Greece is the Word

Good morning! The US became the first country to cross the 3,000-medal milestone across all Olympic Games [yesterday]( — keep up to date with the 2024 rankings with this [live table](. Today we’re exploring: - Pot of gold: Guinness was a standout brand for Diageo last year. - Samba season: Adidas sneakers are driving profits for the sportswear giant. - Overtourism: Santorini is awash with overseas visitors. Have feedback for us? Just hit reply - we'd love to hear from you! TOGETHER WITH [Sponsor Logo](   Diageo — the company behind brands like Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, and Casamigos — just reported some dispiriting results, with organic net sales declining 0.6% for the full year to June 30 on the back of its worst quarter since the start of [the pandemic](. Though the company pointed to economic stress as a reason for consumers spending less on booze, Diageo’s struggles also fit into the broader picture of people cutting down on alcohol more generally, while the [no-lo-alcohol]( market continues to thrive. Even within Diageo, non-alcoholic beverages saw an upturn. [Guinness 0.0](, a 0% version of the popular Irish stout, looked particularly strong, with net sales and volumes more than doubling in fiscal 2023. In fact, Guinness on the whole remained a rare bright spot in the company’s gloomy sales figures. Goodness, Guinness Reported net sales of Guinness rose 6% last year, driving much of the observed 18% growth in overall beer sales for Diageo. While growth has slowed from the 30% figure seen in the wake of the pandemic — when purists raced back out to enjoy a 'perfectly poured' draft Guinness again — the black stuff still holds its firm position in the Diageo drinks cabinet, with sales up 27% in Europe and a growing legion of [female fans](. The 265-year-old drink has been having a moment since bars and pubs reopened: there's been a rise in online “Guinnfluencers”; the brand's logo has graced the runways of Milan Fashion Week; and a host of stars from Kim Kardashian and Olivia Rodrigo to Kate Middleton have flouted their love for the [Irish stout](. Drink me, I’m Irish: There is still one green-letter occasion where Guinness is consistently picked up… [Google Trends]( shows that March is the most popular month for “guinness” search queries. [Read this on the web instead](   Adidas appears to be back on track following some recent trip-ups — largely owing to an uptick in sneaker sales, with Sambas and Gazelles filling the shoe-shaped gap left after the company parted ways with Kanye West and his once-hyped Yeezy brand. After posting its [first annual loss]( in more than 30 years in March, citing high inventories as a cause of the sales slump, Adidas’ Q2 report, published today, provided a more promising outlook. Indeed, the German sportswear behemoth made a net profit of €206 million (~$223 million) in the three months to June 30 — up 117% from the same period a year ago — with revenues from its [footwear segment]( alone climbing 17%. In addition to reducing its inventory problem by €1 billion in the past year, the success of Adidas’ marketing efforts at major sporting events like the Paris Olympics has also helped to boost jersey and other athletic apparel sales. Samba season But, as any sneakerhead worth their salt will know, there's a lot of money to be made from zeitgeist-capturing footwear. The dissolution of Adidas’ deal with rapper Kanye West in 2022 drew the curtain on an incredibly lucrative partnership for both parties. In the aftermath of the Yeezy [discontinuation](, Adidas sales plunged 16% in North America in 2023, despite remaining relatively flat in other regions. Recently, though, a new fleet of Adidas footwear has been capturing the attention of the fashion (and wider) world, at least if Google searches are anything to go by. Sambas, Gazelles, and Campuses have all hit new internet interest peaks in 2024, as mainstream tastes continue to shift in favor of more classic silhouettes. Given the fickle nature of fashion, though, Adidas likely already has a team working to deliver its next smash hit, after the Samba was named 2023's “[shoe of the year](” and ex-UK prime minister Rishi Sunak apologized for “ruining” the sneakers for fans back [in April](. [Read this on the web instead](   [Sponsored by Miso Robotics]( The $1T Fast Food Industry’s Secret Weapon Working the local burger joint’s fryer is tough — so much so that it’s getting harder and harder for fast-food restaurants to staff their kitchens. But [Miso Robotics makes it easy](. Their Flippy robot helps fill America’s 3M-person labor gap by automating fry stations to perfection. That’s why over 36,000 people have already invested. Flippy impresses for good reason: - 🍟 Fried 2.5M+ baskets for brands like White Castle and Jack in the Box. - 🤖 [Selected by NVIDIA to collaborate]( on integrating state-of-the-art AI vision technology into Flippy. - 💥 Could boost industry profits by $24B per year. Flippy will be targeting 170 fast food brands and 100,000+ U.S. locations. Which makes the timing of this opportunity so intriguing. [For a limited time, become a Miso shareholder* and earn up to 10% bonus stock.