The Empire Builders Podcast

By: Stephen Semple and David Young
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  • Summary

  • Reverse engineering the success of established business empires.
    The Empire Builders Podcast
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Leadership Management Marketing Economics
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Episodes
  • #171: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Cowabunga, Dude

    #171: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Cowabunga, Dude
    Sep 18 2024
    A one point more TMNT action figures where sold than Snickers chocolate bars. Instantly qualifies as an Empire. Dave Young: Welcome to the Empire Builders podcast, teaching business owners the not so secret techniques that took famous businesses from mom and pop to major brands. Stephen Semple is a marketing consultant, story collector, and storyteller. I'm Stephen's sidekick and business partner, Dave Young. Before we get into today's episode, word from our sponsor, which is, well, it's us, but we're highlighting ads we've written and produced for our clients, so here's one of those. [Tapper's Jewelry Ad] Stephen Semple: Dave, if I say to you the names Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael, what do you think of? Dave Young: I'm guessing that we're not talking about Renaissance artists. Stephen Semple: Not really. Dave Young: We're heading off into Turtleland. Stephen Semple: We're heading off into Turtleland, exactly. But isn't it interesting? That speaks to how big Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are. Where you can say to pretty much anybody those names and yeah, you don't go to Renaissance artists. You go, oh, we're talking about the turtles, right? Dave Young: Yeah, for sure. Especially people a little bit younger than us, but absolutely. Stephen Semple: Yeah. Well, and they went through a revival just recently. There was another one of the movies out, and it's really interesting. That movie was an illustrated movie, and I went and saw that with my oldest daughter, Crystal, who's an illustrator. Man, the illustration style in it was amazing. When you talk about emotions, they really captured that teenage boy chaotic energy. You could really feel it, but that's what it's supposed to be. It was actually really, really well done. Really well done. Dave Young: Well, cool. Now, I have to confess, I don't know, other than I recognize the names and there's the cowabunga thing, the big catchphrase, but honestly, I raised four daughters that weren't into it, and it's after my childhood, so I didn't get into it either so I'm excited to hear the story. I've watched these turtles from afar. Stephen Semple: That's even interesting. When you think about that, and yet you still instantaneously knew what I was referring to, which tells you how strong a presence it had in culture given the fact that you've never seen the comics, you've never seen the movie. It didn't hit you at the right time, didn't hit your kids, and yet you were like zero hesitation. Dave Young: You couldn't hide from it. Stephen Semple: Correct, yes. Dave Young: It was so big. You couldn't hide from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Stephen Semple: But that just in itself captures how big it was. Dave Young: I'm trying to think of what else. Oh, they ate pizza. They eat a lot of pizza. Stephen Semple: That's it. The first comic was published by Mirage Studios, and Mirage Studios was started by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. The first comic was published in 1984. Today, Mirage Studios is like a $17 billion multimedia franchise. In 1990, just give you an idea, at the peak, Target sold more Turtle action figures than Snickers bars. Yeah, isn't that crazy? Dave Young: More than Snickers bars. Stephen Semple: More than Snickers bars. Dave Young: These weren't even chocolate turtles. Stephen Semple: No, these were the action figures. No, not the chocolate turtles. Very good. Dave Young: See what I did there? Stephen Semple: Yeah, yeah, I did. In 2009, it was sold to Viacom for $60 million bucks. Dave Young: Man. All right. Stephen Semple: Yeah, so Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman, they did well. They were artists, and they wanted to create this comic and it sort of started as a joke. In the eighties, if you think in the eighties, there was these tacky martial arts movies that ran overnight.
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    19 mins
  • #170: Connect 4 – Tic Tac Checkers

