The Economics of Everyday Things

Who decides which snacks are in your office’s vending machine? How much is a suburban elm tree worth, and to whom? How did Girl Scout Cookies become a billion-dollar business? In bite-sized episodes, journalist Zachary Crockett looks at quotidian things and finds amazing stories.

74 episodes transcribed
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11. Cashmere

Episode Date: July 24, 2023

Once a luxury good, the soft fiber is now everywhere — which has led to a goat boom in Mongolia. Zachary Crockett tugs at the thread.

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10. Michelin Stars

Episode Date: July 17, 2023

Only the finest restaurants have a chance to bask in their glow. Sometimes, it’s a bit too bright. Zachary Crockett squints at the menu.

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9. Bowling Alleys

Episode Date: July 10, 2023

Once America’s favorite recreational activity, bowling has been in the gutter for decades. But some surviving alleys are resetting the pins. Zachary C...

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7. Animal Urine

Episode Date: June 26, 2023

One creature’s trash is another’s cash. Zachary Crockett flushes out the numbers with a man who found profit in pee.

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6. T. rex Skeletons

Episode Date: June 19, 2023

How do they emerge from the Upper Cretaceous period to end up in natural-history museums and private collections? Zachary Crockett digs for answers.

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5. Sports Mascots

Episode Date: June 12, 2023

We’re not sure what that creature cavorting on the sidelines is — but it doesn’t come cheap. Zachary Crockett gets the ballpark figures on everyone’s...

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4. Used Hotel Soaps

Episode Date: February 13, 2023

Hotel guests adore those cute little soaps, but is it just a one-night stand? Zachary Crockett discovers what happens when we love ’em and leave ’em.

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2. Girl Scout Cookies

Episode Date: January 30, 2023

How does America's cutest sales force get billions of Thin Mints, Samoas, and Tagalongs into our hands every year? Zachary Crockett digs in.

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1. Gas Stations

Episode Date: January 23, 2023

In our first episode, host Zachary Crockett sidles up to the pump to ask:  Who owns your local gas station, and where do their profits really come fro...