Business News: The Real Opportunity w/ AI - Creating Leverage - Real Estate Market Softening

Summary

Podcast Summary: Right About Now with Ryan Alford Episode Title: Business News: The Real Opportunity w/ AI - Creating Leverage - Real Estate Market Softening
Release Date: May 2, 2025
Host: Ryan Alford
Production: The Radcast Network

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Introduction

In this episode of Right About Now with Ryan Alford, host Ryan Alford and co-host Chris Browby Hansen delve into the current landscape of business news, focusing on the burgeoning opportunities presented by Artificial Intelligence (AI), the shifting dynamics in the real estate market, and the broader economic implications affecting both entrepreneurs and consumers. The conversation blends insightful analysis with light-hearted banter, maintaining the show's signature balance of education and entertainment.

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Key Topics Covered

1. Artificial Intelligence and Business Opportunities
2. Real Estate Market Softening and Its Impacts
3. Economic Sentiment and Consumer Behavior
4. Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) Trends
5. Cryptocurrency Market Updates

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Detailed Discussions

1. Artificial Intelligence and Business Opportunities

Ryan Alford opens the discussion by highlighting the rapid advancements in AI and its potential to create significant leverage for businesses. He emphasizes the importance of leveraging free AI tools to streamline operations and enhance productivity.

• Notable Quote:
  "You gotta use these tools, especially when they're free. This shortcuts research, shortcuts information. It could process things way faster than you can looking things up."
  (19:09)

Chris Browby Hansen adds to this by discussing how AI integration, such as Meta's AI Assistant app powered by Llama 4, can personalize user experiences by leveraging data from social media accounts. The hosts joke about the naming conventions of AI models but recognize the practical applications these tools offer.

• Notable Quote:
  "It's a large language model. That's probably what the large language."
  (20:44)

They explore the implications of AI tools in various aspects of life and business, underscoring the necessity for individuals and companies to adapt and incorporate these technologies to remain competitive.

2. Real Estate Market Softening and Its Impacts

The conversation shifts to the real estate market, with a focus on Greenville, South Carolina, as a case study for how market softening is affecting mid-sized cities. Chris notes the significant price reductions and the influx of new residents from higher-cost areas, which brings both opportunities and challenges.

• Notable Quote:
  "It's going to change the makeup and the fabric of the city, not because everything was right about old school Greenville, but what is the true impact of that both socially, economically, etc?"
  (06:07)

Ryan elaborates on the concept of "financial migration," where affordability drives population movements, altering community dynamics and economic structures. Both hosts express concerns about maintaining economic stability and cultural integrity amidst these changes.

• Notable Quote:
  "I think we're in a time I would almost call like a financial migration."
  (07:48)

They discuss the potential long-term effects on local businesses, housing affordability, and community cohesion, highlighting the need for strategic planning to navigate these shifts.

3. Economic Sentiment and Consumer Behavior

The hosts delve into the broader economic sentiment, discussing how political and economic policies influence public perception and behavior. Ryan reflects on the discomfort that often accompanies necessary economic changes, advocating for a long-term perspective over short-term reactions.

• Notable Quote:
  "It's uncomfortable to get the change that you need. It's not always comfortable."
  (11:00)

Chris counters with a historical perspective on outsourcing and its impact on the American middle class, suggesting that systemic changes are essential to rejuvenate economic prosperity.

• Notable Quote:
  "Unless we open your eyes, we are completely screwed."
  (12:24)

The discussion underscores the importance of resilience and adaptability in both personal finances and business strategies amidst evolving economic landscapes.

4. Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) Trends

A significant portion of the episode examines the surge in BNPL services, particularly their adoption in everyday purchases like groceries and high-ticket events such as Coachella. The hosts analyze the implications of this trend on consumer debt and financial health.

