Lots To Unpack

Hi, today we explore: (1) The billion-dollar baggage industry, (2) BuzzFeed's new deal sees it keep a YouTube hit, (2) Beyond Meat's new burger. Today's Topics It's Friday... and we are back on the moon, as lander Odysseus relayed a weak but clear signal that it had made it to the lunar surface — the first US landing in more than 50 years, and the first ever by a [private business](. Today we explore: - Packing up: Baggage fees for major airlines are set to rise. - Hot streak: BuzzFeed retains spicy showpiece Hot Ones in media deal. - Quarters pounded: Beyond Meat is trying everything to reverse a sales slump. Have feedback for us? Just hit reply — we'd love to hear from you! [Read this on the web instead]( Bags secured Bad news just landed if traveling light isn’t exactly your forte: [American Airlines]( [Alaska Airlines]( and low-cost carrier [JetBlue Airways]( have all announced that they’re raising baggage fees this year, with others predicted to follow. The price hikes are in the $5-10 zone across a range of both domestic and international flights, with American Airlines explaining that the raises are a result of “inflation, fuel costs, and increased operating costs” in a statement to Newsweek [on Wednesday](. Let’s unpack… In the last 15 years, airlines have increasingly leaned on baggage charges as an opportunity to cash in. Data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics reveals that US airlines raked in a total ~$6.8 billion in baggage fees in 2022, with 2023 figures tracking even higher over the first 9 months of the year —15 years ago, BTS attributed just $1.1 billion to baggage fees. Of course, not all airlines lump costly luggage fees onto customers. Southwest and its [famously generous]( 2-bags-free policy, for example, made just $66m in bag revenue for 2022 from more than 157 million passengers. Meanwhile, "lower cost" carriers like Frontier and Spirit made $745m and $933m, respectively, from less than 65 million passengers between them. Complex matters Ailing digital outlet BuzzFeed announced yesterday that it is selling streetwear, music, and sports-centric media brand [Complex]( in a $108m all-cash deal — booking a ~$200m loss on its acquisition 3 years ago. As part of the deal, BuzzFeed will retain one of Complex’s crown jewels: First We Feast, an online food culture brand with over 13 million [YouTube]( subscribers, famous for producing the popular Hot Ones series, which has built a strong following for its spicy sauces and bingeable content. Hot commodity “It’s the show with hot questions and even hotter wings,” host Sean Evans declares at the start of each [star-studded episode]( of Hot Ones, as celebrities sweat their way through 10 deeply-researched questions while eating 10 increasingly spicy wings. Distributed primarily on YouTube, the format has become an international phenomenon: viral moments featuring VIPs like Gordon Ramsay, [Paul Rudd]( and [Jennifer Lawrence]( have been snipped, cut, and memed across social media, helping to take the First We Feast channel to more than 3.5 billion total views. Of course, a large audience isn’t always enough to create a thriving digital business (see BuzzFeed), which is why keeping Hot Ones is such a big win. Thanks to the marketability of its premise, Hot Ones shifts thousands of bottles of their eponymous tongue-tingling hot sauces every year, with a [box of]( retailing for $120. Zooming out: BuzzFeed is also set to lay off 16% of its workforce as it looks to cut costs in a bid to survive on the public markets, with shares down 97% since it 2021 IPO and the [WSJ]( reporting last month that they are even considering flogging longtime mealticket Tasty. Quarters pounded Beyond Meat just announced that it will be debuting a new burger as part of its Beyond IV product line in the US this spring, adapting its plant-based patties to follow a healthier recipe in the face of [lean-looking sales](. A [press release]( touted the new Beyond Burger and Beyond Beef products, which are made with avocado oil and contain less sodium and sat-fats, as the “juiciest” and “meatiest” yet — the company’s recent sales, however, couldn’t be described in the same way. Indeed, year-on-year revenue has slipped in 7 of the last 8 quarters, as appetite for Beyond’s alt offerings ([mostly]( dries up. Life of the patty While meat alternatives were beginning to look like the future in the very recent past — like when Beyond’s stock soared 163% on its IPO [in 2019]( — some dieticians have been bashing highly-processed plant protein products for their negative health implications [of late]( pointing to potentially harmful additives, missing nutrients, and generally higher [sodium content](. Not helping Beyond's cause is the broad plateau, or even decline, in vegetarian and vegan diets: according to Pew Research, the meatless contingent dropped from 5% of Americans in 2019 to 4% in 2023, and those eschewing all animal products fell from 3% to 1% over the [same period](. More Data • One innovative approach to bypass luggage check-in costs: a girl donned 45 sweaters simultaneously this week, setting a new record for the most worn [at once](. • Nvidia's financial triumph continued, as Q4 revenues soared above already-high expectations to $22 billion — a 270% increase from the previous year — with shares rising ~9% on [the news](. • Lyle’s Golden Syrup is set to modernize its signature logo after 140 iconic years, having long been the biz with the world's oldest, unchanged [brand](. • Yale has decided to reinstate its test [admission policy]( becoming the second Ivy League university to do so. Hi-Viz • Which words have risen — and fallen — on NYT crosswords [since 1993](. • Why Reservoir Dogs, American History X, and Dazed and Confused are among some of the most underappreciated films in [cinematic history](. Off the charts: Which digital media company that we were charting the devaluation of last May is [ceasing to publish]( stories on its website, as it plans to cut hundreds more jobs? [Answer below]. [Answer here](. Thanks for stopping by! Have some [feedback](mailto:daily@chartr.co?subject=Feedback&body=Hi%2C%0A%0AI%20like%20the%20newsletters%2C%20but%20I%20had%20a%20thought%20for%20you...) or want to [sponsor]( this newsletter? Not a subscriber? Sign up for free below. [Subscribe]( Copyright © 2024 CHARTR LIMITED, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website. Our mailing address is: CHARTR LIMITED 231 Vauxhall Bridge RoadLondon, SW1V 1AD United Kingdom [Add us to your address book]( Don't want charts in your inbox anymore? Break our hearts and [unsubscribe](.