noise machine like with your two-year-old, darkness retreats are silent. We're talking several days alone in a room, complete darkness.

Sounds horrifying. It does sound creepy. I mean, I don't know if I could spend that much time with just my thoughts. Well, Jack, we should point out they do still feed you three meals a day through a latch door. But you can't see what you're eating. No. Like, is that a carrot or is that a sausage? Good luck. Now, shocker, the latest promoter of darkness retreats is actually a crypto exec who can't stop talking about it on Twitter.

He was supposed to actually spend four days in a darkness cabin. What happened? He quit after the first day. Yeah, here's how he put it. What did he say, Jack? Here's how he describes it, Nick. Terrifying shadows gnawing at my soul, sleep paralysis demons, and an inability to breathe. Excuse me, waitress.

cancel my darkness retreat based on that review. I think the darkness retreat trend may end as quickly as it began. The night it really is darkest just before the dawn. Literally. If you know, what's in our three stories? 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. Start the show. Start the show. First, a quick word from our sponsor.

Monarch money. All right, Jack, can I tell you about my SMH? What is that? It stands for my stupid money habit. You ready for this? I just realized I spent $412 last month on taxis. Nick, that's a car payment. I know, I could have probably just bought another car at this point. Now, Nick only realized how much he spent on Ubers, Lyfts, and Yellow Cabs thanks to Monarch money. Monarch. It isn't just a budgeting app. It is like a personal CFO. Now, I'm using Monarch money too. My favorite

part? Yes, Jack. I've actually retired my net worth spreadsheet. Seriously. Really? Because I have every single financial account I own linked to Monarch Money. You can immediately see your net worth because Monarch Money refreshes all your account balances instantly. So to help you track and build your net worth, Monarch Money is offering 50% off your first year for listeners of this pod.

And it's not just us. Over a million households already use Monarch Money. The Wall Street Journal already named it the best budgeting app of 2025. We're not even halfway through the year. No, we're not. And I think I just spent $10 more on a taxi. So besties, get control of your overall finances with Monarch Money. Even though Nick apparently can't. Use code T-Boy at monarchmoney.com in your browser for half off your first year. That's 50% off your first year if you go to monarchmoney.com and use code T-Boy.

Airbnb. Now, yeah, it is. Jack mentioned his favorite skinny dipping spot. Where was that again? I did. A bunch of people asked me about that. But, Nick, there's nothing better than swimming in Mother Nature with the outfit Mother gave you. I mean, you know what they say. It's not the summer unless you're outside naked at some point and nobody knows it. Now, another way to do that is an outdoor shower. And I should mention...

My place has one of those too. And how is it possible you have an outdoor shower, Jack? Because I'm an Airbnb host. True. Now, I usually spend my Airbnb hosting income on travel for the family, but this time we earmarked it for a home upgrade. Now, Jack, I should point out, I'm no carpenter, but outdoor shower, it ain't cheap. You got the cedar wood install. You got the copper pipes, the French drains. But with the money we're making on Airbnb, it was affordable. We put it in last year. Well played. Yetis, I'm an Airbnb host with my current chalet and with two previous apartments, I'm

I can tell you it's very easy to use. Besties millions don't realize their space could be an Airbnb. You already have an Airbnb. You could be yodeling naked outdoors with fresh shampoo in your hair. In the outdoor shower, paid for by your guests. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at Airbnb.com slash host.

For our first story, the U.S. and China have reached a trade deal, but it looks more like a trade dud. Because here's the inconvenient truth. China's rare earth metals are now calling the shots. They're infinity stones.

Now, Yetis, Jack and I were getting breakfast yesterday. We were preparing for today's show, our headline hammer, and we noticed this confusing sentence from the Wall Street Journal. It was the first sentence they used to describe President Trump's announced trade deal on Wednesday. Jack, may I read it for you, please? Okay, here we go, here we go.

The U.S. deal with China to revive their trade truce is done. Sorry, a deal to revive a trade truce? Is that a trade deal? Can you please whip up a translation for us over there? That is not a trade deal. No, it's not. Basically, what Trump announced yesterday is a return to the de-escalated status quo they reached last month. Now, yetis, if the U.S. and China did have a trade deal, that would be like Christmas in June, a kumbaya moment. Stocks would have surged.