• Notable Quote:
  "It shows how even in the bougie world of Coachella, people are stretching their cash."
  (29:09)

Chris expresses concern over the growing dependence on BNPL options, linking it to broader financial stress among consumers. They debate whether this trend reflects deeper economic issues or merely the proliferation of financing options.

5. Cryptocurrency Market Updates

Towards the end of the episode, Chris provides an update on the cryptocurrency market, noting the relative stability of Bitcoin and XRP compared to previous months. He hints at potential future growth but maintains a cautious outlook.

• Notable Quote:
  "Bitcoin's around 94,000 today, so it's looking brighter than it was."
  (32:18)

Ryan encourages listeners to adopt a long-term perspective when investing in cryptocurrencies, emphasizing patience and informed decision-making.

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Insights and Conclusions

• Adaptation to AI: Both hosts agree that embracing AI tools is crucial for modern businesses to maintain efficiency and competitiveness. The integration of AI can revolutionize business operations, from customer service to data analysis.

• Real Estate Dynamics: The softening real estate market presents both challenges and opportunities for mid-sized cities like Greenville. Managing the influx of new residents while maintaining affordability and community integrity is essential for sustainable growth.

• Economic Resilience: Navigating economic changes requires a balance between short-term adaptability and long-term strategic planning. Reducing dependence on outsourced jobs and fostering local employment can help rejuvenate the middle class.

• Consumer Behavior: The rise of BNPL services highlights shifting consumer behaviors and financial strategies. While these options offer flexibility, they also pose risks related to debt accumulation and financial instability.

• Cryptocurrency Outlook: The cryptocurrency market remains volatile yet shows signs of stabilization. Investors are encouraged to maintain a long-term view and stay informed about market trends.

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Final Thoughts

Ryan and Chris conclude the episode by reiterating the importance of focusing on controllable aspects of life and business, such as family, community, and personal growth, rather than becoming overwhelmed by global negativity and economic uncertainties. They encourage listeners to leverage available tools and resources to navigate these challenging times effectively.

• Notable Quote:
  "There's never a better place on the face of the earth than to be within the walls of this country."
  (15:34)

They remind their audience to leave reviews and engage with the show on social media, fostering a supportive community of like-minded individuals striving for business success and personal fulfillment.

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Conclusion

This episode of Right About Now with Ryan Alford offers a comprehensive overview of current business trends, emphasizing the transformative potential of AI, the complexities of a cooling real estate market, and the evolving financial behaviors of consumers. Through thoughtful discussion and relatable insights, Ryan and Chris provide valuable guidance for entrepreneurs and business owners aiming to thrive in a dynamic economic environment.

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Connect with the Show:

• Website: www.RyanIsRight.com
• Instagram: @rightaboutnowshow, @ryanalford

Transcript

[Ryan Reynolds]

Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. I don't know if you knew this but anyone can get the same Premium Wireless for $15 a month plan that I've been enjoying. It's not just for celebrities. So do like I did and have one of your assistant's assistants switch you to Mint Mobile today. I'm told it's super easy to [e-mail].

[Ryan Alford]

Switch upfront payment of $45 for three month plan equivalent to $15 per month. Required intro rate first three months only, then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra. See full [e-mail] this is with Ryan Alford. A Radcast Network production. We are the number one business show on the planet with over 1 million downloads a month. Taking the BS out of business for over 6 years in over 400 episodes. You ready to start snapping next and cashing checks? Well, it starts right about now.

[Chris]

What's up guys? Welcome to right about now. It's our weekly business news. Our first news of May 2025 here on the 2nd, it will be May 4th on Sunday. May the 4th be with you, Chris. What's up?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I'm sitting here just thinking April flowers, May showers.

[Chris]

I don't know why April showers bring May flowers. It's been raining here, so hopefully that's the case. It's been rainy and warm, which is nice.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Not here. Sunny and breezy. It's been beautiful.

[Chris]

Yes, it's been good. Our weekly business news. We're going to hit all the headlines. Try not to talk too much about tariffs. I never, Chris, I never imagined that I would have a moment in my life where I use the word tariff like in a sentence as often as I have or. Yeah, ready.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Definitely not weekly.