    #170: Connect 4 – Tic Tac Checkers
    Sep 11 2024
    Dave Dave Young had no recollection of this game. Really, he didn't know. But after hearing this story he applauds Howard Wexler for knowing himself. Dave Young: Welcome to the Empire Builders podcast, teaching business owners the not-so-secret techniques that took famous businesses from mom and pop to major brands. Stephen Semple is a marketing consultant, story collector and storyteller. I'm Stephen's sidekick and business partner, Dave Young. Before we get into today's episode, word from our sponsor, which is, well, it's us, but we're highlighting ads we've written and produced for our clients. So here's one of those. [JS Pest Control Ad] Dave Young: Welcome to the Empire Builders podcast. Dave Young here with Stephen Semple. And we're telling the stories of empires that were built up by people with an idea, business people. And Stephen just whispered today's topic into my ear and I don't know. Stephen Semple: You know the game. Connect Four. Dave Young: Connect Four. I don't think I've ever played Connect Four. It's a game? Stephen Semple: You've never played. Dave Young: You're telling me it's a game. Stephen Semple: It's a game. I'm telling you it's a game. Dave Young: Is it a computer game? Stephen Semple: No. Dave Young: It's a board game. Stephen Semple: No, no, it's not a board game either. And that's what makes it interesting. It's the one which is a vertical game and you connect four, you drop them in the top and you connect ... Dave Young: Oh, you drop those little things. Yeah. No, I've never played that. Stephen Semple: You've never played it? Okay. Dave Young: No, I never have. I've seen people doing it and I thought it was, well, it's just sort like cornhole or some stupid thing. Stephen Semple: But now you the game ... Dave Young: I've seen people playing it with a giant set and beers in their hands. Stephen Semple: Yeah. Okay. Dave Young: Okay. Stephen Semple: All right. Dave Young: It's that game. Stephen Semple: It's that game. Well, despite the fact you've never played ... Dave Young: Let me guess, let me guess. Stephen Semple: It's done pretty well. Dave Young: Let me guess. You have to have four colors in a row. Stephen Semple: You have to have four colors in a row. That's it. That's it. Connect Four. Dave Young: All right. Stephen Semple: Despite the fact that you've never played the game, it has done pretty well. Sorry. Dave Young: How many do they sell? Let's get that in. Stephen Semple: About 10 million a year. Dave Young: All right. That's it. Thanks for joining us on the Empire Builders. Stephen Semple: Wow. It's amazing how many times we do this stuff and you know something about the company. I would never have guessed that this is the one that you would not know it. Dave Young: Look, I don't even know if I want to admit this, but yeah, I don't have friends that invite me to play games. Stephen Semple: But I would've thought you would've at least remembered the advertisement. It's a pretty iconic ad that has been done. It was back in the late seventies and it was two kids playing. Dave Young: This was around in the 70s? Stephen Semple: Yes. Dave Young: Did I just wake up from a coma? Stephen Semple: You must have. There was a really iconic advertisement where the two little kids would be playing and the girl would say, "I won." And the boy would go, "I can't see it. Where?" And then she would point out the four in a row and he'd be like, "Pretty sneaky sis," and then pull a little thing and all the pieces would fall. Dave Young: Yeah. I have no memory of this. Stephen Semple: Where were you from? Nebraska. Dave Young: That's basically it. We were too busy working on cornhole technology. Stephen Semple: I guess. Anyway,
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    18 mins
  • #169: Hilton – Unlucky???

    #169: Hilton – Unlucky???
    Sep 4 2024
    Conrad Hilton, despite being unlucky, created what we now know to be the hotel experience. Always improving customer experience. Dave Young: Welcome to The Empire Builders Podcast, teaching business owners the not-so-secret techniques that took famous businesses from mom and pop to major brands. Stephen Semple is a marketing consultant, story collector, and storyteller. I'm Stephen's sidekick and business partner Dave Young. Before we get into today's episode, a word from our sponsor, which is, well, it's us, but we're highlighting ads we've written and produced for our clients. So here's one of those. [Tommy Cool HVAC Ad] Dave Young: Welcome back To the Empire Builders podcast. Dave Young here with Stephen Semple, and we're telling the stories of empires, people that started with a little idea that ended up being huge. And as we got started here, Stephen whispered in my ear that we're going to talk about Hilton. Stephen Semple: Yeah. Dave Young: And we're not talking about Conrad's granddaughter Paris Hilton who made a big name what in the '90s? Stephen Semple: I was wondering if you were going to go there. Dave Young: She's like chapter three of this story, I think. Stephen Semple: We don't have time for that story. Dave Young: For her to have that lifestyle, grandpa's got to make a lot of money. Stephen Semple: Yeah. Well, Conrad Hilton, I mean, Hilton is huge. Dave Young: Yeah. Stephen Semple: They now have over a million rooms. They have like 7,500 locations in 124 countries. But the interesting thing is Conrad Hilton really invented how we look at hotels today. Dave Young: Okay. Stephen Semple: He really is the founder of that idea. And as we go through this story, one of the things that really captivated me about this story, a lot of times when we're covering these things, yes, people have an observation, and yes, they're brilliant. But there's always this bit of element of luck. There's a little bit of this catching lightning in a bottle. Conrad Hilton was terribly unlucky and it's amazing the things that he had to overcome. Dave Young: Oh wow. Stephen Semple: This guy did not have luck on his side. So I want you to keep that in mind as we go through this story, which makes me admire him more actually. Dave Young: Sure. And as I think about what that brand means to me, before I know the story. I don't think in my youth I had a whole lot of experience staying at a Hilton hotel, but there were certain hotel brands that meant something, that people understood. Stephen Semple: Yeah. Dave Young: If you knew if you were staying at a Holiday Inn on an interstate highway, if it had the word Holidome on it, you're in for a nice swim and a good time in an air-conditioned big space. Stephen Semple: Yes. Dave Young: And if you had the money and you were traveling for business or something, you knew that the Hilton brand- Stephen Semple: Yes. Dave Young: Would be a consistently better experience than most one-off hotels. Most. But there was always, every downtown always had one grand hotel. Stephen Semple: Yes. Dave Young: But then if they had a Hilton too, you'd say, "Oh, well the Hilton, right?" Because the other ones have their quirks. Stephen Semple: Yeah. And I think- Dave Young: The Hilton was always going to be a traveler, a business traveler's hotel. Stephen Semple: I travel a fair bit and I like staying in Hiltons, but I think before we go into the story, I think there's one mistake though that the, and hopefully somebody from Hilton listens to this and calls us and we can help them clean this up for them. They have one mistake that I think they've all done because they all now have all sorts of different brands. Hilton's got like 24 different labels or whatever. Here's the thing that they need to do. They need to look at each one of them and make them ...
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    20 mins

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