☕ Not on Target

How our takeout orders are changing... [Advertisement][Advertisement][Advertisement] August 17, 2023 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( Good morning. On this day in 1998, former President Bill Clinton turned everyone’s minds into a pretzel when, during grand jury testimony over his affair with Monica Lewinsky, he mused, “It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.” Truthfully, it’s been a while since preschool and we could use a little refresher. According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of “is” is “the present tense third-person singular of be.” And the definition of “be” is “to equal in meaning.” Okay, not sure that helped. —Matty Merritt, Cassandra Cassidy, Molly Liebergall, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 13,474.63 -1.15% S&P 4,404.33 -0.76% Dow 34,765.74 -0.52% 10-Year 4.285% +2.9 bps Bitcoin $28,495.80 -2.46% Sacks Parente Golf $4.47 -84.57% *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 2:00am ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Stocks [tumbled]( after notes released yesterday from the Fed’s last meeting showed J-Pow and Co. are still very worried about inflation and could consider more rate hikes. Pricey putter-maker Sacks Parente Golf, which saw its stock rise 624% on Tuesday in the strongest market debut of the year so far, came plummeting back down to earth yesterday. Trading in the company was halted several times throughout the day because the stock was so volatile.  ENTERTAINMENT [Music execs aren’t behind the songs of summer]( [Oliver Anthony performing Rich Men North of Richmond and clip from Planet of the Bass]( Last summer, a Netflix show about D&D made an ’80s Kate Bush hit a contender for song of the season, but this summer, two of the biggest biggest bops came from an even more surprising place: nowhere. Eurodance parody “Planet of the Bass” and conservative favorite “Rich Men North of Richmond” are very different songs whose popularity skyrocketed for very different reasons—but both popped off without the help of traditional music labels. If you’re still humming “Running Up That Hill,” here’s the scoop on these two: A song about nothing. Brooklyn-based comedian Kyle Gordon (and his alter ego DJ Crazy Times) went viral with three teaser trailers for “[Planet of the Bass]( filmed by his brother on an iPhone. Gordon said he has no intention of becoming a pop star, but: - The official music video, released Tuesday, already has more than 860,000 views, and the first preview has 110+ million. - Gordon performed the song at a Jonas Brothers concert in Boston. A song about a whole lot. Oliver Anthony’s “[Rich Men North of Richmond]( was number one on Spotify’s Top 50 chart for the US yesterday, after debuting a little over a week ago on YouTube, where it’s racked up 16 million views. Anthony says he identifies “dead center down the aisle” politically, but the song’s hype owes a lot to conservatives like Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Walsh, and Ben Shapiro, who praised its lyrics criticizing high taxes and welfare. - Some progressives have accused Anthony of being an “industry plant” to carry the baton of Jason Aldean’s controversial chart topper, “Try That in a Small Town,” or even of having QAnon ties. Big picture: These two “songs of the summer” became hits without traditional industry help, even as music execs [told Billboard]( they’ve struggled recently to create new superstars the old-fashioned way.—MM   TOGETHER WITH BETTERMENT [Could your cash work harder?]( [Betterment]( Betterment’s [Cash Reserve, aka a high-yield cash account]( is currently offering new customers a 5.50% variable APY* with a qualifying deposit ([terms apply](. That’s 13x the national average savings rate.** Seriously! On top of that, Betterment’s Cash Reserve is [FDIC-insured up to $2m]( ($4m for joint accounts) at program banks†, with no limits on withdrawals and transfers. Grow your savings and put your money to work with Betterment. There’s no minimum balance—just $10 to start. [Open your Cash Reserve account](. **The national average savings account interest rate is reported by the FDIC (as of 7/17/23) as the average annual percentage yield (APY) for savings accounts with deposits under $100,000. