Business Wars

When Athletic hit the shelves in 2017, it proved to naysayers that you can have a non-alcoholic beer without sacrificing on taste. Dare we say, it even gave NA brews a certain cool-factor. Athletic helped kick off an NA craze that’s seen more and more alcohol-free beers, botanicals and mocktails infusing beverage menus. But does the trend have staying power? Kate Bernot is a food and beverage reporter and analyst with Feel Goods Insights. Kate’s covered the beer industry for Bon Appetit, The Washington Post, VinePair, and more. She’ll tap into how to make a great NA brew, how Athletic changed the game, and how the industry is adapting.

To learn more about Kate’s work visit: www.katebernot.com.

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With its brewery finally open, Athletic Brewing is on a mission to get its beer into stores. But Heineken, the European leader in this space, is also chasing this growing market and now has its sights set on the U.S. And Athletic wants to prove it can compete not just with the alcohol industry, but against all beverages. 

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It’s 2017 and Bill Shufelt is about to quit stock trading to start a company with a product it seems like nobody wants: non-alcoholic beer. And that’s not even his biggest hurdle. Because his plan depends on making alcohol-free beer taste great – a feat he’s not sure is even possible.

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It’s 2015 and Taylor Swift’s just thrown Apple Music into crisis. But as the Silicon Valley giant tries to get its music-streaming service back on track, its Swedish rival Spotify is about to launch a legal attack that will strike at the very heart of Apple’s business model.

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It’s the late 2000s and the music industry dances to the beat of Apple iTunes. But two Swedish tech entrepreneurs are out to challenge Apple's dominance with their music-streaming startup Spotify. But to do that, they must facedown Internet pirates, record labels and Apple CEO Steve Jobs.

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When Michael Jordan signed with an upstart running shoe company called Nike in the 1980s, it revolutionized the signature sneaker landscape and made Nike the brand to beat. Under Armour made a similar play signing Steph Curry in 2013. But it didn’t pan out quite the way they hoped. Still, nowadays it seems like every star athlete needs a signature line. Tim Newcomb is a sneaker and sports tech reporter whose work has appeared in Forbes, Sports Illustrated, Esquire and more. He's breaking down the rise of the signature shoe from Chuck Taylors in the 1920s to Kobe Bryant’s and Roger Federer’s signature kicks. We’ll also look at some of the new players in the sneaker game, and where Under Armour goes from here. 

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It’s 2014 and Under Armour is getting increasingly aggressive as it takes on Nike, buying fitness apps and signing record-breaking endorsement deals. But they face a major setback when one of their biggest retail partners goes bankrupt. To recoup the lost revenue, Under Armour makes a risky deal. And as the company scrambles to keep up with the rise of ecommerce and athleisure, they face a daunting question: are they losing sight of what made them great? 

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It’s 1995 and college football player Kevin Plank is frustrated with the way the cotton t-shirt he wears under his pads gets drenched with sweat. He begins designing a t-shirt made from a different kind of material - one that will wick away sweat and keep him cool and dry on the field. Upon graduating, Plank uses his life savings and maxes out his credit cards to launch Under Armour. And within ten years of its founding, Plank sets his sights on the biggest prize of all: taking on Nike.  

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As the 1990s come to a close, Gatorade has become an established powerhouse brand, thanks to a 25-year head start and the star power of their spokesperson Michael Jordan. But the millennium brings fresh challenges to Gatorade’s dominance. Coca-Cola goes on the offensive, investing millions in their competing product, Powerade. And Powerade’s rise is only the beginning of Gatorade’s woes. As the science of sports drinks evolves, can Gatorade still keep up with its younger rivals?

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It’s the early 1970s, and Gatorade isn’t just the leader in sports hydration — it is sports hydration. No other competing brand comes close. But that dominance won’t last forever. Soon, Gatorade must fend off challenges from soft-drink giants Coke and Pepsi. Will enlisting the world’s greatest athlete and spokesperson keep them ahead of the game? 