Instead, the three-day stock rally reversed on Wednesday. The S&P 500 ended up down. Basically, Wall Street was unimpressed. The trade deal looked more like a trade dud. So, Nick, what are the details of this, and I quote,

Handshake for a framework to revive the trade truce. Doesn't sound like a trade deal. Well, most importantly, we should point out, tariffs are going to remain quite high on China. Trump announced on his social media platform 55% tariffs on everything we import from China. Now, at least we do get some certainty as part of this negotiation. The Commerce Secretary pledged that tariffs on China will not change from this 55% level.

So even though U.S. consumers will have to pay more for made-in-China stuff, Trump is calling this truce a win. Because China gets 55% tariffs, we only get 10% tariffs. There's nothing reciprocal about that. And besties, we should also let you know that there are other provisions included on the truce worth caring about. Chinese students are going to get visas again to attend U.S. universities. And American companies are going to get rare earth metals from China again to start making them.

fancy stuff. And that part's key. Yes, it is. Because rare earth metals are critical to every electronic product. Okay, we're talking iPhones to MRIs, EVs to fighter jets. They all have pounds, in some cases, of rare earth metals. The VIP of the periodic table of elements is rare earth metals. Yes, they are. And China has a rare earth metal monopoly.

They control up to 90% of the market for rare earth metals and rare earth magnets. Scandium, a rare earth metal? It's like the George Clooney of minerals. That thing is rare and that thing is hot. And you can only find it in China. Unlike George Clooney, though. Now, last month, China actually cut off access to American companies for rare earth metals. And what happened exactly, Jack? Just one example. Ford had to shut down a factory that was making Ford Explorers because they couldn't

make them without rare earth metals. We repeat, you couldn't drive a Ford Explorer brand new off a lot because of the rare earth metal ban from China. So this trade truce at least gives us back the rare earth metals. Well, funny thing about that, Jack. What's the takeaway for our buddies looking at the US-China trade deal? China has the infinity stones of this battle, the rare earth metals.

Yetis, this truce that Trump just announced is actually subject to President Xi of China's approval before it happens. And six months after Trump announced that truce,

President Xi added one huge condition. Get this, the export of rare earth metals from China to America will expire after six months. That one detail is going to leave the U.S. on edge. It's freaky. And it also reminds us that China has huge leverage in this trade war. Right, because, yeah, our trump card was...

high-end AI chips made by Nvidia. But actually, China started to develop their own high-end AI chips. Meanwhile, their trump card is rare earth metals we use in our electronic stuff. And we can't develop those, at least not for five or ten years. That's why we think of rare earth metals like Infinity Stones, those magnificent, powerful objects from all the Marvel superhero movies. And the Thanos in this analogy.

So besties, America just announced a return to a trade truce with China. But China retains the infinity stones in this battle, the rare earth metals. For our second story, Heinz just officially announced that ketchup is for breakfast? And they put ketchup in a maple syrup bottle. There's a lot of strategy behind it, but if you put ketchup on your scrambled eggs, you're going to feel liberated. We got your back.

But yeties, Jack and I actually did this wild 45-minute deep dive episode on Heinz ketchup on The Best Idea Yet. 57 varieties, the 57 numbers made up. Yeah, yeah, it's just like the founder's lucky number. How wild is that? Well, Henry Heinz was actually a pioneer of food safety because his work with bottled ketchup actually led to the creation of the FDA. But get this, besties, 150 years ago,

Years after ketchup conquered your corn dog, hot sauce is eating up its market share. Cholula, sriracha, the YouTube show Hot Ones, they're all booming now.