[Chris]

I know. I don't know if it's a sign of my age, a sign of the times, a sign of the way news is. Which one is it? All the above.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I don't maybe lack of all of the above.

[Chris]

Yeah. So I'd rather talk about a lot.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Other things, that's for sure.

[Chris]

I know. So we're gonna, we're gonna attempt to do that. Some of the market data is not wonderful but I think, you know, we're. It's early in the season, I think. I think there's some cooling going on. Of all the banter a bit. I think the reality is we live in a world where you're never going to get the, the straight talk. It's always going to have the spin of one side or another, you know, kind of compounding whatever that News might be one way, one direction or the other. You know what I mean, Chris?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah. I mean, everyone will never always think alike.

[Chris]

Yes. And everyone has a voice now with social media and hey, we got our own voice here on our platform. But that's right. It's like everything gets. I just got to tune it out. I do think we've talked about it. We want to. I think we got to tamper down the negativity and the, the all out war on, you know, some of our allies. I think you're seeing softening of that language and, you know, it's brought some people to the table. I think sometimes the, we've talked about this, the, the means might be correct, but the way that things are happening might be the, the way that you get them done. But I think sometimes you can go a little further than intended with impacting overall sentiment. And I think, I think you're, you're feeling that a little bit with kind of like people feeling a little uneasy. And I think hopefully we can start to get on the other side of that and focus on the data because the numbers are still like, it's all relative. Right. It's like it is not like we suddenly stopped commerce completely. It's just we, we're in this really weird funk where, where this has caused just enough of a stir, combined with the real real estate market and interest rates.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah.

[Chris]

And battling inflation. So it's like maybe we chose the wrong time to sort of stoke this. Yeah.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I don't.

[Chris]

I sometimes wonder if you'd ever hear that behind the scenes.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I don't know. It's interesting seeing the impact of it. I mean, I, I've seen some really creative advertising related to it. I've seen one company, they do jewelry and they're like, literally the ad was like, tariffs suck, but our jewelry doesn't. And I'm like, all right. They're making the best of it. Obviously their stuff is made overseas. Even me myself, like, you know, I do the lab grown diamond jewelry. My supplier messaged me this week about tariff changes, you know, so.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

And then I've seen on some, some clothing brands that I'm familiar with, like, they basically, they sell wholesale direct from China. Right. So. And I saw they posted just the tariff tax was the same price as the order of the clothing. So it's giving people the ability to learn how to pivot. I think it's going to teach a lot of lessons right now. But as far as real estate goes, I have noticed a lot of price reductions in the Real estate market down here. Yeah, I'm getting a lot of Zillow alerts of a lot of price price on, on, on family real estate, like single family homes.

[Chris]

It's going to be interesting in a market like Greenville, that where we're at. We're here, the lovely Greenville, South Carolina, where we've seemed to have been Teflon to almost everything because this, it's a attractive market to move to for families leaving, you know, larger states with higher costs and just more stuff. So you've got a lot going for the city. It's going to be interesting where all this nets out for a city like ours if we just stay Teflon through it all, like, you know, like, and not have declines because the biggest thing here has just been inventory availability, which still hasn't improved even with the interest rates. And so it has changed. And, and you see what I worry about like being here and you know, we talk about a lot more national topics but like as it relates to small town America a little bit, the changing dynamic when housing brings in people from other markets because it's more affordable, but not necessarily affordable, more affordable to them because they were used to paying 800 to 1.5 million for a three bedroom house where in South Carolina that's been a, you know, 200 to $400,000 cost. You know, I'm not talking about like high end. I'm just about like middle of the road. And people come here and they're like, hey, we're used to paying this rate, we'll take that. And they get a little more square footage. So what happens though is what happens to market like ours when you get an influx of different personalities, beliefs, etc, and I'm not saying we're all so different, but it can change the, it'll change makeup. Yeah, I mean the makeup and the fabric of the city and not because, you know, everything was right about old school Greenville. I mean, you know, like, no, we needed some growing up, but what is the true impact of that both socially, economically, etc? Right.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I think we're in a time I would almost call like a financial migration.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

You know, it's crossing cultural boundaries. It's all. And like you said, people aren't necessarily living where they want to live anymore. People are living where they can afford to live.