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It’s 1965 and at the University of Florida, a team of kidney scientists is working hard on an electrolyte beverage solution to prevent dehydration. It’s a hit with the school’s football team, the Florida Gators, and so they name it Gatorade. But creating an innovative product only gets you so far. The team has to figure out how they’ll get their new beverage off the sidelines and into grocery stores and the hands of millions of everyday consumers. And now that they’ve created the sports-drink sector, do they have what it takes to stay on top? 

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In the 2010s, FinTech companies emerged offering a Buy Now, Pay Later service that made financing available, at a time when trust in big banks was low. But as dependence on these apps grows, consumers are starting to reassess the cost. Adam Clark Estes is a Senior Technology Correspondent for Vox — he’s sharing what can happen when customers over-rely these services. Later, Annie Joy Williams, an assistant editor at The Atlantic, explains why women are becoming the biggest target demographic for Buy Now, Pay Later apps, and the consequences Gen Z consumers may face.

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Klarna’s popularity in the United States soars as the Covid-19 pandemic closes brick-and-mortar stores and online shopping surges. But Klarna also has a fresh wave of competitors. And as consumers find themselves sucked into vicious debt cycles, Klarna and other Buy Now, Pay Later services are forced to navigate a backlash and new government regulation.  

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In the early 2000s, Sebastian Siemiatkowski identified a gap in Europe’s burgeoning ecommerce market — consumers were hesitant to buy products sight unseen. Siemiatkowski’s new company would front the bill and give consumers 30 days to pay. The concept caught on and helped kick off the modern Buy Now, Pay Later industry. And after conquering Europe, Siemiatkowski’s Klarna set its sights on the U.S., determined to disrupt the credit card industry.  

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When CrowdStrike's faulty software update shuts down airports, hospitals and TV networks around the globe, they face intense backlash from the public. The world is forced to reckon with a terrifying new reality. As our systems become more interconnected, and reliant on just a handful of big tech companies, they also become more vulnerable to a single point of failure. 

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In 2011, CrowdStrike launched with an innovative vision: using cloud-based software to provide cybersecurity. They attracted big clients, including Fortune 500 companies and critical government agencies. And along the way, they investigated notorious hacks, like the North Korean breach of Sony Pictures, and the 2016 hack of the Democratic National Committee. 

But in 2024, they faced their biggest test of all, when a bug in their own software created the largest I.T outage in world history. 

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When the demands of war ignite a race to build autonomous cars, Google invests billions in the hope of owning the driverless future of transportation. But can it really turn this technological challenge into a viable business?

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Ever wondered what it’s like to ride in a Waymo? David and his daughter headed to downtown Austin to take their first trip in a driverless taxi. Together, they documented all the ups, downs, twists and turns. Later, author and former Waymo consultant Larry Burns rides shotgun to talk about how these autonomous vehicles will massively disrupt the auto industry — and why Larry believes the tipping point for making these cars mainstream falls within this decade.

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When the demands of war ignite a race to build autonomous cars, Google invests billions in the hope of owning the driverless future of transportation. But can it really turn this technological challenge into a viable business?

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Listen to Business Wars on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Experience all episodes ad-free and be the first to binge the newest season. Unlock exclusive early access by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts. Start your free trial today by visiting wondery.com/links/business-wars/ now.

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This fall, Beyond Meat became a meme stock, surging …and then falling right back down. For years, alternative meat companies Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods have struggled to win over customers en masse. Deena Shanker of Bloomberg Businessweek explains where the companies lost their way, and whether they can survive another year. Later, journalist Clint Rainey walks us through his investigation for Fast Company where Beyond and Impossible claimed they were victims of a social media disinformation campaign funded by “Big Beef.” So were the rumors true? Clint breaks it down. 

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Beyond Meat and Impossible Burger boomed in the 2010s, but changing tastes have turned their sizzle into a fizzle. And as they continue to slide deeper into debt, these companies have struggled to get back on top of the plant-based food chain. . What’s next for these meatless giants? Jason Kartalian and Mike Keller, co-hosts of the podcast Vegan Hacks, join David to discuss the future of Beyond Meat, Impossible Burger, and the meatless meat market as a whole. 

