Colin Kaepernick enters the latest Wall Street fashion

Colin Kaepernick enters the latest Wall Street fashion

by

Tonight: Kap joins the SPAC craze; Uber’s impressive loss is still very good news; and don’t forget your spare rooms – Aldi is betting everything on America. Let’s get into that.

Colin Kaepernick, the former NFL defender and defender, is the latest high profile investor to join the SPAC craze.

A SPAC, or special purpose acquisition company, is a very modern way of going public. Instead of going through the expensive and time-consuming process of an IPO, private companies can merge with a SPAC, also known as a blank check firm, which exists only to raise money by listing on a stock exchange.

Kaepernick will serve as co-president of Mission Advancement Corp., which seeks to raise about $ 250 million to invest in socially conscious consumer brands. Kap is following in the footsteps of other famous athletes entering the – can we still call it a bubble? – trend. Alex Rodriguez, former Yankee and future husband of J.Lo, has one. Billy Beane, from the famous “Moneyball”, has one. And Shaq has a SPAC.

SPACs were once an obscure part of the market, but then 2020 happened. With pockets full of easy money from the Fed, investors began looking for creative ways to invest. Last year, SPACs raised $ 76 billion – almost six times more than in 2019.

BIG PICTURE

Although the GameStop frenzy has subsided, there is still a lot of appetite for risky investments – especially since interest rates remain close to zero.

You can see this in the fervor for unprofitable startups like Airbnb and DoorDash, who became gangbusters on their first day of trading. Or consider Tesla, which doesn’t even make money from sales of its electric vehicles, but has a higher market value than all the other major automakers combined.

And, of course, in SPACs. “What you are doing is throwing money out there – and hoping to find an idea,” Richard Fisher, the former president of the Dallas Federal Reserve, told my colleague Matt Egan. “It is another indicator that the money is very cheap.”

ALDI IS TOTAL

Aldi, the German grocery store known for its megacontracts and peculiar store rules (like charging 25 cents for using a cart), says it is on track to become the third largest supermarket chain in the US in number of stores, after Kroger and Walmart.

The grocery store has just announced that it will open 100 new stores in the United States this year, adding to the more than 2,000 it already owns in 37 states.

WHY IT ARISES?

This is, of course, an increase in the pandemic. For the past year or so, Americans have stocked up on the essentials to eat at home instead of dining out. Supermarket sales increased by almost 8% in December from the same month in 2019, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. And Aldi has an advantage when it comes to price and scalability, reports my colleague Nathaniel Meyersohn.
  • Very low prices: The store boasts that its prices are up to 50% cheaper than those of traditional supermarkets. Aldi usually beats Walmart in his own low-priced game.
  • Smaller stores: At around 12,000 square feet, its stores are much smaller than a typical 40,000 square foot American supermarket – making it easier to open a store in urban areas.
  • Private labels: More than 90% of the brands that Aldi sells are its own brands – a great source of income for merchants.

Aldi has challenges, however:

  • The competition: Lidl, another German grocer with a similar business model, is also racing to grow in the United States, with plans to open 50 new stores by the end of this year.
  • 2021 is not 2020: Food sales are expected to drop 5% this year, according to a UBS analyst, as vaccines (I hope) help contain the pandemic and allow customers to return to restaurants.
  • Not all Americans love the quirks of the store. A room for a shopping cart? Sure, you get it back when you return the cart (that’s another way for Aldi to keep labor costs down), but who’s still got change in their pockets? And at the cashier, a cashier will take you to another location to pack your purchases.

DAY NUMBER

92.5%

Double mask: Placing a cloth mask over a medical procedure mask, such as a blue disposable surgical mask, can block 92.5% of the potentially infectious particles from escaping, creating a tighter fit and eliminating leaks, US health officials said on Wednesday. -market.

FOOD THINGS

When fast food news comes, Nightcap is there.

COMBACK HI-C’S

Our long national nightmare is over. McDonald’s is bringing Hi-C Orange. Fan-favorite drink was kicked almost four years ago when McDonald’s replaced it with Sprite Tropic Berry. People were so furious that they started a petition to bring him back. You know, people say that Americans have a right – I say we fight is what we believe.

IOU FISHIN ‘

Popeyes is opening a seafront in the Great Chicken Sandwich War. The chain is launching a new crispy fish sandwich that hopes to give it an edge as more and more competitors capitalize on the chicken craze. Popeyes is also offering “sandwich insurance” for the first day – for an additional 15 cents, people who buy the fish sandwich and don’t like it can exchange it for a chicken sandwich.

WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING

  • Corporate responsibility: The goal is giving free Lyft rides to workers to get Covid-19 vaccines.
  • Banned: Former President Trump will not be allowed to return to Twitter, even if he runs for office again and wins, according to the Twitter CFO.
  • Facing Big Tech: The man behind Fortnite is making the most risky bet of his career. The payoff can be huge.

.Source