[Chris]

Yep.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

And I think you're right. Even with COVID for example, you know, that was a mass migration or maybe that was the beginning of a lot of financial difficulties. I know it was for many small businesses. Of course, like if you Couldn't operate in certain states because even down here in Florida, you know, all the towns I've lived in, you know, and growing up here, they've all had a large change because there's way more out of state people migrating in.

[Chris]

Yeah, exactly. And so we'll see how that goes. I was commissioning if Greenville as an. As sort of a proxy for other cities this size. You know, I throw in like little towns in Arkansas that are kind of, you know, seeing their heyday from some social media and some of the shows that have been on Bentonville and like places like that. And even, I mean, Austin's a is a different place altogether and larger tech scene. But how all this, the interest rates in the real estate market. And I continue to beat this drum. Just it drives money in the market when you've got a good amount of real estate turning and refinancing and all that stuff. And so that's why we need these inflation numbers to go down. And that's where I. I choose to believe and I've been. Chris and I both been pretty transparent, know, like where I mean, I claim myself to be an independent. I think you do as well, Chris. For the most part, we don't necessarily wear. Wear a color on our sleeves, but we voted a certain direction and I choose to believe that there's a game of chess being played and a game of checkers being played. And I think there's some chess going on overall that I think is going to net out where we like it. But it. It's going to continue to be a little rocky. And I said this on a post that you'll see later today where it's uncomfortable to get the change that you need. It's not always comfortable. And we've been conditioned to be very comfortable. And you know, Covid, in a strange way, and I. And you know, heart, putting aside the major impact medically, I'm not saying like, but it made us comfortable, those of us that were not impacted by it directly. With the money in the market, everything's good. And then we had an administration where it was just kind of like they lull you to sleep with, everything's fine, but we got to suffer a little discomfort to get to the change that's needed. And I can't stress that enough. And I don't say that lightly because I feel some of the discomfort, you know, but I think it's necessary. Chris, what do you think?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think this is a ship that's been going the wrong way for a Long time. I'm talking like 40 years. Like these multinational corporations outsourced all of our middle class chasing profit over ultimately patriotism. Our own people sold us out to make cheaper goods with cheap labor outside of America. And before our eyes, all of us have been lulled for longer than I would say, Covid. I mean, essentially it's been slipped out the last 20, 30 years we've outsourced everything. So we have now entire population in the middle class with no jobs and no money. And that's why ultimately, unless you open your eyes, we are completely screwed. Unless we turn this around. There is.

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Unless we get all agreed that we're going to give universal basic income because AI is going to be doing so many jobs and everyone's just going to get paid to live.

[Chris]

Exactly.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

You know, like. And unfortunately that, that has never worked. That does not. And I mean, you can say this as a business owner, Ryan, just how we are as people. No one is living a good life. Not chasing anything. Right?

[Chris]

No. Like you're not happy. It's like, you know, and not to get into the health impact, but you not talk about it on Vibe Science. Like. Yeah. And talk about middle decline. That. That would be it. I think that's where you're going, right?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah. I mean we've been in decline for a long time and I would say we've been very comfortable and complacent and this is the result of that, unfortunately. You know, and I hate it because if you look at historical timelines, we're over the hump of the greatness of this empire and that's just history. And I think we're trying to save it, but it's not going to be an easy turnaround. And the wealth may be too consolidated at this point. But the reality is these fuckers that have been buying yachts and mansions for the last 30 years, it's because they started producing these goods elsewhere to get higher profit margins. I mean, that's it.