**]( [For a limited time, become a Miso shareholder* and earn up to 10% bonus stock.**](   There’s been a recurring pattern in headlines coming out of Europe in recent months (besides high-stakes election results and its [precarious position]( on the financial world stage): overtourism. Greece is the word Santorini, a stunning and ultimately-Instagrammable Greek island, is the latest European summer hotspot to become completely overrun by holidaymakers, with 11,000 cruise ship passengers descending on the Aegean isle in a single day. Santorini's 15,500 residents, who were urged to stay inside by authorities, were understandably [pretty vexed](. The island sits alongside other footfallen destinations like [Barcelona](, where locals have protested against the impact of overtourism, as the continent adapts to a post-pandemic travel boom. In April, for example, Venice introduced a ~$5 entry fee to the city during peak season, while other locations have been hiking tourist tax rates or [capping visits](. Dealing with overtourism is a delicate game, though: Santorini [reportedly]( derives 90% of its GDP from foreign visitors each year, as the number of people visiting Greece and its vast network of picturesque islands continues to grow. According to data from the Bank of Greece, the nation welcomed just over 14 million inbound travellers in 2005 — that figure sat at a record 36.1 million last year, and is apparently on track to rise even higher in 2024. The scenes out of Santorini, and those unfolding across the continent more broadly, don't do much to combat a charge made in a recent viral TikTok video that much of Europe has morphed into "[Disneyland for Americans](". [Read this on the web instead](   More Data - Hero’s welcome: Robert Downey Jr. is set to earn “[significantly more](” than $80 million for his return to the MCU as Doctor Doom in the next 2 Avengers movies. - Starbucks’ same-store sales declined for the second quarter in a row — besides the pandemic and the financial crisis, that’s the first time that’s happened [this century](. - A musicologist ranked every Disney song on music, lyrics, plot integration, and “[vibes, basically](”. - How a clickable image of a banana became one of the most played video games [in the world](. America’s fast food kitchens are feeling the squeeze, with 3M employees needed even after job seekers are accounted for. Miso Robotics’ AI-powered robot Flippy automates those unmanned fryers, with 2.5M+ baskets already cooked for brands like White Castle. [Discover why 36,000+ investors are in](.* Ad   Hi-Viz - This [interactive chart]( suggests which Olympic sport you could play, based on your gender, height, and weight. - Google’s new “[Most Searched Playground](” feature lets you explore Paris to find the most-Googled sports, icons, and moments in Olympics history. Off the charts: Dating app giant Match Group beat Wall St. estimates [yesterday](... but plans to cut 6% of [its staff](. Which platform still brings in more than 50% of the company’s earnings? [Answer below]. [Answer here.](   Thanks for stopping by! Have some [feedback](mailto:daily@chartr.co?subject=Feedback&body=Hi, I like the newsletters, but I had a thought for you...) or want to [sponsor this newsletter](mailto:advertising@sherwoodmedia.com?subject=I’m interested in advertising with Sherwood Media)?   Not a subscriber? Sign up for free below. [Subscribe](   Advertiser’s disclosures: * This is a paid advertisement for Miso Robotics Regulation A offering. Please read the offering circular and related risks at [invest.misorobotics.com](. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Start-up investments are speculative and involve a high degree of risk. Those investors who cannot afford to lose their entire investment should not invest in start-ups. Companies seeking startup investment tend to be in earlier stages of development and their business model, products and services may not yet be fully developed, operational or tested in the public marketplace. There is no guarantee that the stated valuation and other terms are accurate or in agreement with the market or industry valuations. Further, investors may receive illiquid and/or restricted stock that may be subject to holding period requirements and/or liquidity concerns. 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