Business Wars

It’s 1995 and the Monday Night Wars are underway. WCW’s new show Monday Nitro is grappling with the WWF’s Monday Night Raw to win TV viewers’ attention.WCW isn’t pulling its punches either. Under the command of Eric Bischoff, WCW is dropping spoiler bombs, luring away WWF’s top wrestlers and trashing the WWF brand.And as WCW gains momentum, Bischoff is plotting a killer blow – a shock role reversal that will force WWF boss Vince McMahon to rethink how his wrestling promotion works.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s 1994 and WCW is stepping up its game. To get the jump on WWF, Ted Turner is writing big checks to steal away the WWF’s biggest stars and sponsors. And as WCW’s star power increases, so does its popularity with wrestling fans.But the WWF is in no position to fight back. It’s struggling to keep the lights on, there’s discontent among its roster of wrestlers, and Vince McMahon is preoccupied with staying out of prison.And now Turner wants to deliver a killer blow. A new Monday night wrestling show that will go head to head with the WWF’s flagship TV program Monday Night Raw.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s the dawn of the 1990s and Vince McMahon’s WWF is the king of wrestling. But trouble’s brewing: a steroids scandal is about to deal a body blow to the WWF and its family-friendly reputation.The scandal will leave WWF stuck in damage control mode as it fights to stem the losses from falling TV ratings, ticket sales, and pay-per-view buys.Meanwhile, Ted Turner’s trying to get World Championship Wrestling fighting fit with help from a former Pizza Hut regional manager, a self-proclaimed Cowboy, and a back-up announcer who wants to bring wrestling to Disney World.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This episode is brought to you by Wondery in partnership with Dell Technologies. In honor of small businesses, we're featuring inspiring stories of successful companies that started out small.It’s 1970 and Gert Boyle’s life is in ruins. Her husband’s just died, and now, as a middle-aged stay-at-home single mom, she’s become the boss of the family’s debt-ridden outerwear company.No one – herself included – thinks she can save the business. But she’s about to find an inner strength that will enable her to yank the business back from the cliff’s edge and haul it straight to the summit.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s the early 1980s and there’s peace in the wrestling business. For years regional wrestling companies have maintained order by sticking to their own slices of US and Canadian territory.But that’s all about to change. Vince McMahon has just taken over the World Wrestling Federation, and he wants war. He’s on a mission to crush all opposition and establish the WWF as the only wrestling game in town.But his assault on the wrestling status quo will also make him a powerful enemy: cable TV mogul Ted Turner.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This episode is brought to you by Wondery in partnership with Dell Technologies. In honor of small businesses, we're featuring inspiring stories of successful companies that started out small.It’s 1961 and Tom Monaghan is about to drop out of college and put his all into the hole-in-the-wall pizzeria he founded with his brother.But the recipe for success is going to prove elusive. To make it, he’ll have to overcome flaky business partners, a devastating fire, and run-ins with debt collectors.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

BioNTech, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca. These companies are now household names thanks to their COVID-19 vaccines. The gambles these businesses took are paying off. The pharmaceutical giants are in line to profit heavily from their life-saving work, but the system of distributing the vaccines has seen its fair share of hiccups and controversy.We spoke to Annalisa Merelli, a healthcare reporter for Quartz about the pandemic, the economic effects of the vaccine rollout and the current surge in COVID cases in India.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s late 2020 and the first vaccines are going into arms across the world.With supplies tight, the nations of the world are pushing and shoving to get their shots, and investors are salivating at the thought of the profits to be made now that humanity’s got Covid’s on the run.But this virus isn’t going down without a fight. And in South Africa, one geneticist is about to make an alarming discovery.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s fall 2020 and the world’s waiting for the first results from the vaccine trials.But as the moment of truth nears, the pressure on the vaccine makers intensifies.And while AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson get hit with curveballs, Pfizer finds itself caught in the crossfire of the U.S. Presidential election.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s summer 2020 and with Covid infections surging across America, the Trump administration’s ready to spend billions to get a vaccine fast.For vaccine makers — who face the enormous costs of rapidly upscaling manufacturing and pushing their shots through large-scale human trials — the government funding is a lifeline.But as the push to create vaccines hits warp speed, there’s a growing need to reassure the public that science, not politics, is in the driver’s seat.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s February 2020 and drugmaker Moderna’s sprinting ahead – its Covid vaccine is already poised to enter human trials.But Moderna and its rivals know plenty of vaccines never make it out of trials alive. It’s also going to take a lot of manufacturing muscle to inoculate the world. All of which costs a lot of moolah.And if the vaccine makers can’t secure a deep-pocketed partner in time, they’re going to get disqualified from the race.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s 25 years before the pandemic and at the University of Pennsylvania a Hungarian biochemist is fighting a one-woman campaign to figure out how to create mRNA vaccines.But no one wants to fund her research and every lab rat she injects with mRNA dies.Now, she must decide between her career and her belief in mRNA’s medical potential. And her choice will change the world.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s early January 2020, and a mysterious new virus is overtaking the city of Wuhan, China.At first the outbreak barely makes the news, but as the threat comes into focus, scientists spring into action to make a vaccine. But the outlook’s grim – vaccines take years to create, test and approve. No one expects one to arrive anytime soon.But for two ambitious biotech start-ups, this is a chance to show the world what their cutting-edge tech can do.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