[Chris]

Bingo. And so you're gonna have a little pain to get the other side of it to bring some of those jobs back. I just saw where $4 trillion in investments come back in. In the last hundred days.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

So it should motivate you. Yeah. Like, you know, figure some out. Use the Internet. YouTube.

[Chris]

Good. Yeah, man. That's what I talked about last week or the week before. Like. Yeah, all these things are there. Like you could run leaner than you ever had to. Like your. In your barrier to entry as a solopreneur has never been lower. And I Say that not because everybody's meant to be solopreneur, but if you can't find work or can't find something else or you're struggling with, you know, where you're going to find the job and do all that, then you've got an option to turn to. Tools are there, but you gotta, you gotta, you gotta have that want to, Chris. You know, it's in short supply these days that want to.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah, yeah.

[Chris]

You know, I used to think everybody had the same amount. I don't think that anymore.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah, no.

[Chris]

And I mean every sort of like reasonably driven human being, I thought kind of had average. I'm not talking about. Everybody has their ups and downs. You have people on substance and you like, throw out the kind of health and anomalies. I thought everybody kind of in the middle had the sort of. All the same. No, no, that was a bigger, like my biggest learning lesson last 10 years.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Some people are hanging out.

[Chris]

Yeah, they're just hanging out. It's okay. But you always just gonna be hanging out. You know, it's like, I'm okay if you're okay with that. I really am. What I don't have, what I have a problem with, Chris, is the ones that want what comes with the want to and the not hanging out. And you just want to hang out. That. That just don't fly.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

It doesn't work.

[Chris]

Doesn't work. So it's an interesting time, but there's never. There's not a better place on the face of the earth than to be within the walls of this country. And don't ever forget it. Don't let the news or the negativity or your neighbor or your mom or your sister convince you otherwise. Because when you start drinking that rat poison, you're going down a real slippery slope.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

And they've been dishing that. It's been a lot of, like, people haven't been proud to be an American. It feels right. There's been a degradation of our morals and values as a country and what we stand for. And it feels very victimy nowadays instead of, like you said, this is the greatest country on the planet to come and make something with yourself. You have more opportunity here than anywhere else.

[Chris]

Yep. And that hadn't changed. Yeah, the. The amplification of political warfare in news and headlines doesn't change that fact. And you know, economic data. Everybody's in the short term, man. Every person is in the short term.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I got too.

[Chris]

What's that?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I got a fun fact also.

[Chris]

Yeah, but it's like, everybody's. In the short terms, everybody. Like, okay, the, the news today and the impact of that today. No, it. This is a long game, man. It's like stock market in a way, with your life, with your financial goals and all these things. They're all the way. You know, it's not. And it's not because you don't have to make bills today or this week. I get it. I wrote those checks all morning. I know the pain of that. But we can't like continue to X ray everything down to the micro moment.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yes. And I'm going to jump on that with something I read yesterday. We weren't programmed as humans to care about everything going on in the world. We don't have that capacity. Our brains were basically built to care and have an impact around the 150 people closest to us. Our community. We're. We're doing a disservice. And it's good to care. Right. But to turn on the news and you're getting there. All this influx, you got war going all over the world, financial hardships. How much of worrying about that can you actually control what is worrying you? Worrying about what's going on the other side of the world do. And that's part of our problem, is it's great to care. But we weren't built to fix everyone's problems everywhere.

[Chris]

No.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

And I will even say that may be part of America's problem. Right. We wanted to go fix everyone else and them to do it our way. And obviously a lot of it was financially motivated. Right. For other resources or cheap labor. But we got to worry about ourselves. You got to worry about what you can control. Your family, your community and, and tune it out. Because it's just stealing from you.

[Chris]

Yeah. Stealing your joy.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Your joy, your energy focus. Yeah. Your presence with the people you're actually around. You know, it's like life isn't that bad when you turn off all the negativity coming through the media, focus on.

