Not a shirtless model in sight

Adding to the list of unlikely companies trying to incorporate AI: Bath & Body Works. The retailer known for scented lotions and body sprays plans to launch a generative-AI fragrance finder. It’s really trying to make ChatGPerfume happen.

The Dow inched up yesterday for its 25th record close of the year. Though most stocks in the S&P 500 gained, the index got dragged down by Nvidia’s 6% loss. P.S. US markets are closed on Monday for Labor Day, so we’ll be back in your inbox on Tuesday.

🎶 It started off with a quiz: Open up your eager eyes and try to get a high score on our Snacks Seven quiz. Here’s the first q:

Fierce results... Abercrombie & Fitch’s denim may be distressed but its earnings are not. The millennial mall staple blew past Q2 expectations, with sales up 21% to $1.1B — its second straight billion-dollar quarter. And A&F’s profit more than doubled from last year. Its teen-leaning Hollister line also enjoyed double-digit sales growth as shoppers splurged on summer dresses and back-to-school jeans. A&F raised its annual sales outlook, even as it navigates an “increasingly uncertain environment.”

Y2K comeback… OG teen retailers have stepped up their game to attract consumers of all ages. After years of focusing on tight jeans, oversized hoodies, and graphic tees, brands are revamping their wardrobe to cater to more style needs (like: office wear, wedding-guest fits). Abercrombie said its wedding shop collection “exceeded expectations” since its launch in March. Last quarter, it added men's suits to the mix. American Eagle has long been a hit with teen girls, but has stretched its offerings to include a men’s activewear line and an Aerie maternity collection.

Changing threads can get you ahead… Y2K brands aren’t just after Gen Z; they’re upgrading their style to win back the (now grown-up) millennials who loved them first. By rolling out fresh fits that appeal to shoppers at every stage of life, clothing retailers can capture more wallet share. It seems to be working: in July of last year, nearly half of Abercrombie's shoppers were between 25 and 34 — up from less than a fifth in 2017.

Smooth recovery… from the blue screen of death. CrowdStrike appears to have shrugged off the massive global outage it caused last month. In its first quarter reporting earnings since the debacle — when blue screens took over 8.5M devices — CrowdStrike said its revenue rose over 30% annually. It shaved its annual guidance but said it was unrelated to its big blunder. CrowdStrike shares have gained ~25% from their lowest point post-outage, though they haven’t fully recovered.

Uneven impact… CrowdStrike said it would dole out $60M in credits to customers affected by its global oopsy. But Delta alone said the incident had cost it $500M (and it’s planning to sue). Travelers and CrowdStrike shareholders are also seeking damages. CrowdStrike says its liability is limited, while cyber-insurance companies could be on the hook for billions. But the damage may not be as bad as feared for CrowdStrike:

It’s hard to make a giant fall… and the outage may amount to just a stumble for CrowdStrike, which serves ~30K companies, second in its niche only to Microsoft. Though analysts warn there could be more reputational fallout ahead, others say the incident was a blip. AT&T’s shown that big players can recover fast: despite suffering yet another major data breach in May, its churn rate (aka people canceling) in the second quarter was its second lowest ever.

122% revenue growth and a 55% net profit margin. Almost as good as being named an All-Star in two different professional sports. Read more.

Fill in the headline: Companies are talking about _______ less than before. (Answer here.)

Since 2022, big law firms have billed over $750M in fees from crypto bankruptcies

Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Amazon, Delta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Ulta

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