🧸 Rise of the kidults

Plus: An email vs. meetings study, the bikini’s origin, 67k product placements, a strange cake, wild news numbers, and more. [The Hustle] Here’s a feel-good story: Kevin Ford was recently recognized at work with candy after not missing a day for 27 years. His daughter thought he deserved more and, with the internet’s help, she’s raised $340k+. In today’s email: - Kidults: Who are they and what do they want? - Chart: Is email slowing us down? - Digits: Hummers, dog hotels, $1T gift cards, and more. - Around the web: The bikini’s origin, 67k product placements, a strange cake, and more cool internet finds. 🎧 On the go? [Listen to today’s podcast]( to hear about the massive cult of teens that went bananas over a hilarious meme and helped Minions: The Rise of Gru break box office records over the weekend. The big idea [adult playing with toys]( The rise of the ‘kidult’ Do you love board game nights, going to Disneyland without kids, and watching teen dramas on The CW? Then you might be a kidult. The term [dates back]( to the 1950s when the TV industry used it to describe adults who enjoyed youthful programming, like “The Adventures of Sir Lancelot” (TBH, 100% [would watch](). Today’s kidults — and their adult paychecks — are driving demand for nostalgia and play as they revel in the pastimes and culture of their youth. And they love toys A 2021 Toy Association Survey found that 58% of adult respondents had purchased a toy for themselves, [per]( Bloomberg. Of those: - 65% purchased board games - 61% bought craft or building kits - 53% threw down on collectibles - 52% got into video games Makes sense. Who among us has never wanted to unwind over some “Dungeons & Dragons” while wearing a DIY bedazzled denim vest? The trend is also leading brands to release toys geared toward adults, like grown-up-sized Razor scooters, artsy Lego sets, and a $105 Barbie dressed like David Bowie. - On TikTok, [#AdultMoney]( videos of adults buying toys for themselves, “and having zero regrets about it,” have nearly 4B views. But this isn’t entirely a new thing Adult coloring books boomed in 2015, selling [12m]( copies compared to 1m the year prior. Funko Pops [launched]( in 1998 with a bobblehead of the Big Boy mascot. Now it’s worth $1.15B, selling pop culture dolls. The figures appeal to all ages, but many — e.g., Beetlejuice or Britney Spears — likely resonate most with the adults who grew up with them. Others just aren’t for kids, like, uh, this [bloody Hannibal Lecter doll](. Trends [also recently found]( several opportunities based on increased interest in kid-stuff-but-for-adults: - Google searches for adult bounce houses are up 87% - Goodles — a food company making healthier versions of kids’ meals — recently raised $10m and gets ~80k website visits/mo. BTW: If this has you feeling young at heart, perhaps what you need is an [adult summer camp](. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=The+rise+of+the+%E2%80%98kidult%E2%80%99%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F07052022-Kidults%3Futm_campaign%3DTuesday%2BEmail%26utm_content%3D07052022-Kidults%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( SNIPPETS Do you pay or collect rent? The rental market’s gone bonkers this year, and we want to hear from you about it. If you have a few minutes, please fill out [our survey](. RadioShack’s… reinvention? The 100-year-old electronics retailer saw its brand [reintroduced]( as a cryptocurrency company with a potty-mouthed [Twitter account](. Google says it will start [auto-deleting]( users’ location data from visits to potentially sensitive sites like abortion clinics, domestic violence shelters, and weight loss clinics. Watch doctor: A new report [speculates]( that the Apple Watch Series 8 will be able to detect fevers through a body temperature sensor. Update: FTX [signed]( an agreement to purchase crypto lender BlockFi for up to $240m. A previous report pegged the purchase price at $25m. Equal treatment: Playing favorites with your employees may foster discontent and unhealthy competition in the workplace. Check out the Hustle blog for how to [spot and combat]( the practice. --------------------------------------------------------------- Hey — enjoy getting quick updates on what you care about? Take [20 seconds]( to personalize your Snippets. Pick your preferences👇 and we’ll send you more of what you love. Boom. [Personalize my Email →]( chart [negotiating a sales strategy email vs in-person]( Singdhi Sokpo A new study highlights how face-to-face trumps email Many of us have probably had the thought: “That could’ve been an email.” But a series of recent studies build a [compelling case]( that some emails should, in fact, be meetings, according to The Wall Street Journal. Researchers at Florida International University… … arranged four experiments where they split participants into two groups. The first group performed tasks in person, while the second performed the same tasks over email. - The email group took 20 minutes to arrive at a sales strategy that took the face-to-face group six minutes. - Email participants also performed worse on a variety of ensuing tasks, from spotting grammar errors to deciphering logic problems. The big takeaway? Email is best for simple tasks — but when things get complicated, it exacerbates the problem. How can you prevent email paralysis? Dr. Ravi Gajendran, author of the study, says regular meetings can help reduce the risk of getting stuck in endless email threads. Great, so more meetings. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=A+new+study+highlights+how+face-to-face+trumps+email%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F07052022-face-to-face-vs-email%3Futm_campaign%3DTuesday%2BEmail%26utm_content%3D07052022-face-to-face-vs-email%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( By the Numbers Digits: Hummers, dog hotels, and $1T gift cards 1) Months after starting deliveries, GM is reportedly churning out just [12 Hummer EVs a day](, though that’s expected to drastically increase. Also last week, Tesla reported delivering [254,695 vehicles]( in Q2, slightly below expectations but up 26.5% YoY. 2) Over 23m US homes welcomed a pet during the pandemic, and now dog boarding companies like Camp Bow Wow are seeing [bookings up 29%]( from 2019 levels. Prices for boarding are reportedly up 10%-15% in the same time. 3) This year, [more than $1T]( will be loaded onto gift cards. Companies normally keep the “breakage” from “open loop” cards — the ones that work like debit cards and sometimes expire before users spend the whole amount. In 2020, firms banked $14B+ through this process. 4) In 2024, Air New Zealand plans to debut “Skynest,” an economy section with two rows of triple stacked bunk pods. The lie-flat pods might suit customers on the carrier’s [17-hour Auckland-to-New York flight]( debuting this fall. 5) A new report found the cities with the most significant rent decreases in June included [Tallahassee, FL (-6.5%)](, Anchorage, AK (-6.2%), and Honolulu, HI (-6.1%). On the other end, Norfolk, VA (+6.4%) and Fresno, CA (+6.3%) saw the biggest jumps. [Share on Facebook]( [Share on Twitter]( [Send as email to a friend](mailto:?subject=The%20Hustle%20wrote%20something%20I%20think%20you%27ll%20like...%0A&body=Digits%3A+Hummers%2C+dog+hotels%2C+and+%241T+gift+cards%0Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fthehustle.co%2F07052022-digits%3Futm_campaign%3DTuesday%2BEmail%26utm_content%3D07052022-digits%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_source%3Ddaily%0A%0AYou%20can%20subscribe%20with%20my%20link%20here%20to%20get%20the%20latest%20in%20tech%20and%20business%20daily:%0A [View on our website]( TRENDS How Rob Dyrdek quietly built a $400m empire You know Rob Dyrdek the skateboarder, maybe Rob Dyrdek the host of “Ridiculousness”… … but, odds are, you haven’t met Rob Dyrdek the entrepreneur. In 2016, investors were still calling the ex-pro skateboarder "uninvestable" — as if that would hold down a guy with 20+ world records. Since then, Rob has restructured a mess of ambitious ventures into [a tight, two-pronged approach]( designed to accumulate wealth. Dyrdek Machine is now a nine-figure powerhouse. His massive success started (in his 40s) with: - A focus shift to real-estate investments and content production - Co-founding and claiming meaningful stakes in each venture - Making the most of every minute (literally, he keeps meticulous track of his time) We break down all of Rob's strategies, tactics, and advice for newcomers [in our latest Trends deep dive.]( To get access to the full report, [try one week of Trends for just $1](. [Get in there! →]( AROUND THE WEB 👙 On this day: In 1946, French fashion designer Louis Réard and showgirl Micheline Bernardini [introduced]( the bikini at a Paris pool. He named the new swimsuit style after the Bikini Atoll, where the US conducted an atomic test days prior. 🍔 That’s interesting: [Product Placement Blog]( lists 67k+ product placements seen in movies, TV shows, and music videos. 🐎 That’s cool: The Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo is a Black rodeo that’s been going on for 35+ years. Bay Area photographer Gabriela Hasbun has spent 10+ years [documenting]( it. 🎂 Wow: An odd yet very impressive [cake](. 🐿️ Aww: And now, [Squishy’s back](. Meme [meeting meme] Unnecessary, Jim. (Source: [imgflip.com]() SHARE THE HUSTLE Hey. Stop keeping us a secret. Refer just 3 people and we’ll start to send some goodies as a thank you. [all prizes]( Spread the news. Help us grow 🌱 [Share The Hustle 🤠→]( Or copy this custom referral link: [ Your referral count: 0 How did you like today’s email? Today's email was brought to you by [Jacob Cohen](, [Juliet Bennett Rylah](, and [Rob Litterst](. Editing by: Jennifer “Proud kidult” Wang. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. [PODCAST]( [JOBS]( [CONTACT US](mailto:news@thehustle.co) [Facebook]( [Youtube]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( 25 FIRST ST. 2ND FLOOR, CAMBRIDGE, MA 02141, UNITED STATES  +1 888 482 7768 Never want to hear from us again? Break our hearts and [unsubscribe](list=thehustle). [The Hustle logo](