[Chris]

The day and focus on you.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

What can you control?

[Chris]

Exactly. That's it. And look, we're going to give you some tips right here. Free AI tools Facebook Parent Meta launches AI Assistant app further competing with Open AI and Google. And it's free. I was just playing with it for 30 seconds before we got on here. I'm a ChatGPT GPT guy. I've said that. I'll go ahead and just say that. But it's pretty slick. I like, I like the calming voice that came on and told me things. Chris, she was very Pleasant. Very. Just calming is what I would say. But look, you got to use these tools, especially when they're free. This shortcuts research, shortcuts information. It could process things way faster than you can looking things up. And when you're working on any project of any type, you should be leveraging these tools. It's going to be interesting how it also like being Facebook. It integrates with like your Facebook account so it's, it's pulling in knowledge already about you. And before everybody gets like the conspiracy theory gets scared, we already just told you what to worry about. What not worry about. Use this for your advantage. Don't worry. Don't worry about. If you're worried about pulling something from your Facebook, you shouldn't have posted it to Facebook to begin with.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

You're in too deep already.

[Chris]

Exactly. So I wanted to pull all my stuff. I don't have any. I there been a post or two occasionally where I'm like I didn't, you know, I should have got in that sure. But 99.9 I don't care like use it. Help me. May you learn more about me so you can help me do my job better. Learn better. Be a better parent, be a better husband. I mean there's knowledge and calculating all that stuff, but it's got it. It's a dedicated app, Chris. I went and found it. Meta AI. Go, go look it up. It's powered by llama 4.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

These names llama just doesn't make me feel powerful or.

[Chris]

I know the Almighty llama 4.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I'm sure it stands for something.

[Chris]

Yeah. Language learning. I wish I had a different name.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Language integrated. You know I don't.

[Chris]

Ask me. Ask lamb. Language learning. Ask me anything. There it is. It's a large language model. That's probably what the large language Ask me anything. We're going to start making up acronyms. It boasts enhanced reasoning, multilingual lingual capabilities and better efficiency and wife pleasing recommendations. I made that one.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

You can use it for that too.

[Chris]

Exactly. If you were me. Look, I'm going to give you a prompt. A free prompt. Free prompts. People pay for prompts, Chris. You know, pretend that I'm a husband and this is you're talking to your GPT here. Pretend I'm a husband. That's up a few times with my wife. Nothing salacious but just like hey, it's been a bad month, made some bad decisions, wife's not happy at me and you were trying to find innovative ways to make her feel better about you and you have Kids. So you have to keep that in mind. You have a busy schedule. How would you handle this situation? Could you give me five suggestions for a man in that situation? Just ask it, and the answers will be yours. Yep. There you go. There's your husband. Luckily, as a perfect husband, I've never had to ask that. But you can.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

You've thought about it, though.

[Chris]

Yeah. Tongue firmly in cheek, as said. But you can add. That's. But that's the crazy thing. Like, it could be your assistant for all kinds of things. And it's fun. The app will offer personalized responses using context from a user's Facebook and Instagram accounts. We talked about that. That's good. Integrate with Meta AI's glasses and merge with its existing companion app. Have you ever used. Have you seen meta glasses? Like, no.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

These things. Yeah. It's like, I know that we had.

[Chris]

To come back to the metaverse, right?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

It's like, no one cares, guys. Let it go.

[Chris]

A page description for advanced chatbot features will begin testing in Q2. The revenue impact may not be seen until next year. Llamacon is the AI developer event. Of course it is. MET is hosting Llama Con, its first AI developer event focused on showcasing its llama AI models. It really could have gone just strong. Llama. They could at least been a donkey. You know, donkey AI, lion or something. Like, the Apple has, like, lion, snow leopard. I mean, that's cool. You know, I want a snow leopard.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah.