And it's making Heinz shrink. We jumped into the earnings over here. Kraft Heinz suffered six straight quarters of sales shrinkage because of this hot sauce attack on your ulcers. So Heinz has a solution to revive ketchup sales. They're not changing the product. They're changing the perception. Here's the news. Heinz has created breakfast.

ketchup. Actually, it's the same ketchup, but it now comes in a glass maple syrup bottle. And it says breakfast ketchup on the label. And they're doing this because you are more likely to use hot sauce than ketchup on your eggs. So Heinz is trying to change the narrative. Ketchup wants to eat back tummy share from hot sauce, and they're doing so on your omelet. Although, side note here, Jack, I got to put this out there. Ketchup is a PM product. You don't eat in the morning. You got to eat at PM afternoon. Of course, I agree with you.

But there's actually a bigger story here on Heinz selling ketchup in a glass maple syrup jug. Yetis, Jack and I found some wild numbers here. The Heinz ketchup bottle, it is iconic, right, Jack? That classic one you see at restaurants? It's so iconic that Andy Warhol painted it. But we discovered that in the last 25 years, each time Heinz has changed the bottle, it's led to a sales surge. Sit down, stand up, and sit back down. Or...

Again, yetis. In 2001, Heinz introduced the upside-down squeeze bottle. It was inspired by shampoo, and it was an obvious move for ketchup. The result? A 25% pop in Heinz sales. Because you don't have to pound the glass bottle like an ape anymore to get some ketchup to fall out. You can pop it out like it's conditioner. Boom. Then in 2015, Heinz introduced the bigger bottle. They replaced the 24-ounce bottle of ketchup

with a 32 ounce. - Yeah, here's their discovery. People consumed more ketchup if they were using a bigger bottle. - The big bottle symbolizes abundance and the consumer subconsciously just puts more on their burger. - You're like indulging by drinking your burger instead.

So the two times Heinz has changed their ketchup bottle, it has meaningfully boosted ketchup sales. Now they're going for a hat trick with this maple syrup glass ketchup jug. This time, they're shooting for ketchup and pancakes. No, I'm putting it on pancakes. Yeah, you're right, you're right. That is actually a intestinal food crime. I apologize. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over at Heinz? Sometimes demand just needs permission. Permission granted.

Now, yetis, hot sauce on eggs is socially acceptable, but many consider ketchup on eggs to be a social sin. Anthony Bourdain once asked President Obama about putting ketchup on eggs. Here was his response. Trey, let's roll the tape. Is ketchup on a hot dog ever acceptable? No.

No, I mean that. That's one of those things like, well, let me put it this way. It's not acceptable past the age of eight. But actually, a solid 25% of Americans do just that. They put ketchup on their eggs. And they are a silent but large demographic.

Maybe there are even more closeted ketchup and eggs lovers who are afraid to reveal themselves. I think what you're saying, Jack, is Heinz is now giving latent lovers of ketchup on eggs permission to dump ketchup on that frittata. That's what I'm saying. That's right. Heinz's maple syrup jug, yeah, it won't increase sales because new bottles increase sales. It'll increase sales because it flips the narrative on ketchup at breakfast. From shame to pride. Ketchup eats a breakfast food. Permission granted.

Now, a quick word from our sponsor. The best one yet is sponsored by BetterHelp. All right, Jack, let me set the scene for you. My birthday dinner, we did a pizza party. I rented out a whole spot called the Dough Room in San Francisco. You mess with the pizza dough while you make it. I know. And then what comes next is the most San Francisco thing ever. Basically, group therapy over dinner. So all three people on my side of the table were in therapy, and all of us were talking about each other's therapy. You know, like one person was saying how their therapist helped them through a co-worker battle. Another was talking about like the future of

fatherhood with their therapist. They're stressed about becoming a dad. It's not just San Francisco. Society's views on therapy have changed across the world. True. It's evolved to the point where you had a birthday dinner learning from each other's therapy session. Well, BetterHelp is an easy way to take that leap and find the therapist for you. Because BetterHelp has over 10 years of experience matching people like your friends with therapists. As the largest online therapy provider in the world, BetterHelp can provide access to mental health professionals with a diverse variety of expertise. Talk it out with BetterHelp. All

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delicious. Jack actually just used our promo code again for himself to buy another tub. He's got a problem with this stuff. By taking collagen peptides daily, you can support your hair, skin, nail, bone, and joint health. Get 20% off by going to vitalproteins.com and entering promo code T-boy at checkout. That's vitalproteins.com, promo code T-boy for 20% off. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