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It’s 2019 and plant-based meats are on fire. But they’re also under fire. Supporters of the beef industry start a food fight with the plant-based meat industry. It kicks off on Super Bowl Sunday, with an aggressive TV ad. But Pat Brown’s Impossible Foods fights back with an ad of its own. Meanwhile, Ethan Brown pushes Beyond Meat to grow at all costs. As debts mount, Ethan tries to get the king of burgers, McDonald’s, to bite on a new plant-based patty. And, as the heat turns up at both companies due to pandemic-induced demand for their products, some employees get queasy about their company’s founders.

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It’s 2016 and both Pat Brown’s Impossible Foods and Ethan Brown’s Beyond Meat are cooking up plant-based burgers for mass consumption. Ethan tries to woo Whole Foods executives to carry his Beyond Burger in their stores from coast-to-coast. Pat’s taking a different route. He’s asking celebrity chefs to put his Impossible Burger — a plant-based meat that bleeds — on their menus. Soon enough, fake meat gets truly famous. But as Beyond Meat tries to cash in on Wall Street and as Impossible Foods gets its patties into Burger King, meat-raising ranchers in America’s heartland are on the attack. 

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It's 2008 and two men, both vegans, ponder what they can do to improve the climate. Though they’re on separate sides of the country and in different professions (but they coincidentally share a last name)— Ethan Brown is in the fuel cell business and Pat Brown is a lauded Stanford biochemist — they land on the same solution. They’re going to try and lessen the climate impact of animal agriculture by making meat from plants. Ethan calls his company Beyond Meat and notches the first commercial breakthrough, a fake chicken strip. Pat is not far behind, and launches Impossible Foods two years later, setting off a heated rivalry. 

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Flush from its success in video game graphics, Nvidia sets its sights on turning its gaming chips into the tools that will power the next wave of computing advancement. With both investors and computer scientists skeptical, their plan looks like money down the drain. Right up until A.I. researchers discover the untapped power hidden inside Nvidia’s gaming chips.

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It’s the early 1990s and video games are about to go 3D. And in a Denny’s in Silicon Valley, three engineers are plotting to cash in on the transition with a startup called Nvidia. But when they misjudge the market, CEO Jensen Huang will have to pull off a multi-million dollar Hail Mary to save it from ruin.

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Fifty years after its inception, Dungeons & Dragons has become more than just a fantasy game for nerds. It’s a cultural phenomenon, thanks in part to Netflix’s “Stranger Things” and livestream channels like Critical Role. So how can D&D’s parent company Wizards of the Coast keep the momentum going and deliver more innovations? Ryan Dancey, former VP at Wizards of the Coast, breaks down this D&D ‘Golden Age’ and explains what it will take for the game to enter a new digital realm. 

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After years of falling sales, Dungeons & Dragons’ publisher TSR is being dragged under by massive debts and in need of rescue. But as hopelessness takes hold, TSR boss Lorraine Williams resorts to desperate measures that will put the future of the famed game on the line. 

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Listen to Business Wars on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Experience all episodes ad-free and be the first to binge the newest season. Unlock exclusive early access by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts. Start your free trial today by visiting wondery.com/links/business-wars/ now.

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When Gary Gygax and his gaming pal Dave Arneson create Dungeons & Dragons, he believes he’s onto something special and starts a business called TSR to publish it. But when TSR publishes the game, he must find a way to overcome player confusion to make it a best-seller. But just when everything seems ready to come together, a missing kid plunges TSR into crisis.

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Listen to Business Wars on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Experience all episodes ad-free and be the first to binge the newest season. Unlock exclusive early access by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App or on Apple Podcasts. Start your free trial today by visiting wondery.com/links/business-wars/ now.

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Novo Nordisk can't keep up with demand for Ozempic and Wegovy, giving competitor Eli Lilly the edge in the GLP-1 market. And off-brand competitors continue to hammer the company's market position. Layoffs and board resignations signal that Novo Nordisk has entered a downward spiral. But with new leaders, acquisitions and deals, can they force a comeback?

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When pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk developed a new medication for type 2 diabetes, they noticed that a welcome side effect was a small amount of weight loss. They had no idea that their new diabetes medication was about to become a multibillion-dollar weight loss drug. But they had no sooner launched this game-changing drug, then competitors swooped in to knock Novo Nordisk off its throne.