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [That'll do pig]Babe/Universal Pictures via Giphy A pig kidney implanted into a human is still working after a month. In a big step toward using animals to help ease the shortage of donated organs, the surgical team at NYU Langone that [transplanted]( a genetically modified pig kidney into a brain-dead man (with his family’s consent) said it continues to function normally 32 days later. That’s the longest such an organ has worked inside a person, and it raises hopes that pig organs can one day help human patients in need of donations. As of March, when the US proposed revamping its organ donation system, more than 100,000 people were waiting for organs. An appeals court ruled abortion pills should stay on the market. The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit yesterday [overturned]( a Texas judge’s ruling revoking the FDA’s decades-old approval of mifepristone. However, the court said the drug should not be available through the mail or prescribed via telemedicine, which would make it unavailable in some states with abortion bans. The ruling will have no immediate impact on the accessibility of mifepristone, because a Supreme Court order keeping it available until the justices weigh in was already in effect. Intel calls off $5.4 billion purchase of chipmaker over China delay. Intel said yesterday it had agreed to ditch [a deal]( to buy Israeli chip manufacturer Tower Semiconductor (and pay Tower a $353 million fee) after Chinese regulators failed to conduct a required antitrust review of the acquisition before a crucial deadline. The scuttled purchase comes amid tension between the US and China over technology, especially chips, which the Biden administration has worked to restrict China’s access to. RETAIL [People are still shopping, just not at Target]( [Target logo on a balloon with darts going toward it]( Francis Scialabba What’s up? Not sales at Target, which soared during the pandemic but, much like your family’s bonding time, have fallen off since. The company [revealed yesterday]( that sales slumped last quarter for the first time in four years, and despite a profit surge, the retailer cut its profit forecast for the year. Why the slump? Target said that lower sales last quarter are partially a result of the consumer backlash over its Pride collection…and over its removal of that Pride collection. But culture wars aren’t the only problem for everyone’s favorite place to accidentally spend $50: With prices for essentials rising, customers only have so much left to spend on seasonal oven mitts. Target is uniquely exposed to discretionary spending categories, [which account]( for 54% of its annual sales, according to the Wall Street Journal. As for things people do need, groceries only make up 20% of Target’s yearly revenue, compared to more than 50% of rival Walmart’s. And even when customers are buying for fun, they’re hunting for bargains one strip mall over at TJ Maxx, whose parent company [reported strong sales]( and raised its outlook for the year yesterday, instead. Looking ahead…Target executives are bracing for an uncertain future as student loan payments resume on September 1, likely leaving the chain’s main demographic—millennials—short on cash.—CC   SPONSORED BY CISCO [Cisco]( Ready to revolutionize the user experience? [Cisco Full-Stack Observability]( gives you end-to-end visibility across your applications, infrastructure, and network layers so you can drive business transformation. Act on comprehensive digital insights. [Start a free trial today](. FOOD [Seems like nobody wants their food delivered anymore]( [Person declining food delivery]( Illustration: Francis Scialabba, Photos: Getty Images Fast-casual food delivery is becoming less popular as more people get their freaking arses up and opt for takeout or in-person dining. The [dip in delivery]( is largely because consumers are watching their wallets, analysts say. With pandemic lockdowns behind us, people can no longer justify paying the fees and inflated menu prices associated with clicking “Order” from the couch. And some [fast-casual chains]( are getting nostalgic for the goblin mode days. - Sweetgreen has fulfilled fewer delivery orders and more pickups recently, and the salad chain fell short of overall revenue estimates last quarter. - Deliveries for health bowl competitor Cava have similarly declined, with pickups on the up. That contributed to the company’s cautious sales growth forecast for the year (but so did rising gas prices and other universal economic concerns). - Chipotle’s delivery revenue [dropped]( 15.8% last quarter compared to the same time last year. Companies that focus on delivery haven’t all been hit as hard. Uber’s delivery sales increased 14% and DoorDash’s grew 25% last quarter, but Grubhub’s parent company did report decreasing order volumes across North America this year. Restaurants are trying to adapt: After [struggling]( with delivery for more than a year, Domino’s finally agreed last month to partner with Uber Eats and Postmates.