[Chris]

You know, AI reasoning engine. I want a lion, you know, But I'm a llama. Donkey AI. It's. It is what it is. We don't take ourselves too seriously around here anyway. I do, but everything we're saying about AI, you need to listen to. We will pan it a little bit, though, because you do wonder what happens behind these boardrooms. You can tell it's tech people, Damon. You know, you need to get some marketers in there. Like, need some, like, Fierce AI. Fierce. The Fierce model. Learning Llama engine. Fierce Llama. At least put it like a. You know, something on top of it. Like, how about Loyal llama. Hey, the loyal llama. Okay. All right. Makes it sound better.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Oh, it's all horrible. You can't make llama sound cool.

[Chris]

Yeah, it's true. It's true, Chris. Not even me.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Not even with the. That Voice Tone.

[Chris]

Yeah. U.S. sports merchandising group Fanatics plots global trading card expansion. We've been telling you folks, and that trading card series is starting in about two weeks. It's. It's a fun series. But it's, it's some eye opener on the data and the numbers around this. It's crazy. Fanatics Global trading card ambitions founder and CEO Michael Rubin projects $3 billion in trading card and collectibles revenue for the company by 2026. Expanding aggressively in international markets, Venax acquired Tops trading cards for 500 million in 2022. Collectibles revenue hit 1.6 billion in 2024. Expected to top 2 billion this year and 3 billion the next year. That sounds like pretty damn good growth. Just adding bees right after. Another billion, billion, billion, he said. Reuben attributes the boom to increased disposable income and boredom. I'm like, really?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

That's their market analysis?

[Chris]

Yeah, I was expecting something a little more interesting than that. FNAX opened the first trading course store in London on Regent Street. Purposes, marketing and a model for entrepreneurs is all about showing people what the store should look like and how it should work. So they're essentially showing Europe how trading card stores should operate. So then you get spin offs from that. Fanatics overall revenue expected to hit 9 billion this year and 11 billion in 26. Fanatics will gain exclusive rights to the English Premier league trading cards and stickers in June 2025, taking over from Panini. Panini and Tops are just like battling back and forth. They needed to figure out a merger. I don't know why they did. It's not good for the business. It's like, it's the stupidest. Now that I'm in it, I'm seeing all of it. And I see, you know, Chris, this is what happened this year, like for NFL. Panini's had the exclusive rights to the NFL. So what that means is Tops Cards this year, no doesn't have any logos on it. So you'll get like, you know, Josh Allen, but there has no Buffalo Bills logo. It says Buffalo and it says Bills, but there's no logos on their helmets or their jerseys. It's odd and it's like unnecessary. I'm like, why can't you sell more than one license to both companies? If they both want to make cards, then, you know, double it up here. But like starting next year, Topps is going to have a Panini want. Then their cards won't have log. It's just dumb. It's dumb. It's not good for the, you know.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Good for the culture.

[Chris]

No, it's like I don't. And it keeps me from buying certain cars. Like that's. It looks stupid.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah, well, you want it probably not worth as much Too.

[Chris]

Well, the tops is. Tops is. See, that's the thing. They go to these other measures to make it. They do. They get the autographs agreements with some of the hottest players. So then if you want that player's card as a rookie with an autograph, the. You have to buy the tops version. He has no logo on his helmet because panini everything.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

It's like, huh, you can't get the best of all worlds. I want.

[Chris]

Exactly.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

In the autograph.

[Chris]

Exactly. That's what it does to collectors, Making.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

It harder for collectors.

[Chris]

Yep. So there. There it is. More Americans are financing groceries with buy now pay later loans. It's hard for me to know if there's a reflection definitively of the exact economics of terrorists right now or if this is just the proliferation of the buy now pay layer. Expanding into more things. Yeah, like, it's a little bit of both. I mean, I wanted that steak last night. I didn't quite have enough money, but I wanted it. So I'm going to finance this baby over 30 days, interest free. What a world. I mean, what Coachella. You know more about this story than me. I mean, we're not. Was there a big story?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Same concept. It was something like. Actually even says in his article reach recent surge in buy now pay later use even includes Coachella ticket purchases. And that was something like 70% or 80% of the attendees of Coachella had all used buy now pay later options.

