Aug 22, 2024

An Abondance of Caution

Abondance, as we all know, is a handcrafted wheel-shaped cheese from the Haute Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. It's been made traditionally with cow's milk since the 12th century and exudes a robust aroma with an intensely fruity, buttery, and hazelnutty flavor. In other words, it's a lot like this newsletter.

Speaking of caution, markets rose — albeit with an Abondance of it — yesterday on strong results from Target, as the company snapped a streak of sales declines. Discount retailer TJ Maxx, where I used to buy all my clothes before I became fabulously wealthy, also raised its profit expectations for the year. Meanwhile, Macy's reported another quarter of shrinking sales in a sign that shoppers are being cautious with their money. Minutes from the Fed's July meeting continued to bolster investors' expectations of an interest rate cut in September. The long and short of it is that everything in the universe is unfolding as it should. Today's cheddlines:

Adopting an Abondance mindset.

—Matt Davis, N2K Chedditor

P.S. We've got a mobile chicken coop on our 'gram.

Quote of the Day

"At the mid-point of 2024, we asked small businesses to look back on the goals they set for the year, and we found that they're satisfied with their progress and successes over the first half." — Gina Taylor Cotter

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1. Taylor Swift, King Charles Meet with Stabbing Victims

If my family had been murdered in a horrific knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in a small town west of Liverpool in my native England, I can tell you categorically that one thing would be guaranteed to make me feel even worse: meeting King Charles III.

Still, Old Chuck evidently cannot read a room. He showed up in Southport yesterday to "comfort" people and thank emergency services for their response to the incident. Swift met separately with some of the injured at a concert in London, where she also offered her sympathies and support.

The attack, which took place on July 29, also led to subsequent riots fueled by anti-immigrant misinformation regarding the assailant's identity. The misinformation suggested incorrectly that he was an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK on a small boat. Then, it spread further on X, which has scaled back misinformation prevention efforts since Elon Musk bought the platform in 2022. The 17-year-old suspect, originally from Cardiff, now faces charges of murder and attempted murder.

People are susceptible to misinformation when they're marginalized for various reasons including poverty. In totally unrelated news, the average price of a house in Southport is $315,000, according to Rightmove, which means Taylor Swift could afford to house almost 20 percent of the entire population of the town with her $1.3 billion net worth (assuming each house has 4 people). Meanwhile King Charles is worth about $2.3 billion and between them, Chuck and Taylor (that's amazing, what I just did, there...) could get to about a half. If you add in what Elon Musk paid for Twitter you could house the entire town outright, more than 12 times over. Sadly, one assumes Chuck and Taylor's shared expressions of sympathy came only with thoughts and prayers attached.

[Googles: "Russia, 1917."]

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2. Mid-Air Dive Injures 50 in a Boeing 787

If there's one thing that makes me more optimistic about getting on an airplane it's reading the phrase "mid-air dive" in the news. Still, that's what happened when a pilot's seat moved unexpectedly on a March flight from Sydney to Auckland, causing the autopilot to disengage and the plane to dive 400 feet.

50 of the plane's 263 passengers and crew were injured, with several people flying out of their seats and hitting the roof of the plane. Air New Zealand inspected all 14 of its 787s and found no further issues, but the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority is having none of that and has ordered further inspections of Boeing's entire 787 fleet. They're looking at all the pilot seats to ensure the caps on the switches used to adjust them aren't missing or cracked. The FAA says it has received four other reports from Boeing concerning unintentional seat movements in the cockpit.

Boeing is still reeling from a high-profile incident earlier this year when a door plug fell off a 737 Max plane mid-flight — not to mention recent legal settlements over a couple of fatal crashes. I'll be flying back to New York from London on a (checks ticket) Boeing 767 in a couple of weeks. Pass the tranquilizers, please. Watch Now

From @cheddar

How will they label the eggs? "Free-ish range?"

Well, one of the largest producers of pastured chicken in the U.S., Pasturebird, has developed an automated mobile coop that houses up to 6,000.