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The “Better in Denim” ad campaign put Gap back on the map for Gen Z — but are viral ads enough to fuel a comeback? Jordyn Holman of the New York Times breaks down how Gap CEO Richard Dickson is taking the company back to its pop culture roots. Later, David dives deeper into Old Navy’s strategy with Aubrey Avery Jr., who helped Gap build the new brand from the ground up. He explains how Old Navy became the company’s shining star. 

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It’s late 2023, and Gap’s new CEO Richard Dickson is trying to revive the brand’s fading fortunes. Dickson is the man who rescued Barbie from cultural irrelevance and turned her into a blockbuster movie star. To do the same at Gap, Dickson finds out that he’ll have to change Gap’s culture — one that puts a cheerful spin on even the bleakest financials. Dickson also must win back the imagination of shoppers. For that, he’ll try to enlist a big-name fashion designer while pumping up Gap’s ads with some of the hottest pop tracks. But that will put Gap on a cultural collision course with another denim powerhouse. Now, the question is: Who’s got the better jeans?

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It’s 2016, and a fire is ripping through a Gap distribution center in Fishkill, New York. When the smoke clears, thousands of Gap T-shirts, khakis, and jeans are reduced to ash. But one analyst sees good news in the wreckage. Gap probably couldn’t have sold all those clothes anyway, and that’s because the company has lost the pop culture cool that once brought shoppers to it in droves. For the next four years, sales don’t improve at Gap and Banana Republic, and Old Navy starts slipping, too. So Gap does something dramatic: It partners with a rapper, a fashion icon, and a lightning rod for controversy — Kanye West. That bold bet won’t spark a comeback, though. It’ll burn Gap instead.

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It's the 2010s, and the athleisure market has exploded. As Lululemon has grown into one of the world's biggest athletic wear companies, brands like Nike and Adidas want a piece of the pie—and new, smaller companies are adding to the competition. Soon, everyone will be selling the same type of yoga pants that Lululemon created. To survive, Lululemon will need to expand its business-model. That means distancing itself from its founder and venturing into a brand new world: tech.

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In the late 90s, Canadian entrepreneur Chip Wilson identified a new market emerging in North America: young women taking on yoga as a hobby. Wilson recognized that athletic wear for yoga didn’t exist, and invented the yoga pants that have become ubiquitous today; he also created an empire. In the coming years, Lululemon will rapidly expand across Canada and the US. With no real competition and an expanding market, Lululemon should be unstoppable. But soon, the company’s founder will start to get in the way.

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Peloton’s pandemic hype and sales have died down and now, the company must determine what’s next. Lauren Thomas of the Wall Street Journal talks to us about what it’ll take for Peloton to continue as a standalone company. Later, we’re talking to fitness creator Cassey Ho, who founded the YouTube channel Blogilates. She shares how she built an online fitness community and later created the activewear brand POPFLEX — and what it was like to have Taylor Swift wear one of her designs. 

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As the Covid-19 pandemic rages, Peloton’s stock surges and the company scrambles to keep up with the new demand for its products. They pour millions of dollars into increasing production and cutting down on shipping time. But when tragedy strikes, Peloton’s newfound popularity takes a hit. And soon, it's an open question if the company can survive on its own.

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In 2011, avid fitness fan John Foley comes up with an idea for an internet-connected exercise bike that allows users to experience the communal nature of a cycling class from the comfort of home. He thinks the idea will make gyms a relic of the past. The next year, he and four others found Peloton and the company develops a devoted, but niche following. And when the Covid-19 pandemic hits, Peloton’s popularity skyrockets. The revolution Foley predicted seems like it’s coming true. But can Foley capitalize on this moment, or will Peloton turn into yet another fitness fad?

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By 2014, Volkswagen has taken the U.S. auto market by storm with its fleet of affordable, fuel-efficient diesel cars. But a new study threatens to reveal the dirty truth behind so-called ""clean"" diesel. When the EPA comes knocking with questions, the company's very survival is at stake.