For our third and final story, Bravo's top program right now is Summer House, but its star, Paige DeSorbo, is leaving the show. She's leaving to launch a company because Bravo is the new Y Combinator. All right, Jack, what is the biggest word if you're 26 years old and you're living in New York City right now? Share. As in? As in share house. As in who

Whose Hamptons share are you doing this weekend? Are you going out east this weekend? The share house in the Hamptons. It is the right of a young professional's passage to pay for one-ninth of a three-bedroom house in the Hamptons from June to mid-August. This is Jack. I once got a half share for one weekend, one summer at a share house. Yeah, can you translate what a half share is? It means you sleep on the couch. Yeah. And you still pay like 12 grand for it.

Well, yetis, that is the plot of Bravo's show, Summer House. Ten hot people work in New York City from Monday through Friday and then come out to the Hamptons to a share house each weekend. Yes, Jack, you could say this is like a premium version of the Jersey Shore, right? Except more rosé and you get to cut the line at the surf lodge. And the same cast members return each year, so you get to know them and you see them evolve over almost a decade now. And this is a hit show.

Season nine, which is what we're currently in, is getting 2.2 million viewers per episode. Jack, can you sprinkle in some context? That's the same ballpark as the most popular shows on HBO. She wore shoulder pads to the beach. Of course she knew she was getting engaged. And the best part for Bravo, Game of Thrones cost $20 million to produce each episode. But reality TV stars basically work for free. Yeah, the biggest cost to Bravo is the summer house itself. Yeah. Which they're not...

booking a half-share of like me. It probably doesn't even have Wi-Fi. But here's the news, yet is. The star of the show, Paige DeSorbo, is leaving after seven years. She's pivoting to profits. Paige has the most followers of any current cast member. The only Summer House alum with more followers...

Hannah and Paige happen to be besties and co-hosts of a hit podcast as well called The Giggly Squad. The Gigglers just sold out Radio City two nights in a row. Giggly Squad's book just came out and is a New York Times bestseller. And now, this week, Paige DeSorbo launched a sleepwear line called Daphne. But basically, it looks like Paige is following in Kim Kardashian's reality TV to fashion footstuff.

Because we support a woman in the arts. Interestingly, Paige has focused in on the pajama vertical. And that strategy stood out to Jack and I because it's actually rooted in seven years of strategic authenticity. Paige embraced being a badger.

bedbug on the show. She has brunch at two o'clock and she's still wearing her pajamas. Yeah, she's been doing it for seven seasons. Oh, and then she expanded her brand a couple of years ago into pajama themed parties, which she calls snooze fest. She used 85 episodes of the summer house show to cultivate her bedbug lifestyle. It's

truly who she is, and so is this new brand, Daphne. So she launched Daphne today for this lifestyle, but it really goes back to like 2018. Daphne is a pajama and sleepwear company, and Daphne is also the name of her cat, who also sleeps in bed with her. It's her cuddle buddy. It's all part of the brand. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over on Summer House? Bravo is the new Y Combinator.

Yeti's Bethany Frankel from Real Housewives of New York, she launched Skinny Girl Margarita and then sold it for $100 million. She started a trend. Kyle Cook, another Summer House castmate, launched Loverboy Spike T, which is now doing $40 million in sales. In fact, according to Variety, 14 Real Housewives have now launched consumer package goods brands from the show. That's insane. That's a huge number. It's like Bravo is a startup incubator. Yeah.

But instead of dollars, they're fueled by drama. A soft launch your boyfriend on the show, but then you hard launch a new branded product the next day. Bravo gave them the audience. They launched companies. More broadly, the way Jack and I see this, media has become the ultimate startup accelerator. Viewers are built-in customers. Andy Cohen is the new Peter Thiel, and Bravo is the new Y Combinator.

Jack, could you whip up the takeaways for us for the new Friday? Stocks fell yesterday as the details of the trade truce with China came out. Because this truce reminds us of China's huge leverage. Rare earth metals are their infinity stones. For our second story, Heinz has declared ketchup a breakfast food. Delicious. Let us know in the comments if you agree. Because sometimes demand needs permission. And Heinz just granted permission.

