🛒 Walmart’s in-store ads
Hey Snackers,
There are plenty of streaming services out there, but this one has a stellar proposition: no ads, no monthly fees, and vicarious space travel. NASA is launching its own streamer to let astro-nots visit the moon without leaving their couch. It’s called — wait for it — NASA+.
Stocks kicked off August mixed after fresh labor data showed US job openings fell to a two-year low in June. Meanwhile, shares of Uber and Pfizer dipped after the corporate biggies missed Wall Street’s revenue expectations.
Ads hit the aisle as Walmart and other retailers shop for a new income stream
Where we’re going, we don’t need ad blockers… Coming soon to a Walmart near you: ads. The largest US retailer is incorporating third-party ads in its self-checkout lanes, TV aisles, store intercoms, and at free-sample stations. For advertisers, it's a way to reach Walmart’s 139M weekly US customers. For shoppers, it’s a commercial that can’t be skipped.
90% of Americans live within 10 miles of one of Walmart’s ~4.7K US stores, and the chain has ~170K screens ripe for ads. That lets it deliver “Super Bowl-sized audiences” to advertisers every week.
Room in the cart: Last fiscal year, Walmart’s global ad biz grew 30% to $2.7B. But that’s still less than 1% of the retail goliath’s total annual revenue.
Ads to cart… Walmart isn’t the only retailer reminding customers to buy stuff while they’re buying stuff. Grocery king Kroger sells ad space on digital smart screens in its cooler aisles and plays audio ads, while Target’s testing demos. “Retail media” (retailers selling ad spots/data) is becoming a big side hustle, on track to hit $45B this year (up 20% from last year). But retailers need to tread carefully because ad overload could alienate shoppers.Â
Advertisers are on the hunt for a guarantee… Giants like Meta and Google can serve up ads based on browsing preferences, but those have become easy to scroll past. Meanwhile, retailers like Walmart offer advertisers a trove of shopping-habit data on customers who already have their wallets open and their foot in the aisle.
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Pokémon Sleep tries to capitalize on the gamified wellness craze as apps embrace health
Pokémon Don’t Go Anywhere… The Pokémon Sleep app, which asks users to catch ’em all while they’re snoozing, is blasting up the App Store rankings with reportedly millions of downloads less than two weeks after launching. The app listens to users while they snooze, and deep-sleep sounds get rewarded with Pokémon to collect in the a.m. App developer Niantic is trying to catch a Ditto — aka replicate its breakout success with Pokémon Go.
Pokémon Go, which turned walking around into a quest to capture Pokémon, has racked up 1B+ downloads since its 2016 launch and brought in $1B+ in in-app purchases annually since 2020. Niantic hasn’t had a big hit since, despite several “Pokémon Go but with X” (basketball, Harry Potter) attempts.
10K steps, maxed-out REM, daily meditation… Apps are tapping into the $1.5T (and growing) wellness craze. A recent survey found that more than two in five Americans use health apps — and half of those folks check ’em daily. High engagement = $$.Â
Premium access: Top health app MyFitnessPal has 200M+ users and makes the bulk of its revenue from subscriptions. Calm has 4M+ users who pay $70/year for its guided meditations.Â
Flywheel: Nike said last year that almost half of its digital revenue came from its apps, including Nike Training Club and Nike Run Club.
Apps leverage the health halo… Screen time is usually considered unhealthy (picture: endless TikTok scrolling), but users don’t feel guilty about spending more time (and money) on something viewed as physically and mentally beneficial. While Pokémon Go and Pokémon Sleep aren’t necessary to get in a walk outside or a good night’s rest, Niantic is leveraging the gamified health halo to keep users engaged with (competitive) self-improvement.
Heard on the Block: “attestation”
đź©ş When you get your annual checkup over Zoom…Â
Lots of companies get financial physicals, in the form of audits, from third parties that check their books to see if reported #s match reality. Unlike audits, third-party “attestations” typically look at a biz’s finances at one moment in time (and aren’t considered as thorough). Tether, the largest stablecoin by market cap, has been criticized for promising audits but releasing attestations. The biz said an attestation showed that its second-quarter “own profit” increased to $850M — even as the larger stablecoin market shrank to a two-year low.
What else we’re Snackin’
Hail: Uber delivered its first operating profit as its ride-hailing, (new) ads unit, and Eats all grew. Mobility revenue surged 38% (faster than delivery), as the # of US rides surpassed prepandemic levels.Â
Crane: Caterpillar stock set a record after the yellow-construction-equipment icon crushed earnings estimates. Sales were up 22% last quarter as demand for its building machinery boomed despite price hikes.Â
Birkenbarb: “Ugly shoe” legend Birkenstock may IPO at an $8B+ valuation. The OG comfy clog has become a fashion hit thanks to collabs with luxe designers and a flashy cameo in “Barbie.”Â
Gassy: British oil titan BP said its quarterly profit dropped 70% from a year ago, when gas prices skyrocketed and oil majors enjoyed record-breaking profits. Exxon, Shell, and Chevron reported ~50% profit declines.Â
Undead: Bed Bath & Beyond the bankruptcy grave: the BB&B site relaunched yesterday. The sheet-slinging retailer has gained a second life online after shuttering its stores and being acquired by Overstock.
Wednesday
ADP nonfarm-employment report
Earnings expected from Bausch + Lomb, Cheesecake Factory, Fastly, Garmin, Kraft Foods, MetLife, MGM Resorts, PayPal, Phillips 66, Public Storage, Robinhood, Shopify, Spirit Airlines, and TripAdvisorÂ
Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Exxon, Fastly, Google, Kraft Foods, Robinhood, Shopify, Uber, and Walmart