After decades in KFC’s shadow, Chick-fil-A rode a wave of chicken sandwich obsession to industry dominance. But for how long? Will consumers tire of the relative simplicity of fried chicken in between two pieces of bread? For more on the emergence of the chicken sandwich as fast food’s favorite son, we speak to Nick Wiger — writer, comedian, and host of the Doughboys podcast. Wiger gets to the bottom of the chicken trend, speculates on what’s next at the drive-thru, and discusses whether or not plant-based protein has a place on the menu.Pre-order our new book The Art of Business Wars now before it is released on April 13.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/businesswars.Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-

Our new book, The Art of Business Wars, takes fans through stories they've heard on Business Wars and some that are completely new. Host David Brown is joined by Next Big Idea's Rufus Griscom to discuss how the book came together, what makes a great Business Wars story, and preview some of the never-before-seen rivalries sure to thrill long-time listeners. The Art of Business Wars is available now from all major booksellers.https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-next-big-idea/id1482067226See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s the the early 2000’s and the animal rights group PETA accuses KFC of cruelty in their poultry processing and creating “Frankenchickens.” As KFC revenues tumble, Chick-fil-A surges ahead, cultivating fanatic customers with opening day parties and lavish food giveaways. But when President Dan Cathy makes controversial remarks against same-sex marriage, Chick-fil-A becomes a battleground. Meanwhile, Popeyes new CEO reverses the chain’s long downward slide by returning the company to its Louisiana roots. He introduces snappy new advertising and Cajun recipes, including the company’s first fried chicken sandwich. Rising to the challenge, Chick-fil-A attacks their rival with some savvy twitter swordplay over whose sandwich reigns supreme. The ensuing social media frenzy inspires a nationwide rush on both chains, but KFC is left out in the cold. Then the great sandwich wars of 2019 help bring about a shocking upset in the world of southern fried fowl, just as all the players begin to plan for a more sustai

It’s the 1970’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken has yet another new owner: Heublein, the company known for introducing Americans to Smirnoff’s vodka. But KFC brand ambassador Harland Sanders creates a PR fiasco by accusing his new corporate bosses of letting standards slide and ruining the company. As the recession and Sanders wrath hammer revenues, the chain radically changes course, and commits to a “Re-colonelization,” reinstating many of Sanders’ original recipes, and reinvesting in its disenchanted franchisees. Kentucky Fried Chicken surges just as Chick-fil-A makes a series of fatal errors; they lose millions in a marketing misstep, and take on debt to expand rapidly in shopping centers. As the recession deepens, and consumers as well as developers shun malls, Chick-fil-A faces financial ruin. Meanwhile, Popeyes has his own debt-fueled misadventures. Owner Al Copeland leans hard into the 1980s junk bond market and attempts to catch up with KFC by leveraging a hostile takeover of Church’s Fried Chicken,

oo often in business, taking two positions is the same as taking none. You can only carve out one at a time — so choose wisely. To read more lessons from The Art of Business Wars and to order your copy, visit wondery.com/the-art-of-business-wars. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s the late 1960s and Kentucky Fried Chicken’s new owner takes the rapidly expanding franchise public. America’s hottest new IPO makes dozens of employees instant millionaires, but not Harland Sanders, who sold his company for cash. Now brand ambassador, Sanders regrets his decision and attempts a coup. As civil war rages at Kentucky Fried Chicken, diner owner Truett Cathy in Georgia makes a life-changing decision: to open his own restaurant chain in the brand new frontier of the American shopping mall. But while Kentucky Fried Chicken and Chick-fil-A focus on growing their fiefdoms, a young donut shop owner in New Orleans turns his attention to creating the perfect spicy fried chicken recipe, and finds inspiration for its name from an unlikely source: a movie about an aging cop called Popeye Doyle. Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.lin

It’s the 1950s in Kentucky and Harland Sanders faces bankruptcy once again. 65-years-old, broke, unemployed and desperate, he barnstorms the country, living out of his car, selling his secret fried chicken recipe to restaurant and diner owners. Franchising is a new concept and it’s hard going, but Sanders makes an invaluable convert of Pete Harman, a Utah restaurateur, who becomes his first franchisee. Harman creates the icons of the Kentucky Fried Chicken brand, including its name, and becomes a lifelong champion of the company. Meanwhile in Atlanta, a local airline presents Truett Cathy with a surplus of boneless chicken, which he slips into a bun and turns into pure southern fried chicken gold. Pre-order our new book The Art of Business Wars now before it is released on April 13.Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/business