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?
Continue reading...

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
Continue reading...

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?
Continue reading...

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

Continue reading...

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
Continue reading...

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?
Continue reading...

February 14, 2023

When it comes to Super Bowl ads, there are two factors that usually help companies stand out from the rest of the pack: making people laugh, or failing that, being such a big brand that people cannot help but think of your ad after the game. This year, though, the spot that took first place in USA Today’s annual Ad Meter poll did not try for comedy, nor did it come from a major company that routinely tops the list. Continue reading

Continue reading...

February 8, 2023

In 1989, Anheuser-Busch signed an agreement with the NFL giving the brewer exclusive rights to advertise alcohol nationally during the Super Bowl. After 33 years of having a monopoly over big game beer ads, however, AB InBev decided not to renew their license this year. And as the video below shows, the field is now wide open for companies like MillerCoors to reach a big national audience that has previously been unavailable to them.

Questions:

  1. Do you think it was Continue reading
Continue reading...

February 3, 2023

Lego grew to be the world’s largest toymaker by appealing to many different kinds of customers, from kids and collectors to corporations looking for fun team-building activities. The Danish company manages to reach lots of people by licensing popular properties like Stars Wars and Marvel for a range of content like movies, TV shows, and video games. This video looks at how Lego drives toy sales by branching out into entertainment that reinforces its brand and grows its customer Continue reading

Continue reading...

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

Continue reading...