—ML   GRAB BAG [Key performance indicators](#) [A VinFast electric car]Josh Lefkowitz/Getty Images Stat: Quick, name a major car company. VinFast, a Vietnamese electric vehicle startup that has yet to turn a profit, probably wasn’t the first to spring to mind. But after it went public via SPAC Tuesday, the company’s stock more than tripled, pushing its [market value]( to ~$86 billion as of the market’s close. That was higher than General Motors ($45.8 billion) or Ford ($47.9 billion). VinFast plunged 19% yesterday as investors weighed the challenges ahead for the company, but it showed the market still has an appetite for EV manufacturers and SPAC deals—even though several of both have stumbled recently. Quote: “These scientists keep naming critters after me, but it’s always the ones that terrify children. I don’t understand. I spend my free time cross-stitching. I sing lullabies to my basil plants, so they won’t fear the night.” Despite Indiana Jones’s famous aversion to snakes, Harrison Ford said he found it “humbling” that researchers [named]( a newly discovered Peruvian species after him (the recently christened Tachymenoides harrisonfordi). But the actor, who already had an ant and spider named for him, did question why his moniker never gets applied to cute, fuzzy Ewok-types. He’s in good company, though, according to this extensive [Wikipedia list]( of species named for celebrities. Read: What happens to all the stuff we return? ([The New Yorker]( NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [Barbie]( is now Warner Bros.’s highest-grossing domestic release ever. It earned more than $537 million, edging out Christopher Nolan’s Batman flick The Dark Knight for the top spot. - [A Kansas newspaper]( will get back all the equipment that was seized from it during a controversial police raid last week, because the local prosecutor withdrew the search warrant. - [Apple]( has reversed its decision to move the “end call” button and has put it back in the middle of the screen in the latest public version of its next iOS. - [England]( will square off against Spain in the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday after beating host country Australia. Meanwhile, the US coach has resigned after the team underperformed in the tournament. RECS [To do list Thursday] When Zillow is not enough: Satisfy your real estate browsing habit on [this site]( for luxury properties only. State of the states: Here’s what AI thinks [every US state]( would look like as a person. Bone up on business: Add these books—all in the running to be named [business book of the year]( your Amazon cart. Pigeons, but make it fashion: This artist’s [photos]( seek to elevate the common birds. Why this mascara has over 20k five-star reviews: This award-winning mascara instantly lengthens lashes to mimic the look of eyelash extensions at a fraction of salon costs. [Brew readers get 20% off their lusciously long lashes here]( Daily dime: Ready for a financial game changer? [We worked with Discover]( create a 30-day financial literacy calendar]( that’ll keep you on track to crushing your money goals and making your wallet happy. [Get started]( Discover Bank, Member FDIC. *A message from our sponsors. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Brew Mini: Delay confronting your work emails just a little bit longer by [playing today’s Mini](. Three Headlines and a Lie Three of these headlines are real, and one is faker than someone telling you to let them know when you’re in town. Can you spot the odd one out? - Cops say ‘aliens’ [attacking]( Amazonian village are men with jetpacks - A Kansas grocery store now has the [top podcast]( on Spotify - Scientists just [discovered]( a ‘strawberry-like’ antarctic invertebrate with 20 arms - Florida village [terrorized]( by peacocks plans to use vasectomies to solve the problem SHARE THE BREW [Share Morning Brew]( with your friends, acquire free Brew swag, and then acquire more friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. We’re saying we’ll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others: [morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=4904f90a]( ANSWER We made up the one about the grocery store podcast. Written by [Neal Freyman]( [Matty Merritt]( [Cassandra Cassidy]( [Molly Liebergall]( and [Abigail Rubenstein]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Take The Brew to work - Marketers: [Marketing Brew]( - Corporate: [CFO Brew](  [HR Brew]( - Tech: [IT Brew](  [Tech Brew]( - Retailers: [Retail Brew]( - Healthcare: [Healthcare Brew]( Get smarter in just 5 minutes - Money & Career: [Money Scoop](  [Money With Katie](  [Raise]( Business education without the BS - Programs in [Business Essentials]( [Analytics]( and [Leadership]( Interested in podcasts? - Check out ours [here]( [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. Please Note: We've recently updated our Privacy Policy. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2023 Morning Brew. All rights reserved. 22 W 19th St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10011