Not playing around

Spirit Halloween, the retailer known for slinging costumes in abandoned strip malls, is trying its luck at staying open for more than three months. Spirit will convert 10 Halloween stores into Christmas stores next month, swapping out Scream for Santa.

Stocks rose yesterday, boosted by tech. October is off to a rocky start for markets with the escalating conflict in the Middle East, the US election approaching, and strong jobs data tempering hopes for big rate cuts.

Counting Robux… Roblox stock dropped as much as 9% yesterday after a report from noted short seller Hindenburg Research accused the gaming platform of misleading investors and regulators about its user #s. In announcing a short position in the tween-favorite platform, Hindenburg is betting the stock will fall. And fall it did after Hindenburg published its scathing report, alleging that Roblox is “consistently overstating the amount of people on its platform.” It also called it “a pedophile hellscape.”

Don’t sell yourself short… sell others short? Short sellers are kind of like investigative journalists… but with major conflicts of interest. Short-selling firms like Hindenburg pick companies whose stocks they believe will fall, and then make trades hoping to profit on that belief. Hindenburg is infamous for publishing reports explaining why it’s shorting certain companies (often it says it found out something sus about the biz). Roblox is far from its first target. One consequential example:

Short reports can move markets… Indian tycoon Gautam Adani saw $80B of his wealth wiped out after Hindenburg accused his conglomerate of accounting fraud. Block shares plunged after Hindenburg said it had inflated Cash App user #s. Short reports can improve transparency and accountability, but the firms behind them are driven by their own incentives.

All dogs go to… Walmart. America’s largest retailer said it’s opening five new pet-services centers this fall next door to its main stores — so shoppers can buy milk and a rabies shot in the same trip. Walmart said its first vet-and-groomer locations, which opened last year, have been getting two paws up. Cat and dog parents made return trips to the centers for services like nail trims and vaccines. While they waited for Milo’s appointment to wrap up, they bought pet food and supplies. Walmart also plans to make its vet telehealth service, Pawp, a permanent benefit for Walmart+ subscribers after it became last year’s most popular limited-time offer.

Retail’s best friend… Americans scooped up puppies and kittens during the pandemic, and overall industry spend’s expected to pop 113% from 2019 to 2030. Individually, owners are expected to spend $1.5K on their pets next year and $1.7K by 2030. And as pandemic pets age, retailers are expanding from usually one-time supplies like beds and crates to services like vets and groomers. Online pet retailer Chewy launched its first vet centers this year, while Petco’s opened hundreds of clinics in its stores since 2018 (when it had just 10).

The tail’s always wagging… Experts say the pet industry is resilient in tough economic times. Pet parents, who Walmart said are increasingly higher-income Gen Zers, tend to keep splurging on treats for Fido even as they cut back on their personal budgets. In other words, retailers are counting on the power of puppy eyes. 

The trader, who made and lost his fortune trading Tesla options, is suing RBC, arguing the bank’s at fault. Read more.

66% of the video-game publishers that’ve existed since the 1970s are now defunct

Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Alphabet, Block, Disney, Uber, and Walmart

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