April 21, 2023

For a few months every year, legions of Girl Scouts across America set out on entrepreneurial adventures to sell classic cookies like Thin Mints, Samoas, and Tagalongs. This video looks at the $800 million Girl Scout cookie operation, which aims to teach kids valuable business lessons and people skills that remain for a lifetime.

Questions:

  1. How do the Girl Scouts use scarcity to increase demand for cookies every year?
  2. How has e-commerce changed the Girl Scout cookie selling experience?
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April 18, 2023

The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 changed the movie exhibition industry forever, as theaters around the country closed their doors and streaming services racked up millions of new subscribers. At the time, some experts predicted that platforms like Netflix and Disney+ would take over the attention of moviegoers entirely as theaters gradually faded into obscurity. In the years that followed, though, the enthusiasm surrounding streaming has started to taper off as these services continue to mount up debt Continue reading

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March 30, 2023

The video below takes a long look at Li-Lac Chocolate, the oldest chocolate house in New York that thrives by doing things the old fashioned way. Along with observing their unique production processes, this video examines how Li-Lac made it through the pandemic to continue its century-long tradition.

  1. What value do the antique chocolate molds owned by Li-Lac Chocolates give to the company?
  2. How did the pandemic affect business at Li-Lac Chocolate?
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March 10, 2023

Prices on everyday products like groceries and diapers have increased dramatically in the last couple of years, with inflation often being identified as the culprit. This video takes a close look at the potential causes of the post-pandemic trend of rising inflation, examining why supply chain issues and plain old markups could be responsible for ever-increasing prices. 

Questions:

  1. What are the potential causes of inflation outlined in this video? Which factor do you think is the most likely cause Continue reading
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March 3, 2023

Florida’s orange crop is shrinking year after year, sending commodity prices skyrocketing for orange juice concentrate. This video examines the intricacies of commodity markets through the lens of concentrated OJ, looking at concepts like futures contracts and how they affect both farmers and retailers.

Questions:

  1. Why has Florida’s plummeting orange production caused juice prices to increase significantly? 
  2. What are the benefits of futures contracts for farmers and manufacturers?
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February 24, 2023

This week, the esports talent agency GameSquare announced that it hired Tyler “Ninja” Blevins as its Chief Innovation Officer. A famous Fortnite streamer with more than 17 million followers on the platform Twitch, the company said Ninja will “curate disruptive strategies, pursue new business opportunities, and explore next-gen technologies to accelerate the [e-sports] industry’s growth within pop culture.” This will also give Ninja another source of revenue besides streaming, which he claims to earn $500,000 a month from while keeping Continue reading

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February 22, 2023

While last week we looked at how Domino’s relies on automation to mass produce its pizza dough, today’s video examines the operations at a company that takes the opposite approach. At Utopia Bagels in New York City, a well-trained staff of specialists make thousands of bagels by hand every day, all driven by a passionate owner whose love for his craft comes through in this video.

Questions:

  1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of making bagels entirely by hand?
  2. What Continue reading
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February 17, 2023

With thousands of locations across more than 90 international markets, Domino’s has become a global powerhouse thanks largely to its innovative production and distribution methods. This video takes an extensive look at how Domino’s makes pizza, focusing especially on a dough-making facility that relies heavily on automation to succeed.

Questions:

  1. Why did Domino’s install automated systems in its Indiana dough-making facility?
  2. Do you think more food companies should rely on automation like Domino’s? Why or why not?
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January 27, 2023

Food prices hiked by inflation have taken a toll on Americans’ wallets for more than a year, although economists say that costs for a number of commodities are finally starting to fall. But that has not been the case with eggs: the average U.S. price per dozen hit $4.25 in December 2022, up from $1.79 a year earlier. The situation is especially bad in costly markets like California, where 12 Grade A large eggs go for an average of $7.37. Continue reading

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December 14, 2022

The members of the K-pop group BTS are more than just entertainers: they’re financial juggernauts who have contributed billions of dollars to the South Korean economy. The video below looks at how BTS leverages their massive global audience to develop lucrative brand partnerships with everyone from McDonald’s to Louis Vuitton. This bonanza of cash might not go on forever, though, with the group announcing they were taking a brief hiatus that could potentially blunt their branding power. 

Questions:

  1. What Continue reading
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