Pasturebird's Automated Range Coop (ARC) is a floorless barn on wheels that rolls daily to give chickens access to fresh pasture. The entire structure is powered by solar panels and can be moved with the push of a button.

The mobile coop provides chickens with fresh grass and insects while allowing old pastures to recover. Its movement also enriches the soil with chicken manure, promoting sustainable farming practices.

Follow @cheddar on Instagram!

3. Somebody Else Wants to Buy Paramount Now

A few weeks ago, David Ellison's Skydance Media confirmed plans to buy Paramount for $4.75 billion in an all-stock deal. Now a new consortium of buyers led by veteran media executive Edgar "I just sound so rich" Bronfman has attempted to upstage that bid by offering $4.3 billion for the company, including $1.5 billion in cash that could be used to pay down debt.

Ellison's original bid included a 45-day "go-shop period" that allowed Paramount to solicit and evaluate other offers. That period ended yesterday, but if Paramount chooses another suitor, it must pay Skydance a $400 million "break-up fee."

Whatever happens with this legacy media dinosaur, "break-up fees" sound like an excellent idea more generally. It's not me; it's you, as in (purely hypothetically), "I realize you moved to Oakland for this relationship, and I've only given it a few weeks, but here's $400 million." Ha. Ha. Ha. Yes!

A special committee of Paramount's board is expected to meet Wednesday to determine whether Bronfman's offer has a reasonable probability of succeeding. Then, presumably, they break out the break-up fee! Woo-hoo! Watch Now

You Need 2 Know About This Box!

Meet the Sunset Box, a quarterly subscription service sending home, wellness, and travel goodies straight to your doorstep, curated by editors at mag Sunset, the Western-lifestyle magazine that just so happens to be a sister company of ours.

Since you clearly have good taste (you're an N2K subscriber, after all), we think you'll love this box. Use code CHEDDAR15 for 15% off your subscription.

Gimme the Box!

Note: Sadly does not contain any cheese.

4. Small Business Owners Are Feeling Sort of Good Lately, Surveys Say

Small business owners are feeling positive about their businesses despite inflation and high labor costs, according to two new surveys.

"At the mid-point of 2024, we asked small businesses to look back on the goals they set for the year, and we found that they're satisfied with their progress and successes over the first half," said Gina Taylor Cotter, executive vice president and general manager of American Express' small business products.

The American Express survey of more than 1,100 small business financial decision makers found that 83% of owners said that the past few years have required them to think more creatively than ever before. 87% said that each year they feel more confident in their skills as business owners.

The National Federation of Independent Business, meanwhile, said its Small Business Optimism Index rose 2.2 points in July to 93.7, the highest reading since February 2022. Still, it is the 31st consecutive month below the 50-year average of 98. Inflation remains the top issue among small business owners, with 25% reporting it as the single most important problem in operating their business.

"Despite this increase in optimism, the road ahead remains tough for the nation's small business owners," said NFIB chief economist Bill Dunkelberg. "Cost pressures, especially labor costs, continue to plague small business operations, impacting their bottom line." Read More

5. Beyonce Turns Lemons into Lemon…Er…Whiskey

The Rock has a tequila brand. So does George Clooney. Now Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has launched a new whiskey line named SirDavis, partnering with Moët Hennessy and renowned master distiller Bill Lumsden.

She introduced the brand on Instagram, posting a picture with a glass of whiskey and the bottle, which is adorned with a golden horse emblem. SirDavis is named in tribute to me, the writer of this newsletter, whose last name is Davis. Oh, wait, that's wrong. It's named after Beyoncé's great-grandfather, Davis Hogue, a successful moonshiner during Prohibition. It also resonates with the name of Beyoncé's son, Sir, and I have absolutely nothing to do with any of it.

Beyoncé shared a heartfelt letter to Hogue on her website, expressing a deep connection to his legacy. She has also offered specialty cocktail recipes, such as the Honey Bee and the Texas Buckin', both of which amazingly include some of her whiskey. Not to worry, though: 750ml bottles can be preordered for $89.99. Let's get ~~drunk~~ in formation! Watch Now