[Chris]

Oh, my God.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Which Coachella is a very bougie, you know, big music festival in the desert, very expensive. It's the place to be. Right. So that kind of even shows you. Even in that world, people are stretching. Stretching their cash.

[Chris]

Yeah. The. I just think back to kind of like the topic we talked about. You know, people kind of want the spoils without the work. It's like, oh, I'm gonna keep this lifestyle up, but I don't want to go work for it. I mean, that's kind of where my head goes. The Coachella. Not to my. The groceries.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah. And people are fed up. Honestly, I've been seeing a lot of people, like, just talking about their credit scores in general. They're like, just. I don't care anymore. Like, and I don't know if that's a good thing. Right. It's almost like people are just getting pounded down so hard that they're. They're becoming indifferent.

[Chris]

Well, I think it's because back to their playing, everybody's playing the day game and not the long game. How great can I make today without working hard?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Yeah, and I think just we're under extremely shitty financial conditions for the average 18 to 25 year old, you know.

[Chris]

Yeah, it's harder to get like great jobs but at the same time it's still back to the Internet and AI and all these things. There's lots of ways to kind of put it together if you want a piece together. But, but there's becoming fewer of. Is the handout of easy to get this job that it's pretty decent. Those are becoming harder to get. It's easier for those that have the want to, you know, to get in on it and probably make more than they ever would have from the, you know, sort of the easy handout job. And now they're having to sort of, I don't know, work for it a little harder.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Well, and I think we got people that aren't just that aren't built for that, you know, like our engineers and these other types people are, AI is probably taking their jobs that like they're not entrepreneur type people, you know, like not everyone is going to be successful on Internet money and YouTube, you know, but I think people's expectations are definitely out of reach and a lot of it's because the Internet and a lot of it, we know it's right.

[Chris]

I mean, exactly.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

A million dollars last month, I can teach you all that.

[Chris]

Exactly. Not a lot of major headlines this week. Keeping it more about the sentiment overall. Any final thoughts, articles, et cetera. Chris, Hot topics.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Crypto's looking a little better than it was. You know, Bitcoin's around 94,000 today, so it was, you know, touched down to like 76,000 within the last month. So it's looking brighter than it was.

[Chris]

How's that Trump coin doing?

[Chris Browby Hansen]

I have some, I don't know, I haven't looked at it.

[Chris]

Yeah, XRP's doing is coming back around to where it was, you know, maybe 69 days ago. Still way up for the last six or seven months. That's where, you know, you gotta play the long game. I'm not even looking at it. I stopped looking. I used to look at it every day. I don't even look at it. I go look at it like once a week like, okay, let's just see what's happening. I'd probably get a notification if it either tanked or went up majorly. And it's. And I'm not getting any news. So I think it's just, it's doing this pretty much. So, you know, I'm waiting for that, that big pop though. I think. I think we're going to get it here in the next few months. Maybe towards the end of the year. But hey, little discomfort to get to the better places. Still the best place on earth to live. Don't forget that. And don't forget to leave us a review if you like the show. We appreciate it. Leave a review. That helps. All the feedback helps. Tell us you want to hear. Chris Browby Hansen on Instagram I'm at Ryan offered two so you can hit us up there. Give us a shout out anytime. Chris. Appreciate you brother.

[Chris Browby Hansen]

Likewise, my man.

[Chris]

Hey, Ryan is right.com find the highlight clips the full episode. All our sponsors go support them as well. They support us. We and we support you. We'll see you next time or right about now.

[Ryan Alford]

This has been Right about now with Ryan Alford, a Radcast network production. Visit ryanisright.com for full audio and video versions of the show or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities. Thanks for listening.