And our third and final story is Paige DeSorbo from the Summer House. She's quitting reality TV to launch a sleepwear line. Daphne. Because from all we've seen, Bravo is the new Y Combinator.

But yetis, this pod's not over yet. Here's what else you need to know. First, Tesla has delayed the launch of their robo-taxi service down in Austin to June 22nd. Separately, Elon tweeted yesterday that he regrets some of his posts about Trump saying he went too far. Yeah, he actually deleted that post saying Trump was in the Epstein files. It's gone now. Their bro-verse is back together. Seems they've made up. It's kind of like a Friends episode. And second, Starbucks is getting in on the protein trend with a new creamer.

protein creamer. It's a cold banana flavored foam, apparently mixed with muscle milk. It's on trial at five locations. It adds 15 grams of protein to your lattes, a hundred thousand calories. Next up, creatine frappuccino. By the way, Jack and I just added protein to this podcast. So if you have us twice a day, you actually, after you work out perfectly. Okay.

And finally, FYI, you cannot use your Costco card to get on an airplane. So many people think you can use a Costco card as an acceptable ID that the TSA had to issue a bulletin. Yeah, here's what they said. We love hot dogs and rotisserie chickens as much as the next person, but please stop telling people their Costco card counts as a real ID because it absolutely does not.

Now time for the best fact yet. This one sent in by Tyler Hale from lovely Midland, Michigan. Earlier in the week, we did a story on Hot Wheels, and Hot Wheels are die-cast. I got over 500 in my collection, actually, and we did not know what die-casting was. Well, first of all, die-casting, you melt metal until it is lava hot. And then you squirt that liquid metal into a super strong mold shaped, in this case, like a tiny car. That's it, die-casting. Once you release...

The metal, it dries or like cools in the shape of the form. It's like making a waffle, but with metal instead of batter. Same process that you use in iPhone casings, door handles, even satellites and Mars rovers. Pretty much if you want to shape metal into a particular form, you die-cast it, baby.

Yetis, you look fantastic for the new Friday. And if you're on a darkness retreat right now, even if you can't see us, we're telling you, you'll look fantastic. Even if you can't see yourself, you'll look fantastic. Well, they can't hear us because darkness retreats are silent. What was that, Jack? Yetis, if you haven't yet, drop down to those five stars and review. Jack and I love reading everyone. If you do a company retreat to a darkness retreat, I'm quitting this company. What was that, Jack?

And then tell a buddy, HYH TVLY. That's how we grow the show. And Jack and I will see you tomorrow.

And before we go, a happy 70th birthday to Paul Lenhart down in Temperance, Michigan. Congratulations, Paul. Always round up. And happy birthday to Levi Gerard in Framingham, Mass., who sprints around the backyard like Sonic the Hedgehog. And George and Lucy Zellifro have their last day of school over in Chicago, not just doing logistics, getting A's, baby. Hey, guys, we got a live show in Chicago in July. I know school's out for the summer. We

We expect to see you there. And to anyone else who's celebrating something today, make it a T-boy. Celebrate the win. This is Jack. I own stock of Ford and Netflix, and Nick and I both own ETFs of the S&P 500. If you like the best one yet, you can listen ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. And before you go, tell us a little bit about yourself by filling out a short survey at wondery.com slash survey. We want to get to know you.

Every big moment starts with a big dream. But what happens when that big dream turns out to be a big flop?

From Wondery and At Will Media, I'm Misha Brown, and this is The Big Flop. Every week, comedians join me to chronicle the biggest flubs, fails, and blunders of all time, like Quibi. It's kind of like when you give yourself your own nickname and you try to, like, get other people to do it. And the 2019 movie adaptation of Catastrophe.

Cats. Like, if I'm watching the dancing and I'm noticing the feet aren't touching the ground, there's something wrong with the movie. Find out what happens when massive hype turns into major fiasco. Enjoy The Big Flop on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to The Big Flop early and ad-free on Wondery+. Get started with your free trial at wondery.com slash plus.