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In 2007, Volkswagen's new CEO Martin Winterkorn sets his sights on besting GM and Toyota to become the top automaker in the world. But the company can't get there without cutting a few regulatory corners.

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Why has hot sauce gotten so - well, hot? Bon Appétit’s Joseph Hernandez sheds some light on the rise of condiment culture, and why the spicy stuff got so popular over the past ten years (even Mötley Crüe has a hot sauce line!). Later, we explore our biological reactions to spice and heat with Nik Sharma, author, chef and molecular biologist. He’s guiding David through a taste test of some of the hottest peppers, sauces and condiments out there today. And, he’s breaking down the science of each reaction — let’s see if David can handle it! 

Find Nik’s Latest Book: Veg-Table 

Read the latest issue of Bon Appetit.  

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The rift between David Tran’s Huy Fong Foods and Underwood Ranches becomes insurmountable. The two companies sue each other and wait for the courts to decide who was in the right. But in the meantime, Huy Fong struggles to find peppers to make their Sriracha. Meanwhile, Underwood Ranches desperately tries to make up the income they’ve lost when Huy Fong canceled their contract. They come up with a novel idea: make their own version of Sriracha. The two former partners are now arch rivals.  

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In the early 80s, David Tran developed a sauce he called Sriracha; its popularity quickly spread among chefs and customers throughout Southern California. But to grow his business, Tran needs to find a reliable source of red jalapeños. So he forms a partnership with a farm called Underwood Ranches. For nearly 30 years, the two companies have an enduring and highly profitable partnership, until one day it all falls apart.

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The “better burger” business has been rapidly expanding across the United States and internationally, with chains like Five Guys and Shake Shack growing at break-neck speed. In response, McDonald’s has tried switching up its own menu to lure back health-conscious customers. But when the pandemic hits and people start tightening their wallets, the better burger business model will be put to the ultimate test. When it comes down to it, how much do people really value quality over cost?

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It's the mid-2000s, and new burger chains are popping up across the United States. Places like Five Guys and Shake Shack are touting their higher-quality ingredients. As these chains rapidly expand, they force behemoths like McDonald’s to reevaluate their own businesses and switch up their menus. And as “better burgers” make it big, they start competing with each other for space in an increasingly overstuffed industry.

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Southwest Airlines announced some big changes recently, and customers of the “Love Airline” are not feeling it. Joe Guinto, a business reporter who wrote this season, joins David to discuss the airline’s next steps, and what it’ll take to keep fans and employees loyal. Later, Bankrate’s Benét Wilson (also known as the “Aviation Queen”) https://www.bankrate.com/authors/benet-j-wilson/ explains those high ticket prices, and which credit cards give frequent flyers the most bang for their buck. 

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It’s 2023 and Southwest Airlines’ stock is in a nosedive. With costs ascending, Southwest CEO Bob Jordan freezes hiring and slashes spending. Amid all that, a crisis at Boeing has left Southwest short on jets. With Southwest weakened, an unwelcome, activist investor rushes on board. Jordan jettisons staffers along with longstanding policies like open seating and free bags. It’s a new era for the airline. But the question remains: Will Southwest passengers go along for the ride?

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It's 2021 and for the first time in nearly 50 years, Southwest Airlines posts an annual net loss. Amid the crisis, thousands of Southwest workers head for early retirement. The next year, Southwest is short on staff as Americans return to the skies. Pilots and flight attendants complain of being overworked. A winter storm cripples Southwest’s operations, exposing the airline’s underinvestment in technology. Millions are stranded. Lawmakers and the public ask: Will Southwest ever straighten up and fly right?

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Can you remember the last time you got mail from an AOL email address? Or fired off an IM? In the 1990s, AOL was the hottest name in cyberspace, but now it’s a digital ghost. Journalist and author Nina Munk is the author of Fools Rush In: Steve Case, Jerry Levin, and the Unmaking of AOL Time Warner — she explains how the merger meltdown led to AOL’s demise. Plus, Lauren Goode and Michael Calore of the Wired podcast Uncanny Valley share a remembrance of AOL Instant Messenger — and how it laid the groundwork for online communication as we know it.  

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